Brake pads

[rapd-rob]

I'm in the need for new brake pads on front & back for my 04 FJR. Please enlighten me as to the difference between sintered pads and semi metalic. Also an opinion as to the correct choice/ and where to purchase. Thanks for the info in advance.

 

[cadman]

This may help answer your question.

https://www.braketech.com/faq.php

cadman

 

[Crash Cash]

Definitely don't use that EBC or EMGO crap.. just about anything else is better. As far as I can tell, EMGO puts a bucket at the south end of a northbound cow, compresses the stuff into a square, and sells it as brake pads.

 

[SkooterG]

Also an opinion as to the correct choice/ and where to purchase. :

My brakes have always worked great on my FJR. So I buy OEM pads from the cheapest online vendor. I once used a non-OEM pad on the FJR and was not satisfied with the results.

 

[HaulinAshe]

This is as good a place as any for me to eat crow. I'm the one always touting the Yami OEM pads and playing down the use of aftermarket. Don't get me wrong, on most every other brand of bike I service, aftermarkets like EBC etc. work as good or better than OEM. But Yami OEM pads have always been a cut above IMHO.

However, (here comes the filet of crow) I recently priced Yami pads for the 07, and even with some discount they were $61/set with four sets required for the front. EBC HH Sintered were $34 /set. So I'm eating crow and installed four complete EBC HH sets.

I got 14-months and 36,000 miles out of the Yami pads. So far, brake stopping power and rotor condition with the EBC HH Sintered looks very good. But there's (hopefully) 13-months and 35,000 miles yet to know.

 

[BwanaDik]

I've had trememdous success with EBC pads and disks. I replaced the warped rotors (what a suprise) on my old K75S with EBC rotors and was completely happy. I made the mistake of buying BMW pads once (with the original BMW rotors at the time) and nearly crashed the first time it rained. Not stopping ability at all but they probably would have lasted forever. The EBC pads+rotors were great. Had them on my R1100RT. I also run them on my Toyota P/U and they have definitley improved the braking feel and effect. Don't know what the longevity is though, probably a lot less than OEM but for a few bucks, I'd try them. My '06AE has 13,000 miles on it, I'm going to switch to EBC when the OEM wear out.

And no, I don't work for EBC.

 

[FJRMGM]

I have the EBC HH on the front of my '05 FJR and am very happy with them.

Work well for my style of riding.

 

[Crash Cash]

However, (here comes the filet of crow) I recently priced Yami pads for the 07, and even with some discount they were $61/set with four sets required for the front. EBC HH Sintered were $34 /set. So I'm eating crow and installed four complete EBC HH sets.

Well, I haven't yet had to replace any pads on my FJR, but I've replaced pads a lot on the SV. A set of front OEM Suzuki pads are $60 compared to $28 for the EBCs, however the OEM pads lasted twice as long, didn't score my rotors, and provided tons more feedback. The EBCs felt like I had a block of wood in there and would just plain lock the front with no warning. The EBCs also left nice score marks on my rotors, to the point that I pulled them off to see if I had anything stuck in the pads. They didn't, so I tossed them in the garbage and put on OEM pads.

My work log is at home so I don't know the type, and right now the EBC website is so shitty I can't get the cross-reference, but there's only one EBC application for the 2002 SV-650 front pads that I know of.

So in this instance, it seems to be a case of you get what you pay for. I'll pay the $61 a set to have decent brakes.

 

[HaulinAshe]

So in this instance, it seems to be a case of you get what you pay for. I'll pay the $61 a set to have decent brakes.

Normally, I'm right there with you. But it's $61 x 4, not $61. And that's stiff in anybody's book. If you include the rear pads, it's over $300 just for pads.

Brake rotors are not all created equal. Running metallic pads on rotors that are not made for metallic, will chew up rotors. EBC only lists one pad for the FJR, all years, HH Sintered.

I'm not saying that EBC is the right choice. I'm just saying that I'm carefully testing the EBC pads and hoping to intelligently weigh the costs against OEM for this particular bike.

Here's what EBC says about their HH product line...

Double-H Sintered Pads
Europe's first and only ECE R90 approved pad. EBC Double-H pads are the grippiest street legal brake pads you can buy.

