Brake mods for a Gen II

[Ghost-Geezer]

A little birdie told me that Galfer stainless lines and HH pads with DOT 4 fluid would be a good move on my Gen II.  Anybody else concur or have additional information?

[Rubber2Burn]

It will stiffen your braking.  I have the Gafler lines and EBC HH pads on my Gen I and I must say the braking is much better than stock.  It is mainly the lines that provide the better stopping power as they do not expand and constrict like the stock rubber lines.  It was a good investment.

[wildphil69]

at least go to ebc HH pads....they will double stopping power

[Ghost-Geezer]

Thanks guys,
                      I will likely go the full route and change the lines and the pads.  Are the stock discs OK? Or is there a better alternative?
Dave

[wildphil69]

stock discs are fine

[Ghost-Geezer]

Consider it done............my mechanic, Eric,  will be back off vacation next week........I will put him on it.  Braking is important.   

And before you ask, I will tell you that I spent well over half my life working on my own stuff; now that I am in my 60's I have no problem with Eric doin' it, he is 11 years younger and very, very, good. 

[gjp1300]

EBC hh pads with Galfer lines makes a huge improvement,less brake dust the the organic stock pads

[Cookie]

[Ghost-Geezer]

Can I just run the pads with that fluid and keep the stock lines? 

[Cookie]

Can I just run the pads with that fluid and keep the stock lines?  

Sure. But it's kind of like having a Bacon and Eggs breakfast and leaving out the Bacon!  

Gotta ask this; "Why are you so afraid of the steel braided line modification?"

Step up! Get it done!

[Cookie]

It's one of THE simplest mods to do yourself! 





 










Do you even own a screwdriver? 

[Ghost-Geezer]

My only concern is that with the Gen-Mar risers on the bars, the lines might be too short.  I had to stretch the stock lines to the max when I put the risers on.
Rubber stretches, steel don't.

Yes in fact I have a two stage standing tool box and a work bench and I have 18 screwdrivers.  I just counted them.   

[Cookie]

My only concern is that with the Gen-Mar risers on the bars, the lines might be too short.  I had to stretch the stock lines to the max when I put the risers on.
Rubber stretches, steel don't.

Yes in fact I have a two stage standing tool box and a work bench and I have 18 screwdrivers.  I just counted them.    

At least you are on the right path.  

And,, you may have a load of screwdrivers,,, but like ever harley owner, past present, future,,, tell us about your hammer collection!  

Now, THAT,, is probably the most impressive!  

[Ghost-Geezer]

My only concern is that with the Gen-Mar risers on the bars, the lines might be too short.  I had to stretch the stock lines to the max when I put the risers on.
Rubber stretches, steel don't.

Yes in fact I have a two stage standing tool box and a work bench and I have 18 screwdrivers.  I just counted them.    

At least you are on the right path.  

And,, you may have a load of screwdrivers,,, but like ever harley owner, past present, future,,, tell us about your hammer collection!  

Now, THAT,, is probably the most impressive!  

I have two regular claw hammers, one 12 lb sledge hammer, one ball peen hammer, and two rubber mallets, one big and one small.   

[Cookie]

My only concern is that with the Gen-Mar risers on the bars, the lines might be too short.  I had to stretch the stock lines to the max when I put the risers on.
Rubber stretches, steel don't.

Yes in fact I have a two stage standing tool box and a work bench and I have 18 screwdrivers.  I just counted them.    

At least you are on the right path.  

And,, you may have a load of screwdrivers,,, but like ever harley owner, past present, future,,, tell us about your hammer collection!  

Now, THAT,, is probably the most impressive!  

I have two regular claw hammers, one 12 lb sledge hammer, one ball peen hammer, and two rubber mallets, one big and one small.   

IF you have them in a red bag next to the front door so you can run at a moments notice to get in your pick'emup,,

I will know for a fact you are a true harley owner! 

[Ghost-Geezer]

The only thing next to my front door is a pistol grip, 12 gage, 7 round capacity, M-500 2 & 3/4" 00 buckshot with 1 in the chamber and 5 loaded behind it.  Safety is on.

[Busashot]

The calipers are the weakest part of the Hayabusa braking system. Weak clamping force.

If you have the radial mount calipers, going to ZX14R calipers w/spacers or an adapter will be extremely noticeable by itself. Of course nothing beats the Brembo calipers 

In order of necessity after the calipers:

2) Brake lines
3) Brake pads
4) Brake master cylinder
5) Brake Discs

[Ghost-Geezer]

That is a lot of money! 

[Busashot]

That is a lot of money! 

