Early FLH Front Disk brake fixes
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Intermediate
Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 41
Likes: 1
From: Iowa
Early FLH Front Disk brake fixes
I have a 1975 FLH with the banana caliper front disc. How do you keep this thing from flopping up and down with every bump. Don't tell me to buy a Performance machine set-up, i know that's the real fix but i don't have any money. I did the new piston and seals and it took me forever to figure out how to get the piston clearance right. No wonder everyone tosses these.
Road Warrior
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 1,854
Likes: 20
From: Eagle River WI
There is a spring type clip that fits under the banana that holds it up I might still have one I'll let you know My 52 pan/shovel has a banana caliper like yours I secured the caliper another way If your not a purist I'll see if I can get you a pic on what I did
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Intermediate
Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 41
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From: Iowa
No, i'm not that much of a pure-ist, just want it to work and quit banging up and down. I'd be interested in your pic of the modification. I thought about constructing a strut between one of the caliper bolts and the front fender mount.
Club Member
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 66,126
Likes: 51,455
From: Niles Canyon Ca.
No joking here I got a strip of really dense stiff foam whittled it down to 3/4" wide x 2" long about 3/8" thick give or take jammed that **** in between the leg and the caliper by the upper mount .The brakes worked better and the bike didn't sound like a Jamaican steel drum band anymore , lasted a few months before needing replacing . I'll post a pic later , true hillybilly **** but works .
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Intermediate
Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 41
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From: Iowa
I have considered the same thing. Only I call it "low buck" rather than "hillbilly". It seems like an obvious solution. I think the dealers used to do that back in '75 - '76 till the spring clip came along.
Club Member
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 66,126
Likes: 51,455
From: Niles Canyon Ca.
Spring clips didn't work very well and they tend to jack the caliper to one side if the bushings and pins are sloppy , pads wear badly and you never get a firm brake lever . Give a day or so to dig out the parts and I'll send some picks , just went through this with 73 FLH for a buddy .
I'm in process of converting it to late model parts to run dual calipers and 11" rotors using pull off parts from local shops . That stuff is going cheap around here , a set of legs with calipers $80 , find a set of 11" rotors & 84 & up tubes with internals for any FL model and you've got most of a dual disk front end that works WAY better . I get the stock 1" axles and turn them to 3/4" and your flying , pics for this this in a week or 2 also ..
I'm in process of converting it to late model parts to run dual calipers and 11" rotors using pull off parts from local shops . That stuff is going cheap around here , a set of legs with calipers $80 , find a set of 11" rotors & 84 & up tubes with internals for any FL model and you've got most of a dual disk front end that works WAY better . I get the stock 1" axles and turn them to 3/4" and your flying , pics for this this in a week or 2 also ..
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Intermediate
Joined: Aug 2010
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From: Iowa
Thanks for all the ideas and pictures. I came up with my own "hillbilly" fix for $1.08. I bought a 7/8 diameter rubber stopper, then sliced about a 1/4 inch thick piece off, top to bottom. Put some rubber cement on the stopper piece and the fork leg and jammed it between the leg and caliper, so it keeps the caliper pushed up. Works great so far.
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Club Member
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 66,126
Likes: 51,455
From: Niles Canyon Ca.
Thanks for all the ideas and pictures. I came up with my own "hillbilly" fix for $1.08. I bought a 7/8 diameter rubber stopper, then sliced about a 1/4 inch thick piece off, top to bottom. Put some rubber cement on the stopper piece and the fork leg and jammed it between the leg and caliper, so it keeps the caliper pushed up. Works great so far.
Things like that is what turns you into a real biker over time my friend not a patch or good credit rating . Just using your head because you want to ride , I love it .
PS : V-twin sells the replacement bushings for the mounts on the fork leg cheap ( under $20 for both ) winter is coming and they aren't hard to replace with a bit of back yard engineering , just a thought .
Last edited by TwiZted Biker; Oct 1, 2010 at 07:11 PM.
Tourer
Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 306
Likes: 7
From: Somewhere, PA
You might laugh, but I bought a set of Nissin calipers off of fleabay from a Honda CBR, bought a couple of brackets from Fab Kevin (Google him, he makes some great steel parts for old bikes), and have a set of brakes that will stop my FLH on a dime - at a MUCH cheaper cost than most "performance" systems you can buy. Plus, I lost a lot of the dead weight of the bananas. Yes, they're import brakes, but I'm much more into function on my old Harleys than originality...