stainless steel braided brake lines, anybody have them? have an opinion on them? know where to get them for our gs500's?
thnaks for any info
-Matt
Most sensible upgrade (at least for the front brake) on the GS apart from progressive springs.
Buy line from galfer - like $2 a foot, you need ~2 ft 8-10 inches of #3, if I remember. Get earls stainless fittings ... about $5-6 a fitting ... you need banjo for #3 and a 30 degree banjo for #3 ... or a long banjo for top and a 30 degree long for the bottom ... yea long ... Short ones onmy 89 need some shaving on the caliper end. Bolt it all together and fill with dot 5 and bleed ... and done.
Cool.
Srinath.
Galfer also makes brake line kits that fit the GS500. If you check out their overview page at http://www.galferusa.com/MOTO.html and download the PDF version of their catalog (http://www.galferusa.com/images/catalog.pdf) you will find the following info:
(http://www.bbburma.net/ScreenShots/Galfer_BrakeLineApplications.gif)
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Another name you hear a lot is Russell. Unfortunately, the Import Motorcycle Catalog link on their Catalog Page (http://www.russellperformance.com/catalog_page.htm) is broken. :dunno:
My Dennis Kirk printed catalog lists Russell brake line kits for several models, but nothing less than 600CC. That doesn't guarantee that they don't sell a GS500 kit, just that they don't list it in the catalog.
Ah! I just did a MAKE / MODEL / YEAR search on the Dennis Kirk online catalog (http://www.denniskirk.com) for my 1999 GS500. It came up with Russell Brake Line Kit #196279 (http://www.denniskirk.com/jsp/product_catalog/MMYSkuDisplay.jsp;jsessionid=QV1KJZSD0XS0RLA0WTISM4VMDK0NCIV0?leafCatId=41604&catId=416&store=Main&mmyId=7582). Further research shows that this part should fit all 1990-2000 models. Doing a MAKE / MODEL / YEAR search for the 2001 model came up with nothing. :x
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If only I hadn't taken my Chaparral (http://www.chaparral-racing.com) printed catalog home....
I have Goodrige brake lines (http://www.goodridge.net). They have a GS500 specific fit.
I must confess that I didn't feel much difference after fitting them, but I did that in the snow season, so I wasn't riding a month before the change and a month after and didn't have a real before/after experience.
D.
Replacing the front stock rubber lines is the first mod I do to any bike. It really does make a difference in brake feel and control. Solid feel and less fade. Also, I only use one finger to brake.
You can use lines designated for use with other bikes. But most bikes have 2 calipers so you would have an extra line (would not be hard to sell it). As an example: I have a set of s/s lines marked for a TLR but are using them with Katana calipers and a GSXR master cylinder. The ends are basically the same for all metric bikes but there are several different angles of the banjo fittings. Length will vary with application.
Goodridge, Fastline, Russell, Galfer, Fentubo are excellent brands.
where can you get galfer lines for $2 a foot?
I found some goodrich for 10ft for $30
OK I can bleed the system fully and get rid of all the old fluid, and with dot 4 or 3 you'd have to do it everytime you decide the fluid is too brown or dirty and with 5 you can just add or do a partial bleed cos it doesn't take water ... and I have used 5 for over 5 years in the GS, and they are omitting few very very vital aspect of 4 or 3 ... of course they are race teams and could possibly care less about it ... Dot 5 can be stored in a container for years and still used ... 4 and 3 cannot ... also dot 4 and 3 etc will eat paint on contact ... and if you spill any fluid on painted parts you'll see the paint wrinkled up there.
Mushy lever feel ... I have not noticed it ... of course I am a street rider only as they have described.
Cool.
Srinath.
I copied an old post of mine. Just click on the links.
Steel-braided front brake cable:
Galfer custom fitted lines - $??? (http://www.cyclebrakes.com/html/custom_lines.html)
- have to send your brake line in or fax dimensions / diagram for $$ estimate
Russel lines for GS500 ('90-'00) - $42.46 (http://www.cyclepages.com/ProductGroupDisp.aspx?ProductGroupID=4001155)
- need to choose SUZUKI from pull down menu first to see/order
Spiegler lines - $60+ (http://www.whaccessories.com/GS500Accessories.htm)
- 3/4 down the "GS500 Accessories" page under BRAKES heading; Kevlar lines are 20% more ($12)
I have the Goodridge lines front and rear. The difference from the stock lines (which were two years old when I made the change) was very noticeable, especially on the front. More feel and more power. Well worth doing. :thumb:
OK if this post doesn't go anywhere ... I am going to start makiing these as well ... How's $35 ... what was that older post that AdamR was saying ... never mind ... But honestly I should be able to make them for ~30-35 ... but again how many people order ... makes big difference. The main advantage I have ... I live in NASCAR country this stuff probably grows here.
Cool.
Srinath.
i can get them for about 40$ 60 with swivel fittings.
Not to put anyones ability down but before making any, have you thought about a line failing and causing a crash in which you could be held liable?
Quote from: dgyverNot to put anyones ability down but before making any, have you thought about a line failing and causing a crash in which you could be held liable?