Tell me about it but now I stop like a GP bike, ok not quite and I don't have everything yet. Oh yea, a good suspension will make the braking better as well.......more money.......ask me how I know....

Ohlins Forks and Shock
BrakeTech SS Brake Rotors Front
Galfer Rear Brake Rotor - Only needed for "Oh shit" moments.
SBS HH Brake Pads
Brembo Radial Master Cylinder 19x20
HEL Brake Lines
Carrozzeria Forged Aluminum Wheels
Ceramic Wheel Bearings

The only thing I am lacking is the ZX14 Calipers with the Radial Mount adapter brackets then I am good enough. The ZX14s are excellent calipers by Nissin and are quite affordable by $1000 compared to Brembos. Should stop a 300+hp Turbo motorcycle just fine from ludicrous speeds to pussy footin' jaunts


Steve

[Cookie]

That is a lot of money! 

Tell me about it but now I stop like a GP bike, ok not quite and I don't have everything yet. Oh yea, a good suspension will make the braking better as well.......more money.......ask me how I know....

Ohlins Forks and Shock
BrakeTech SS Brake Rotors Front
Galfer Rear Brake Rotor - Only needed for "Oh shit" moments.
SBS HH Brake Pads
Brembo Radial Master Cylinder 19x20
HEL Brake Lines
Carrozzeria Forged Aluminum Wheels
Ceramic Wheel Bearings

The only thing I am lacking is the ZX14 Calipers with the Radial Mount adapter brackets then I am good enough. The ZX14s are excellent calipers by Nissin and are quite affordable by $1000 compared to Brembos. Should stop a 300+hp Turbo motorcycle just fine from ludicrous speeds to pussy footin' jaunts


Steve

Steve, can you please post up detailed pictures of that set up? Master cylinder mounting especially. Top and bottom shots?  Also talk about how you wired the rear brake wiring and/or does Brembo have built in provisions for that. Thnx. 

[Busashot]

Here you go. The mounting on the clip-on is simple as stock. The switch is at the bottom of the double banjo connection at the MC. Wired loosely to the factory plug, I need to clean that up securely but has worked flawlessly for the past 3 years. Rigged up a bracket for the reservoir but need to make a better looking one. Currently I have aftermarket clip-ons that are raised about an inch more than the stock ones. Still have clearance from the windscreen.

[Cookie]

Wow! I really appreciate you going to the extra efforts in snapping all those close up shots! Very, very thorough! I hope your pics last for the life of the thread. It is clearly a demonstration of what a "better" brake set up is for the completely boorish Hayabusa system.

I was going to ask how you addressed the clutch and if you matched that up with Brembo's clutch, but I see the stock MC in one of the pics.

Tell me about the 19x20 and why or how you came to pick that combo over others available? I think I understand that other combinations are more for track and grab to much?

[Busashot]

No need to do a fancy clutch MC as this bike was primarily going to be used for street/drag racing and I use a CO2 air shifter for shifting. I do take it on the road course on occassion and in fact I will be at the last track day here on Oct. 9th. I will go ahead and mount both my GoPros to video some sessions.

I went for the 19x20 because I wanted the best firm feel compared to the lousy soft feel of the stock MC. This is a heavy bike so the added ratio from the 19x20 makes it more confident. Some say it's overkill and a 19x18 would be better but it certainly helps in using less fingers for braking as well as not feeling the lever suddenly getting closer to the bar after only 6-7 hard braking laps. The MC was an excellent upgrade for the feel. The HH pads and the braided brakes lines together was a nice boost. Unfortunately with these 3 mods, the brakes still suck. It's all in the calipers. Then the rotors to handle the better calipers and before you know it you have quite a bit of an investment in the bike. Oh I do use the Motul Brake Fluid DOT 5.1.

All I know is that the ZX14 brakes are fantastic but the BMW S1000s are ridiculously the best that I have ever used.  The Gen II Busa brakes still suck ass. I am up in the air about what calipers that I will choose to get. I have heard that the 07 and newer CBR1Ks have awesome calipers. The ZX14 calipers are getting hard to find and at a reasonable cost. The CBRs are all over the place. We'll see what I end up going with but in the meanwhile I'll put in some fresh Galfer HH pads in the stock calipers and call it good for now. I like the SBS HH pads too but will never ever use the EBCs again. The galfers have ton of braking material compared to the EBCs or the SBS. The initial bite is better which is what I like. They wore fast and when they got super hot they sucked bad. This is just what happened to me at a trackday.

[Cookie]

Hmm, good information from someone of good track experience.  Thanks Steve. Looking forward to the vids.

Here ya go! 

[Ghost-Geezer]

That is awesome!!  Outta my league.