straight through braided steel brake cable or deal with the inline switch?

[andrew embassy]

So I'm trying to get my front brake to be more grabby - right now I have to apply a LOT of force to get it to stop quickly, and I just don't feel safe.

So I've got a line on a braided brake cable that I can either get in a stock configuration or straight through, in which case I'll need to get a new master cylinder that has an integrated switch. Those of you who have gone this route, how much did skipping the inline switch help? Obviously it would be cheaper to just replace the existing cable with braided steel instead of having to buy a whole new lever/master cylinder set up, but if skipping the inline switch really helps then I feel like I should probably do that...

Thoughts?

 

[Disliked23]

I think that curbtiger has a single steel cable and he got a switch that just screwed on to the cable where it connects to the master cylinder. He said he got it from a local hydraulic place. Looked like a pretty sweet setup to me....(this was on a 450).

 

[andrew embassy]

I think that curbtiger has a single steel cable and he got a switch that just screwed on to the cable where it connects to the master cylinder. He said he got it from a local hydraulic place. Looked like a pretty sweet setup to me....(this was on a 450).

Perfect, that sounds about right!

 

[Disliked23]

I like the single line look, and you get rid of the switch in the triple tree area (that's possibly lame to replace as well). He said that he just took his line in so they could match up the threading and they sold him one for pretty cheap. The only thing I don't like about his is the that wiring that comes out of his switch is that coiled looking stuff (like a keychain holder), bright red, and goes on the outside of his bars. If you ran it through your bars I'm sure it would be pretty awesome.

 

[overdraft]

you can get banjo bolts with pressure switches all day long... example http://www.cyclepages.com/ProductGroupDisp.aspx?ProductGroupID=4601306 but you should be able to pick one up at your local bike shop. then just get a single line and attach it to your existing master cylinder with one of these banjo bolts and you should be good to go!

 

[andrew embassy]

you can get banjo bolts with pressure switches all day long... example http://www.cyclepages.com/ProductGroupDisp.aspx?ProductGroupID=4601306 but you should be able to pick one up at your local bike shop. then just get a single line and attach it to your existing master cylinder with one of these banjo bolts and you should be good to go!

I'm actually not sure what a banjo bolt is - or how that bolt would work in my current configuration; where does it screw into?

 

[overdraft]

What's the bike?

 

[Disliked23]

Banjo bolt is a hollow bolt that screws into the master cylinder that allows fluid to moved between the master cylinder and the cable. The bolt has a hole in the side as well.

 

[overdraft]

Guessing that you've got some kind of junior CB (350G/360/450 etc.) your master looks like this and the banjo bolts go as indicated. The one with the pressure sensor would go into the master. you'll delete the metal tube part on the caliper and just have a single s/s line from the master to the caliper and you'll run your brake lights off the pressure switch. hope that helps!

 

[andrew embassy]

Guessing that you've got some kind of junior CB (350G/360/450 etc.) your master looks like this and the banjo bolts go as indicated. The one with the pressure sensor would go into the master. you'll delete the metal tube part on the caliper and just have a single s/s line from the master to the caliper and you'll run your brake lights off the pressure switch. hope that helps!

Perfect, that makes sense, thanks!

SO I have a line on a braided cable off ebay - here's the response from the dude:

[quote author=ebaydude]i'd need you to tell me exactly how long you want it and i'll orient the banjos as if i were making them for a cb750 and hope they are the same (they should be).[/quote]

Anybody have a cb450 with a straight line and feel like measuring it for me? Also, since I'm going to be using a pressure switch banjo bolt should I let this dude know?

 

[overdraft]

no difference with plain or pressure switch banjo bolt... you won't need to tell him that part. i can't help you with the length, but if no one else chimes in, it's not that hard to do it yourself... essentially you need to find a smooth path between the master and the caliper that has enough slack in it to absorb full extension of the forks, but not so much that it gets caught anywhere when the forks are under full compression.... probably the easiest way to do it would be to get some half inch vinyl tubing and plot the route that way, as it will behave approximately like your brake line, then measure the tubing. Also, hopefully the vinyl tubing will have some advertising printed lengthwise on it... this will allow you to also calculate the orientation of the banjos... i have attached a cheezy pic showing an example of a brake line which would have the banjos at 90 degrees to each other because the top bolt going into the master is horizontal and the one going into the caliper is vertical... wow, this stuff is hard to describe in words...

 

[andrew embassy]

no difference with plain or pressure switch banjo bolt... you won't need to tell him that part. i can't help you with the length, but if no one else chimes in, it's not that hard to do it yourself... essentially you need to find a smooth path between the master and the caliper that has enough slack in it to absorb full extension of the forks, but not so much that it gets caught anywhere when the forks are under full compression.... probably the easiest way to do it would be to get some half inch vinyl tubing and plot the route that way, as it will behave approximately like your brake line, then measure the tubing. Also, hopefully the vinyl tubing will have some advertising printed lengthwise on it... this will allow you to also calculate the orientation of the banjos... i have attached a cheezy pic showing an example of a brake line which would have the banjos at 90 degrees to each other because the top bolt going into the master is horizontal and the one going into the caliper is vertical... wow, this stuff is hard to describe in words...

Ahh, I gotcha - good call, I didn't even think about it not being able to twist very easily!

 

[Disliked23]

Perfect, that makes sense, thanks!

SO I have a line on a braided cable off ebay - here's the response from the dude:

Anybody have a cb450 with a straight line and feel like measuring it for me? Also, since I'm going to be using a pressure switch banjo bolt should I let this dude know?

Again, in case you have concerns/issues with measuring it, curbtiger has the exact same setup and might be able to get you any more info (measurements) you may need....

 

[andrew embassy]

sweet, I'll send him a PM