Exactly
I made some for my bike and my freind wanted some but I just gave him directions
I dont need the liability of anyones death on my hands
OK great here we go again ...
Leaking fittings might cause it to fail, but you'll see the leak long before the thing becomes a factor ... a lever that comes back further and further will be giveaway sign as well. Line bursting open ... yea I haven't considered that ... BTW I have run almost 10 years and 35K miles on lines made by me ... and back then I didn't even have a decent set of wrenches... Swaged fittings ... AKA lines made by galfer are morelikely to fail and worse ... harder to fix ...
OK that gives me an idea ...
Brake Lines - if anyone wants these - I am going to cut them to length and have fittings included and you fit it together with the Instructions provided ... OK happy now. Anyone that has made brake lines would well know by now ... bolted together fittings are far superior to swaged fittings on the lines.
Cool.
Srinath.
Quote from: seshadri_srinathOK great here we go again ...
Leaking fittings might cause it to fail, but you'll see the leak long before the thing becomes a factor ... a lever that comes back further and further will be giveaway sign as well. Line bursting open ... yea I haven't considered that ...
It sounds like a leaking fitting is no big deal to you. Any additional connections increases the chance of leaking.
QuoteBTW I have run almost 10 years and 35K miles on lines made by me ...
and back then I didn't even have a decent set of wrenches...
Maybe it is the mixing of DOT4 & DOT5 fluids that helps keep operational.
QuoteSwaged fittings ... AKA lines made by galfer are morelikely to fail
Facts to back this up or is this just words from the "guru"?
QuoteAnyone that has made brake lines would well know by now ... bolted together fittings are far superior to swaged fittings on the lines.
Easier for the DIY, but superior? once again facts?
I have never had (or seen) any factory swagged line leak or fail. There are few things that I do not go cheap on, brakes & tires.
i think BUDA is talking out his ass again..... :roll:
but hey what do us racers know........ :dunno:
I have some lines that leak, they are swaged ... I have no idea who made them ... but they dont have vinyl on the body. I was going to cut and make shorter lines ... if it was somehting in a size I needed. Swaged and bolted together lines have leaked ... not really in my possession but I have heard from my friend who used to be a race car mechanic ... If you must know ... check with Cedric Smith ... my friend is called Gregory LaTendresse from Spokane WA ... he said He's met Cedric ~7-8 years ago. Swaged lines as well as bolted lines ... both probably have an equal chance of leaking if bolted together by someone who knew what he was doing. The difference ... with a bolted line, you can take it apart and replace the ferrule and maybe the banjo fittings as well and re use it. As well as effect a repair on the road by tightening or somehitng and get by till you fix and bleed it. Swaged lines ... they leak ... you are screwed ... Also leaking is not going to be a geyser ... it will be a visible and very perceivable by feel loss of pressure and increase in lever travel well before you have a catastrophic failure. Now just because you pay more does not mean you get a better product, and heck even so bolted together lines cost almost as much. Just that you need to finish the item. Inherently they are bolt sound design. the main advantage of bolted lines other than the repairability ... the banjos can be positioned in the right location and you can avoid twisting the line to fit it.
Cool.
Srinath.
there is a shop near my work that makes braided lines, Nos,Brake, and Oil lines. thats where i got the quote from.
Quote from: seshadri_srinathOK great here we go again ...
Leaking fittings might cause it to fail, but you'll see the leak long before the thing becomes a factor ... a lever that comes back further and further will be giveaway sign as well. Line bursting open ... yea I haven't considered that ... BTW I have run almost 10 years and 35K miles on lines made by me ... and back then I didn't even have a decent set of wrenches... Swaged fittings ... AKA lines made by galfer are morelikely to fail and worse ... harder to fix ...
OK that gives me an idea ...
Brake Lines - if anyone wants these - I am going to cut them to length and have fittings included and you fit it together with the Instructions provided ... OK happy now. Anyone that has made brake lines would well know by now ... bolted together fittings are far superior to swaged fittings on the lines.
Cool.
Srinath.
Still be careful making such vital components for others. Your liability laws seem to be insanely on the side of the stupid, so my guess is that anything that can conceivably go wrong will be blamed on the product and the onus will be on you to prove it wasn't. Not saying don't do it. Just be canny. Good luck.
Try these guys in So Cal:
http://www.gjaircrft.qpg.com/
They use Russel or Goodrigde or whatever they have thats comparable. If you send the stock hose as a model, they can copy it, most likely in the same day. I think I payed around $25 for the front hose with fittings in blue last year.
Adam
Quote from: Blueknytthere is a shop near my work that makes braided lines, Nos,Brake, and Oil lines. thats where i got the quote from.
Do they make bolted or swaged lines.
Cool.
Srinath.
i might buy a kit from srinath, i'll even sign a waiver freeing him from any resposibility in the event that the lines fail and i eat a tree. srinath if you get enough potential buyers email me at church6360@yahoo.com. also you should make a "srinath's services" website to showcase all your gs500 products and services.
-matt
OK lemme start calling the nascar wannabe's ...
