Brakes and upgrades
Thread Starter
|
Road Warrior
Joined: Jun 2009
Posts: 1,333
Likes: 3
From: Jefferson, Oregon
Brakes and upgrades
So I've addressed my suspension wants and needs and have things in place to finish that up in the next few weeks.
Next thing I'd like to address is my brakes. They suck.
I'm going back and forth with adding a second disk up front to my street bob and use a factory caliper and maybe some upgraded pads.
My question is, all you fat bob guys happy with your front braking performance? Even with finding decent deals on ebay and here, I'm going to have to spend close to $400 bucks doing this mod. Will I be happy and blown away or should I take that $400 and buy a nice 6 pot caliper for my single disk and keep things simple?
After my suspension mods, I don't have $2000 to dump into the whole vrod/brembo combo that seems would give me decent brakes.
Anyone care to chime in with thoughts? I just hate having to really grab a handful of brake when I'm running pretty hot, the more I work it the less than impressed I am. I don't mind the work of the duals but I want good results and if I can achieve the same or better with bolting on a caliper...I'm all for it.
And yes, I've done a ton of searching and reading on this subject. I normally find the answer I'm after, but this is pretty specific and haven't found a direct comparison yet between the two.
Next thing I'd like to address is my brakes. They suck.
I'm going back and forth with adding a second disk up front to my street bob and use a factory caliper and maybe some upgraded pads.
My question is, all you fat bob guys happy with your front braking performance? Even with finding decent deals on ebay and here, I'm going to have to spend close to $400 bucks doing this mod. Will I be happy and blown away or should I take that $400 and buy a nice 6 pot caliper for my single disk and keep things simple?
After my suspension mods, I don't have $2000 to dump into the whole vrod/brembo combo that seems would give me decent brakes.
Anyone care to chime in with thoughts? I just hate having to really grab a handful of brake when I'm running pretty hot, the more I work it the less than impressed I am. I don't mind the work of the duals but I want good results and if I can achieve the same or better with bolting on a caliper...I'm all for it.
And yes, I've done a ton of searching and reading on this subject. I normally find the answer I'm after, but this is pretty specific and haven't found a direct comparison yet between the two.
Ultimate HDF Member
Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 5,105
Likes: 16
From: Blaine, WA
I did it on my FXDC and it makes quite a difference if you ask me, having come from sport bikes I was less than impressed with the single disc - it looks impressive but when you stick it on a 700lb. bike its not so much. Using the stock FB caliper and rotor (I got new ones but only because I wanted black ones) makes a world of difference. It went from lackluster to the true one or two finger braking that I was used to. It's well worth the money whether you go whole hog like I did or just do the minimum to get them on. You will need both sides of the FB sliders, second disc (I just put my stock one up for sale btw) caliper and brake lines plus you will need to redrill or slot your fender as the FB mounting holes are spaced differently. You can read through my conversion thread here.
Tourer
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 465
Likes: 1
From: Long Beach, CA
I went with sport bike calipers, organic pads, composite rotors, replaced the master cylinder and upgraded brake lines.
It was a fair amount of work (researching and getting the right parts). Making the brackets for the calipers took some trial and error.
There are several options out there; companies that sell calipers and kits that will bolt right up (e.g. QTM, Wilwood, PM) but they're pretty expensive.
I'm not sure that there's much I could do to make them any better but I'm (finally) happy with the way the brakes turned out. The increased performance is significant, more responsive with much less fade.
It was a fair amount of work (researching and getting the right parts). Making the brackets for the calipers took some trial and error.
There are several options out there; companies that sell calipers and kits that will bolt right up (e.g. QTM, Wilwood, PM) but they're pretty expensive.
I'm not sure that there's much I could do to make them any better but I'm (finally) happy with the way the brakes turned out. The increased performance is significant, more responsive with much less fade.
Upgrading to the FXDF brakes will certainly improve things quite a bit but the next step would be to look at something from someone like say Belt Drives LTD at www.beltdrives.com all American made brakes for Harley's.
Bob
Bob
Club Member
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 1,834
Likes: 87
From: Stokton, CA
Another way to go.
Is to go to a bigger rotor 13" and a 6 pot Caliper.
Less weight and equal stopping power.
Is to go to a bigger rotor 13" and a 6 pot Caliper.
Less weight and equal stopping power.
Trending Topics
Ultimate HDF Member
Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 5,105
Likes: 16
From: Blaine, WA
That would cost more than the conversion using stock parts and I'm not so sure it would be equal - works on light bikes but I don't think so well on a 700lb. cruiser.
HD Forum Stories
The Best of Harley-Davidson for Lifelong Riders
7 Surprising Harley-Davidson Products that Are Not Motorcycles
Verdad Gallardo
8 Best Harley-Davidson Motorcycles Ever
Pouria Savadkouei
10 Worst Harley-Davidson Motorcycles Ever
Pouria Savadkouei
Killer Custom's Jail Break Is The Breakout That Refused to Blend In
Verdad Gallardo
Crazy Bunderbike Build Looks Amazing, But Is It Impossible to Ride?
Verdad Gallardo
Harley-Davidson Reveals Super Cool Cafe Racer Concept
Verdad Gallardo
Engraved Rebellion: Inside Bundnerbike's Glam Rock II
Verdad Gallardo
10 Motorcycles You Should Never Buy
Joe Kucinski
10 Things Harley-Davidson Needs to Fix in 2026
Verdad Gallardo
Intermediate
Joined: Apr 2012
Posts: 46
Likes: 0
From: Norfolk England
I changed to Harrison Billet calipers. It's a British company that supplies a lot of brakes to the custom world over here as well as being involved in bike racing. I went with a six pot up front and a four pot on the rear. Didn't change the disks/rotors as I didn't need to. My Street Bob now stops the way it should.
