Front brake lever adjustment on a GS450?

[Guest]

Pardon me in advance if this has been asked before or is in the wrong area...

My bike: GS450TX
Brakes: stock everything.
My question is this: Is there a brake lever adjustment on our front brake? Mine is way out there and only allows for about 1 inch of movement before becoming rock hard. It functions perfectly, it's just way out there and at the end of my finger reach. Would this be an aftermarket modification or should I just heat+bend the lever in a little? Any suggestions on replacement enhancements?
I plan to replace the line with SS once I start replacing/rebuilding parts.

Thanks in advance!
(below is just a reference pic of what I am looking for)

 

[fastbysuzuki]

When you replace the old rubber lines you may well find that the lever is even further away. Personally I would not bend the lever as you could introduce a metal fatigue fault that's some thing you really do not want.
The picture you show would be the best option perhaps someone on here has fitted one?

 

[Steve]

Stock levers have no adjustment. You are fortunate that they seem to work as well as they do. Usually, the lever can be pulled almost all the way to the bar.

If you go for adjustable levers, be aware that Suzuki brake light switches are unique. Not all aftermarket levers will accommodate them. The alternative is to use a hydraulic switch as one of the banjo bolts.

Personally, I do not care for the hydraulic switch as it takes pressure to activate it. I like the option to flash the light a time or three if a car behind be "deserves" it. With the pressure required to activate the hydraulic switch, you are applying the brakes quite a bit, making it hard to simply flash the light.

.

 

[Guest]

Excellent info. I believe I'll keep it stock for now and use my torch to heat it and bend it gently with a metric wrench like this guy did. Mind you, I'll do my very best not to break the ball off the end

 

[Steve]

I just watched the video, but I am highly skeptical about heating and bending an aluminum lever. :-k

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[fastbysuzuki]

Yes the guys description of his self "motorcycle nut" seems to be a fair description very professional indeed (not) after him braking the ball off you can see how fatigue faults arise do you really want the lever to break when in use?

 

[roeme]

There are a lot of adjustable, generic aftermarket brake levers(&perch); though from a cursory glance they all seem come with a separate reservoir. This may or may not work for you (visuals and stuff). Couldn't find adjustable ones with an integrated reservoir, on a spot.

Bending the clutch lever is ok. I wouldn't do it to the brake lever.

I've replaced the brake lever on one my GS'es with an aforementioned style of brake lever; this fit the clubman bars very well.

Edit: there seem to be adjustable aftermarket levers (without perch) that can be mounted in place of the stock lever. Prices seem to be really out there, though.

 

[Baatfam]

You need to find one of these...

 

[Gorminrider]

^^ those are pretty common on ebay but mostly fit Hondas.(which often have Nissin Brakes) Finding a set to match an 80's 450 is tricky...the big flap that activates the Honda-type microswitch for brakelights can be cut off etc etc , but they still don't match activating the brake piston very well...in my present experience anyways. (i'm still looking)
Finding a combo-MasterCylinder+Lever will work if you find one that roughly matches the diameter of your original MC piston...ie: you want it to work in the same "travel" or the fancy levers are a waste...

the other idea that might work(I havent needed to try it) is maybe to file down-reshape where the original lever contacts the piston of the MC...this will make your lever loose until it contacts the piston so you'll want to put a wedge in at the axle of the lever. Also, you'll have to adjust the brake-light switch or replace it with a hydraulic-type switch (which are cheap and reliable in my experience, albeit ugly) You would want to have a spare lever to try this or at least have a source for a replacement...

I've seen old levers bent in tight curves without failure. I've straightened small bends too without observing cracks or any breakage. But I don't like it beyond a temporary fix for gentle use. Still, a one-time, one-way bend is better than straightening, which is a two-way bend.

 

[Guest]

Is the brake actuation in the 1 inch of movement gradual, or does it apply the brakes all at once? I had what you described, the brake lever would engage the brakes fully after about an inch of pull, and it felt like it was either 0 braking force or 100% braking force, no in betweens. The MC needed to be rebuilt, I think it was the return port was partially or fully blocked so it wouldn't work normally. Something to check on if the bike had really cruddy brake fluid in it when you bought it.

 

[salty_monk]

I've bent the levers on every bike I've had where they are not adjustable to accommodate my small fingers...

Aluminium will take one bend easily as long as it's not too far. I have also straightened levers for friends after a tip-over. All without issue...

Aluminium doesn't like repeated bends. No need to heat in my experience. I've always done it on some kind of setup of blocks (to get the bend in the right place) and a 2lb hammer....

 

[Grimly]

Excellent info. I believe I'll keep it stock for now and use my torch to heat it and bend it gently with a metric wrench like this guy did. Mind you, I'll do my very best not to break the ball off the end 

Frankly, I haven't seen anything so stupid for a long time.
Or maybe last week. The world is full of stupid people.

If your master cylinder has a 5/8" (nearly 16mm) bore then fit a Honda Deauville m.c. with fully adjustable lever.
If it's 14mm, there are several m.cs available from the likes of 400 Kawasakis with fully adjustable levers.

 

[salty_monk]

That's pretty extreme... I've never needed to alter mine by more than a few degrees. There are other master cylinder options out there as Grimly says. I use one from an EX650 - they are 16mm too.

The "Dull" ville is not common here...

 

[LAB3]

My problem is just the opposite, my hands are quite large. One mine I was able to loosen the MC mount and slide it a bit away from the throttle to get my natural hand position toward the end of the lever, that in itself improved my stopping power tremendously since I had more leverage to work with. You may want to try the opposite and see if you can slide the MC closer to the throttle, the bend will be closer to the grip but it'll be like "choking up" on a baseball bat and you'll have a bit less leverage.