Single disc front brake help

[Terry R]

I'm fairly new to CB ownership, I have a 1972 CB 750 with a single disc up front. The caliper has been rebuilt and everything seems to work as it should, caliper hinge pin moving freely, new brake fluid and no bleeding issues ( the bike has been restored ) but the stopping power is dangerously bad ! I appreciate it wont be up to modern standards but mine is too poor to leave it alone.
When pushing it around you can get the forks to bounce up and down with the front brake pulled, but riding it on the road it seems to take a long time to slow the bike, rear brake is excellent.
My question is : has anybody got a recommendation for the best disc pads to use ? Or any suggestions to make it better?

[Bitsa (Ralph Wright - RIP)]

Terry,
Is it hard to pull and not spongy?Mine is rock hard and can lock the wheel at slow speeds but I do have genuine Honda pads.Still not as good as my old XJR was.
Cheers
Bitsa

[Terry R]

Hi Bitsa,
The lever is what I would expect from a "normal" lever operation, not spongy and has a nice feel to it. Even when I pull really hard on the lever it just feels like I have two bits of wood in the caliper instead of brake pads.....it wouldn't lock the wheel unless it was on a slippery surface.
I'm not sure what pads are in there but judging by the other work done on the bike I don't think the guy who did it would scrimp and use duff pads ( although you never know of course )
I would assume that , as you're using genuine pads, I could get some through Dave Silvers or a local Honda dealer ?
My thinking was , I would gather some wisdom on who uses what pads before I stripped it down, but with what you have said I'll order up some genuine pads and give them a try....thanks for the quick response.
Regards
Terry.

[Johnwebley]

I fitted EBC pads to my 500-4,they were rubbish ,no feel,no grip,but brilliant in heavy rain ?? go figure !!

went back to some spare ones I had ,and that was sorted ,

maybe the guy fitted these ? is the pad material grey ?

http://bikes.ebcbrakeshop.co.uk/ebc-bike-brakes-honda-cb-750-k0k6-19691977-standard-pad-fa012_p22371908.htm

they could be these?  I fitted FAO13 ,for the  500/400 etc

this is ONLY my opinion,others may of had better results

[Green1]

My brakes are setup perfectly with pattern pads from DSS the leaver is firm and no glazing on the pads
There is no way I can lock the front wheel unless the road is wet or I'm moving very slowly.
I just leave a stopping distance and give it a full fist full to stop.
They do improve with a few miles on them but at first they were terrifying.

Mick

[SteveD CB500K0]

 but at first they were terrifying.

That just about sums up 1970's brakes...

[Bitsa (Ralph Wright - RIP)]

Think you are being a bit harsh Steve try riding a vincent black shadow.When I did shit myself could not find the anchor to throw out, brakes what brakes had better on a push bike
Cheers
Bitsa

[Bryanj]

And that is better than a 1340 Harley

[Terry R]

Hi Chaps,
Thanks for the feedback , John....the pad material is grey, maybe they are the sames as the ones you had, I know the performance is very subjective but mine are not even as good as my little Royal Enfield ....and I thought they were crap !
I'm going to change the pads, DSS have some pattern parts so might try them. I've always been a fan of EBC but seems the feedback here is not so good.
Terry.

[MarkCR750]

I'm fairly new to CB ownership, I have a 1972 CB 750 with a single disc up front. The caliper has been rebuilt and everything seems to work as it should, caliper hinge pin moving freely, new brake fluid and no bleeding issues ( the bike has been restored ) but the stopping power is dangerously bad ! I appreciate it wont be up to modern standards but mine is too poor to leave it alone.
When pushing it around you can get the forks to bounce up and down with the front brake pulled, but riding it on the road it seems to take a long time to slow the bike, rear brake is excellent.
My question is : has anybody got a recommendation for the best disc pads to use ? Or any suggestions to make it better?

Is the correct master cylinder fitted?, is it functioning properly?, after trying new pads I'd look there next, a new reproduction M/C is £29 (plus vat plus delivery) from David Silver so if the pads don't work it's cheap enough just to swap the M/C out.

[K2-K6]

I'd say that a change of pads is a good step to try first, there can be a very big difference with some materials.

These old stainless discs were developed with asbestos pads and the discs didn't wear that much, all the use being taken off the pad material mainly.

Modern stuff (with asbestos removed) will have a more equal wear of both the disc and pad material and the interaction between a modern pad and old disc material can give odd characteristics. It's not that EBC are in any way poor, more that a spec mismatch just doesn't work well in some cases.