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TufStop brake pads?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Surly
  • Start date Start date
Grandpa said:
So, Surly, I suggest you forget all the crap that superintelligent Boondocks threw at you, buy whatever pad is available, convenient, and inexpensive, install them, and ride and enjoy your motorcycle.

Dumb old Grandpa
Click to expand...


all the responses here are valuable m8...

noones dissen you ya old fart....


thx to all for takin the time

cheers

Phark
 
Surly said:
... The money I'll save will go toward next years braided stainless lines. THAT will make a difference.
Click to expand...


Here's an opinion I bet no one'll want to hear.

I put stainless steel brake lines on my '79 850 three years ago, but guess what? Made very litttle difference--maybe none--in stopping power. I guess it increased my confidence, though, because now I feel I can apply brute force (which you have to do with this motorcycle!) to the lever without bursting the lines. The old OEM lines were 24 years old and I was getting scared!

Bottom line: Stainless steel lines are no magic potion in my experience.
 
While stainless steel brake lines are not a panacea for making your brakes better, they should improve brake feel.
Just remember, when you have your brakes firmly applied, the work is now being done by the pads and rotors. So, unless you changed those as well, overall stopping power will be the same.
 
koolaid_kid said:
While stainless steel brake lines are not a panacea for making your brakes better, they should improve brake feel.
Just remember, when you have your brakes firmly applied, the work is now being done by the pads and rotors. So, unless you changed those as well, overall stopping power will be the same.
Click to expand...

Yes, I did change 'em from the OEM "FF" pads to EBC "GG" pads at the same time I did the lines. The problem is a poor design in the '79 caliper, I think. An '83 850 with OEM rubber lines and OEM pads stops better than the massaged '79 described above.

I'm in the market for a clean set of '80-83 calipers. If anyone has any for sale, please PM me. Many thanks.
 
Changing calipers

Changing calipers

Will these later model 850 calipers you speak of retrofit on the older 1000s? I haven't had nearly enough playing around with brakes lately, a swap would be fu-un.
 
Boondocks just wants everyone to be safe and have the best braking power. He's obviously done his homework and was sharing the knowledge. Granpa has experience on his side and was sharing it with us which we all appreciate. This doesn't have to turn ugly, just a bunch of guys and gals sharing their knowledge of our beloved GS bikes. Phark was being himself and using humor to try to remedy the situation and shouldn't be taken with hostility. Now let's all shake hands and be friends.
 
Surly said:
Will these later model 850 calipers you speak of retrofit on the older 1000s? I haven't had nearly enough playing around with brakes lately, a swap would be fu-un.
Click to expand...

I had a 1979 GS850 with the old style front calipers. I installed the newer (1980 and up) caliper from a previous 850 I was parting out, and they fit perfectly.

Don't know about the 1000's, but I suspect they shared the same calipers as the old 850. Therefore, I venture to guess the new calipers will retrofit.

I deleted my nasty post. Sorry, folks. Especially sorry, Phark.
 
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Grandpa said:
I deleted my nasty post. Sorry, folks. Especially sorry, Phark.
Click to expand...


cheers m8... tis all good buddy


it would prolly help if Frank installed that intergalactic translator icon Ive been asking for.....




Phark
 
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Grandpa said:
I had a 1979 GS850 with the old style front calipers. I installed the newer (1980 and up) caliper from a previous 850 I was parting out, and they fit perfectly.

Don't know about the 1000's, but I suspect they shared the same calipers as the old 850. Therefore, I venture to guess the new calipers will retrofit.

I deleted my nasty post. Sorry, folks. Especially sorry, Phark.
Click to expand...

Thanks, Gramps. I thought they would fit, but I'd never had really done any measuring, etc. I'm glad to know they'll really work. Did you think they improved the stopping power?

Surly must be talking about the pre-shaft 1000's, since the the 1000G models started in 1980, or '81, I think--and they had the new caliper.

The part number on the OLD, round pad, '79 850 caliper was originally 59100-45100 (RH) and 59300-45100 (LH). Surly could check to see if the part numbers on the OEM caliper for the bike he's interested in are the same. They probably are.

Say, Grandpa, how old are you anyway? I bet you're not any older than me!
 
Yeah, he's talking about the old 1000 with the chain. The 1000G came with the newer caliper.

I did notice the difference in braking.

59. Grandfather of 3 boys.
 
Grandpa said:
Yeah, he's talking about the old 1000 with the chain. The 1000G came with the newer caliper.

I did notice the difference in braking.

59. Grandfather of 3 boys.
Click to expand...

Yep, I gotcha by 4 years! I've owned and ridden motorcycles since 1965, but nowhere near 240,000 miles! My hat's off to you for that. Anyway, thanks for your contribution re: the calipers. There is just an amazing amount of knowledge and experience in this forum. Thanks to everyone!
 
That's 240,000 miles on GS bikes. Altogether, almost 400,000 miles on motorcycles since 1970.

Glad to help out.
 
What an upgrade

What an upgrade

Yep, I have a chain drive 78 E model with the floating calipers. It's odd to watch them move and flex when I apply the brakes. I think the slider axels (bolts) are starting to wear some, but not bad enough to be concerned with rebushing. I just completely rebuilt the calipers with new seals, boots and fluid, and figured I'd change out the pads while I was on a roll. I've not been able to put any time on the bike yet though as it has been a WIP all summer. Soon though, just waiting for my shorter S model throttle cables to arrive.

So now I am thinking I'll be doing some research, cross referencing some numbers and heading out to the local salvage yard where I think I recall seeing some later model shafties. A caliper upgrade sounds like a great winter project.

Thanks for all the info,
 
Grandpa said:
A contrary opinion: buy the cheapest pads. No such thing as a bad pad. They're all the same as far as performance, and I'm a pretty aggressive rider.


Buy cheap. Save money. I buy mine on eBay, bidding just once. If I get it, I get it, and if I don't, that's fine too.

Right now I have a set of front and rear EBC pads waiting, hanging from a nail in the garage. Why EBC? Because they're cheap. I've tried Ferodo, Vesrah, EBC, stock Suzuki, SBS, generic brands, and no difference whatever.


I know this doesn't jive with what some others are saying, but it's one opinion based on 20 years and 240,000 miles of GS riding -- 850's and present 1100G.
Click to expand...
I know it's an old thread...

Because of your advice, I have bought Ferodo rear pads for $10+ shipping, pyramid front pad(s) for $4 a set + shipping and I just bought a set of Emgo #90-71955 rears for 6.97 shipped.

Nick, you saved me a butt lot of money on brake pads... Thank You!
 
It was a pleasure saving you some money, rustybronco.

I have cheap, nameless pads on my Venture, and they work just fine.
 
Adding to your initial comments. the one thing that seemed to matter the most, was the friction between the tyres and the road.

for me, brake fade has never been a problem in street riding and even with ebc's I can lock 'em up. :eek:
 
Organic EBC pads seemed to generate way more dust than the sintered metalic copper coloured ones. ( also EBC)
No doubt that the sintered pads feel much better, and I am able stop harder with less effort at the lever.
I think the the sintered pads are harder on brake rotors. I use them on the front of 1150 though because over all they are much nicer than the organic ones.
The organic ones, i use on the rear , i like real crappy pads for the rear of the 1150 as it seems to be so sensitive and overbraked. Especialy when I'm freakin...
 
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