These pads benefit from the highest friction HH rating for maximum stopping power, made from sintered copper alloy like original pads for longer life and perfect braking under all riding conditions, wet, dry, hot or cold. When required, unique stainless steel radiator plates are fitted to reduce heat transer into bikes hydraulics. The unique double segment vented design keeps the pads cooler and prevents pad drag and overheat or fade.

When EBC broke into the sintered pad market, it really did its homework. We took all the current market offerings, tested them, analysed them and beat them. We removed the iron powders commonly used in many sintered pads that cause the pad to "weld" to the disc under corrosion when the bike is parked and replaced it with stainless powder. We took out several other particles which our competitors still use which caused massive disc damage and created our launch material. After five years and millions of sets sold we upgraded the formulation again to our SB101C material which completely eliminated BRAKE NOISE, improved the pads HEAT CYCLING CAPABILITY and improved feel. What we have today for the faster rider is the pinnacle of sintered copper alloy engineering, researched and tested in our own laboratories by engineers with over 50 years experience in sintered pad technology.

 

[NoSlowGuy]

Maybe I am wrong but, my 04 FJR has two front calipers and one rear (each caliper takes one set of pads) 2+1=3

I am up for a front reline soon so the brake pad choices are on my mind. In the past I have used EBC HH pads on other bikes. The EBC HH pads always seen to wear the rotors. The feeling was good and never had any amount of brake fade, maybe a little tooooo touchy (they grab a bit more than I like.) So I doubt I will use the EBC HH pads on the FJR.

What other pads are out there? Any reviews?

 

[wfooshee]

GenII bikes do take 2 pairs of pads in each front caliper, a pad on each piston. The GenI bikes have a single longer pad that covers both pistons on each side.

 

[cota95]

So in this instance, it seems to be a case of you get what you pay for. I'll pay the $61 a set to have decent brakes.

Normally, I'm right there with you. But it's $61 x 4, not $61. And that's stiff in anybody's book. If you include the rear pads, it's over $300 just for pads.

Brake rotors are not all created equal. Running metallic pads on rotors that are not made for metallic, will chew up rotors. EBC only lists one pad for the FJR, all years, HH Sintered.

I'm not saying that EBC is the right choice. I'm just saying that I'm carefully testing the EBC pads and hoping to intelligently weigh the costs against OEM for this particular bike.

Here's what EBC says about their HH product line...

Jeff,

Do you happen to know the part number for the EBC pads. I'm leaving on a trip and the Yamaha pads are back ordered so I may have to use the EBC. The parts book at my dealer show one set of pads for all model years which is not the case. I have a gen 2.

 

[ALFJR]

Not intending to hijack the thread, but how many of you have also replaced front and rear brake "springs" and shims while also replacing the brake pads? FSM says to replace springs and sims at the same time the brake pads are replaced.

 

[Checkswrecks]

Not intending to hijack the thread, but how many of you have also replaced front and rear brake "springs" and shims while also replacing the brake pads? FSM says to replace springs and sims at the same time the brake pads are replaced.

Never had to on a bike, but have on cars, where the shims wore through.

When I replace the pads, I always try to have enough time to pull the pistons and clean the cylinder bores, though. Especially if one pad is significantly worn more than the other.

 

[ALFJR]

Not intending to hijack the thread, but how many of you have also replaced front and rear brake "springs" and shims while also replacing the brake pads? FSM says to replace springs and sims at the same time the brake pads are replaced.

Never had to on a bike, but have on cars, where the shims wore through.

When I replace the pads, I always try to have enough time to pull the pistons and clean the cylinder bores, though. Especially if one pad is significantly worn more than the other.

I went ahead and replaced the "springs" and shims on the rear brakes last night. The cost of the springs fall into the "most ridiculously priced parts" thread. The old brake pads still had a fair amount of material left, and both were worn evenly. While I had the caliper off, I used a toothbrush and brake fluid and cleaned around the caliper, anyway. I also cleaned off the caliper bolts, then applied a thin covering of brake pad grease and reinstalled to the proper torque spec.

Now on to the front brakes once the replacement springs come in.

Checkswrecks, I appreciate the input and the suggestion to clean the cylinder bores!