Website ... well see I want to phase out everyhting except 2-3 ... flanges are almost useless cos the dennis krook is almost sold out, the old bars have been replaced by true clipon's though I have 5-6 of those left over ... case guards, and maybe brake lines ... apart from jetting. Forget those one off's I am not planning those much anyway ... so bars, case guards for now and maybe brake lines.
Anyway Let me see what they want ... I wish I could buy 100 fet of the stuff ... we can get whatever we want ... long 30 dgeree banjo and short straight banjo ... Ok lemme check ...
Cool.
Srinath.
im not sure i know the difference Srinath, got a pic of each (bolted, swage), and BTW, those needles arived yesterday, the wife handed them to me today. thanks
Bolted ones have the hex thing whatever its called on the bottom of the banjo ... its a collar maybe ... ferrule goes in the line under the braiding, the collar nut goes over ... before you fit the ferrule and then banjo part fits in the ferrule and you bolt the collar to the banjo crushing the ferrule into the line and mating it with the banjo... A swaged line has no ferrule and no hex collar nut ... its an outer thin wall and an inner wall for the inside of the line ... slide the line in and roll the outer wall with the swage so it clamps on the outside of the line ... So hex nut collar right below banjo = bolted, if its smooth its swaged.
Cool.
Srinath.
ok, if the line screws to the Banjo fittings is bolt on, if its the crimped type its swaged. think they are swaged
On crimped lines sometimes they end up with micro cracks in the part they roll and crimp, agreed its rare but ... that makes for a weaker fitting, also if you were to drop the bike or under some circumstances were to break a fitting ... that will be a new line you'd have to buy, in a bolted fitting, its a $6 banjo ...
Cool.
Srinath.
So ... I know it's an older post , but are you making the lines Srinath ? I'd like a front brake line if so ... in blue if at all possible :icon_twisted:
If so , what would they run now (the original post is from '05 hehe) with shipping to 63010 ? (St Louis,Mo)
Thanks , Eric
So, the Russell brake line kit for the GS is less than $30 from Parts Unlimited. I forget, what are we gaining by making them ourselves?
Holy ancient thread batman ...
Some crap happened in like another thread ... someone came up with a shop that would make it or something and I never did these.
I'd say buy it for $30 if available. My costs for these look like this ...
End fittings cost $9 each, line costs ~$3 a foot. We need 30 inches ... say $12 ... then cutting, and fitting ... minimal other people involved, need a shop and maybe a smoother saw blade ... prolly sitting around at my welders shop ... but say I have to buy one ... $15 for that. Guess what ... will cost more than the $30 ... heck might run closer to $40.
Honestly, I think anything that needs more labor, we benifit from centralising ... as in ... making a 100 will let me jig it, mass produce bits of it and put it together ... jigging makes fast work. I spent more time and wasted more on the first lot of 10 flanges than I did on the last 2 totalling ~100. The key, jigging and numbers.
Anyway, first I am going on vacation tommorow, then I come back and start on handle bars. Once we are swimming in those we'll try anything else.
Cool.
Srinath.
Quote from: Chuck on April 02, 2007, 01:21:27 PM
So, the Russell brake line kit for the GS is less than $30 from Parts Unlimited. I forget, what are we gaining by making them ourselves?
I can't find the GS500 listed on the Parts Unlimited site (or Russell's online catalog). Am I missing something?
The app guide at flatoutmotorcycles.com goes to this site:
http://www.psndealer.com/dealersite/images/ec0322/255589_chart_4225.jpg
It says 90-00, so I'll let you know if it doesn't fit on my '01. If they ever get around to shipping it. :mad:
Quote from: Chuck on April 03, 2007, 10:47:29 AM
The app guide at flatoutmotorcycles.com goes to this site:
http://www.psndealer.com/dealersite/images/ec0322/255589_chart_4225.jpg
It says 90-00, so I'll let you know if it doesn't fit on my '01. If they ever get around to shipping it. :mad:
That's the part number on the GS500E Wiki as well, but since I don't see it on Russell's site, I'm thinking it's been discontinued.
Anybody know for sure?
Confirmed....They are discontinued :cry:
But I just got one of the few left in a warehouse
Quote from: coll0412 on April 03, 2007, 02:47:53 PM
Confirmed....They are discontinued :cry:
But I just got one of the few left in a warehouse
Please PM me with which warehouse! :icon_razz: I want one of the other "last ones"!
Hey Gang,
Cyclebrakes.com has the 2007 Galfer Catalog: http://www.cyclebrakes.com/html/catalogs.html
MODEL Year Front Rear
GS 500 1989-1997 FK003D117 FK003D117R
GS 500 2005 FK003D454 FK003D454R
GS 500F 2006 FK003D559 FK003D559R
Cheers,
J
I purchased a Galfer front braided stainless steel brake line, was all good except one of the bolts they provided was the wrong thread!
I had to compensate by using the old bolt and two washers to make the brake line fit.
Thru my new hookup at work, I bought and installed a Galfer line before my track day yesterday, and the line provided should be just about right length as it was too long for mine and I've got clipons installed above my top triple plate. Specific to the GS kit, everything bolted up fine.