zx6rrob Posted February 5, 2010 Report Share Posted February 5, 2010 Right then, my 99 fireblade is up for some drastic front brake improvements. I want a radial master cylinder. Been looking on ebay at a few but don`t really know which bike had what size etc. So I`ve got 2 4 pot calipers, I don`t want a rock solid lever, rather one with a bit more give and feel. Anyone reccomend me a used M/C? Cheers all, Rob. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harvey Mushman Posted February 5, 2010 Report Share Posted February 5, 2010 I too started a thread about brakes/master cylinders not too long ago and the mag covered it with their GSXR K1 project in the Feb issue. I was looking for the same as you, better feel and basically the conclusion was, braided brake lines (which I had already) and some sintered pads would probably be more beneficial and cheaper than a radial m/c which though it will improve feel, it actually delivers less power and therefore longer stopping distances. I'm going to give Bembo's Sintered Road pads a try myself. If you must fit a radial m/c it's best to go for one with a bore as close to that of the OE one as possible as a bigger bore does not mean more stopping power. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
will#224 Posted February 5, 2010 Report Share Posted February 5, 2010 I bought an AP radial a few weeks ago. Its adjustable reach/ratio. Think they are £300+ new. Mine was £100 cause it has a scuff on the lever. Because the pivot point can be adjusted is gives the effect of i think 14mm to 19mm, it basically allows the piston to move more which displaces more fluid for the same amount of movement. I'm going from my poor memory here but it covers a few mm effective bore which means i can get the feel i want then adjust the reach too. The Brembo stuff is nice but its one size unless i think the RCS is like the AP. The adjustment is just in the lever reach which gives a different feel and reach at the same time, its not ideal unless you have long fingers. I expect you'll want 17/18mm or there abouts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zx6rrob Posted February 5, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 5, 2010 I too started a thread about brakes/master cylinders not too long ago and the mag covered it with their GSXR K1 project in the Feb issue. I was looking for the same as you, better feel and basically the conclusion was, braided brake lines (which I had already) and some sintered pads would probably be more beneficial and cheaper than a radial m/c which though it will improve feel, it actually delivers less power and therefore longer stopping distances. I'm going to give Bembo's Sintered Road pads a try myself. If you must fit a radial m/c it's best to go for one with a bore as close to that of the OE one as possible as a bigger bore does not mean more stopping power. Erm... oh yeah... Kinda forgot that I`d read in the mag that it made fuck all difference.... I`ll have a look at braided lines instead. Cheers dude, sorry for being a complete mong... Rob. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kja.busa Posted February 5, 2010 Report Share Posted February 5, 2010 I use the Brembo 19/18 ratio radial master cylinder's and swear by them, Tried an RCS but prefer the feel of the older stylem/cylinder, shop round and you can get a genuine one for less than £150, beware theres a few copies around though. Failing that a GSX-R radial is perfectly good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harvey Mushman Posted February 5, 2010 Report Share Posted February 5, 2010 Erm... oh yeah... Kinda forgot that I`d read in the mag that it made fuck all difference.... I`ll have a look at braided lines instead. Cheers dude, sorry for being a complete mong... Rob. Your not a mong mate. It makes a difference but it's dependent on the size of the piston in the m/c in relation to the area of the pistons in the calipers. If it's smaller it gives more braking power but less feel and if it's larger it gives less braking power but more feel. Definitely easier/cheaper to try different pads, discs, lines or even calipers first. With regards to the braided hoses, I had Hel lines fitted to my bike and had new fluid at the same time and I couldn't feel the difference hence why I going to try some sintered pads. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lorenzo Posted February 5, 2010 Report Share Posted February 5, 2010 Rob you are a mong. But aside from that, measure the distance between your bars and the clocks at full left lock, then ask for the size of a master cylinder before you fork out cash for it. I've tried on 3 different bikes to fit a radial M/C, and each time I've given up because of it hitting the clocks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VeeTeeArr Posted February 5, 2010 Report Share Posted February 5, 2010 [thread drift] I wonder why are they are still using Imperial sizes for most of the M/cylinders? 15.78mm is 5/8th inch 17.46mm is 11/16th inch I wouldn't be surprised if the 19mm m/cyl actually measured 19.06mm as that is 3/4 inch [/thread drift] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zx6rrob Posted February 6, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 6, 2010 [thread drift] I wonder why are they are still using Imperial sizes for most of the M/cylinders? 15.78mm is 5/8th inch 17.46mm is 11/16th inch I wouldn't be surprised if the 19mm m/cyl actually measured 19.06mm as that is 3/4 inch [/thread drift] Fuck me you`re old..... You`ll be talking whitworth in a minute.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
micro-monkey Posted February 6, 2010 Report Share Posted February 6, 2010 I have replaced my old brake setup on my rvf with sp1 calipers and a 2005 brembo r1 semi radial master cylinder. Compared to the standard setup, i have alot more power but they are very progressive. Stops just as well as the AP setup on my yzf but not quite the harshness. The brembo on the r1 and r6 i am sure is a 16mm. CBR1000rr Nissin radial mastercylinder is i believe 18mm and the gsxr1000 nissin radial setup is 19mm but they do seam to leak a lot from experience. You can get these all cheap and fit with no probs, you will need a hel radial master cylinder adaptor though to reuse your old lines, only £10-12. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeXV Posted February 6, 2010 Report Share Posted February 6, 2010 The Brembo on the R1 and R6 is 16mm, extremely easy to bleed as well. I bought a Brembo RCS19 a few weeks ago, and I can't get no lever pressure at all, no matter what I try. Any idea what could be wrong? Dodgy seal? It is/was brand new. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roadracer Posted February 6, 2010 Report Share Posted February 6, 2010 IMO the stock Honda M/C's give way too much travel for the given braking power. The Brembo radials give much more linear control, where, the more lever pressure=more brake power. it's more like "1:1" braking, where the stocky can be a bit "loose" in it's operation. Brembo is tight and sharp, and in fact the bigger bore means more fluid moved per lever movement, and can give more power than stock with less travel while making braking easier by not being as "peaky" as a looser M/C can be. It's more about feel, control and consistency with a radial M/C, giving you the confidence to take advantage of whatever pads are in the calipers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
username Posted May 16, 2010 Report Share Posted May 16, 2010 Here's a pic of the R1 radial sumitomo calipers vs the Gsxr tokico radials. The R1 calipers have much smaller piston diameters which explains why the R1 brakes feel so good with the std 16mm bore m/c . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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