Brakes

[JHMusgrave]

I need some new brake pads for my VT. Any suggestions on brand/sellers?

[J6G1Z]

I need some new brake pads for my VT. Any suggestions on brand/sellers?

I'm not real up to speed in the Braking department, but I think you have two choices. Galfer Brakes & EBC Brakes.
http://www.galferusa.com
http://www.ebcbrakes.com
You need to find out if there is a choice of brake pad compounds to choose from for your bike. I used to run the harder semi-metallic, etc. type of pads, but lately I have been using the organic pads in an attempt to preserve my brake disks.

If you can afford it, treat your bike & yourself to a new braided stainless steel front brake line. I'm guessing that your bike probably still has the original front brake line. They were somewhat soft & flexible when new & is most likely real soft at this age. You will be very pleased with the increased brake response & feedback that you will receive with a new braided SS line. You can order a new line from Galfer or Spiegler. http://spieglerusa.com

I like to custom order my lines. I usually make them about two inches longer than I need & I like to have a 90 degree end on the top side where the line enters the master cylinder. That way the line exits the master & then parallels the bars for a few inches. Makes for a nicer, tighter installation. Below are a couple of pictures of the 90 degree ends on a two line front brake kit.

Good luck
J.

[2fast2young]

I'm running a Galfer SS brakeline on a freshly rebuilt master cylinder, has plenty of power, but a wee bit numb. May try to swap MC's at some point in the future.

As far as pads go, I'm running an NOS pair of SBS Ceramic pads I picked up wicked cheap on fleabay. They are shit until warm, at which point they are a bit grabby. Mostly city riding means I will probably burn them up quickly, next set will definitely be a semi-sintered or kevlar based pad, these are just too aggressive for street work.

[J6G1Z]

Be careful that your pads don't chew up your disks faster than you want.

I've been swapping back to a good organic pad after buying some disks recently.

J.

[2fast2young]

I just put a fresh EBC disc on it, and I have been watching it closely. As I said, I got these current pads for about $15, so I may swap them a bit early if I see them chewing the disc too bad. So far so good.

[Lefty]

Where did you get your EBC disc? I saw one on Ebay for 165.00 & that's a little too expensive.

[J6G1Z]

Motorcycle brake disks are expensive. I don't understand why they cost 3-4X or more of the cost of an automotive disk.

I might have a couple of used Ascot disks if anyone is interested in trying to re-use one.

J.

[Lefty]

I'm interested! I'm guessing the front & rear are the same on the FT?
 And yes, it's qite ridiculous how much less material there is compared to a car's discs and they cost close to triple!let me know the particulars in a PM when you have a minute or two.

[J6G1Z]

Will do.

J.