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Hello, Long time lurker. I've got 6000 miles of bliss on my CB since I bought it last year.
I am trying to diagnose brake issues. I had distorted rotors that would cause knocking at high speeds. I bought some Ebay take offs and replaced my pads with EBCs. This took care of the issue. But I can not get the same bite as I did before.
I am avoiding dumping money on new rotors and honda pads. About $500.
I recently bled my brakes and clutch and this improved the feel of the lever but I still don't have the bite.
Some have suggested just panic braking a couple of times to get the rotor to clean up.
What do you guys think?
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Welcome, Mustang. If you’ve been a lurker, you’ll know the drill about the New Members section.
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If they are actually warped nothing will fix them except by replacement.
If they just have pad residue on them then Scotch-Brite and acetone should clean it off.
Rotors on partsfish.com are $218. Maybe a little cheaper at other parts houses.
Good luck and welcome to the forum!!
Ok, I read your post again and see you replaced the rotors. Assuming they are not warped, try cleaning off the rotor real good.
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Hey Lurker Mustang - welcome to the Forum. When not elsewhere, you will be here.
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Welcome Mustang,
I'm not sure of the clicking noise that caused the original rotors to be replaced. Was it somehting felt, or heard? I haven't heard of distorted Honda rotors in years, except from impact.
First, be sure you clean the new rotor to get any residual oil off them. The EBC pads may need to break in, (or you may just get used to them). If the old pads have plenty of material, I would de-glaze the pad faces and try them.
The original pads were spec'ed by Honda specifically for this bike - meaning the particular compound met their test parameters in actual testing. Although pads from other Honda models will physically fit, they won't work as intended. So Honda says use only that particular part number.
Aftermarket suppliers such as EBC can't do as much testing. The pads they sell for the CB1100 also are spec'ed for 400 pound CBR600RR sportbikes and 750 pound Valkyrie cruisers, along with about 20 newer Harley big twin models.
EBC is one of the more responsible manufacturers, but I doubt they actually did much, if any, performance or durability testing.
And no-name Chinese brands? Testing? Good luck - if it fits, it ships.
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Pekingduck, there have been 2 or maybe 3 guys here with warped rotors. I THINK one front set replaced under warrenty and a rear rotor warped due to riding the brake pedal.
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Mustang as popgun and others have mentioned warped rotors are rear, it takes a lot of unusual force to distort the shape of one, let alone two rotors.
Let me tell you my story, the brakes on my cb919 were fine when i bought it second hand, one day i put it away after a wet ride and some time later i found some rust on the rotors from under the brake pads, i cleaned it off and from then on it developed this "pulsed braking", the brake pad residue had been partly and unevenly removed and the braking was somewhat less after the " cleaning ", it took quite some time to replace it and finally came mostly right by replacing all the front pads.
Rotors were never warped, i measured them with a micrometer dial but the grip on them was uneven.
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I had similar issues, nothing really helped until I put a new front tire on. I think the old tire wasn’t balanced properly AND when putting front wheel back I followed the procedure in the book exactly, it’s much better now. Something to consider.....
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Thanks for the advice guys! I will let you know.
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The rear brake on my 2017 EX dragged from the time I bought it new. I complained, but the dealer said I must ride with my foot on the pedal. That is not true a my big feet tend to point out on this machine. I seldom used the rear brake. I gear down and then use the front brakes to stop. I prefer to have both feet off they pegs when stopping rather than having one on the rear brake pedal.
The rear brake dragging finally discoloured the disk. Honda Canada had the dealer replace the disk and pads under warranty. Unfortunately they did not bleed the rear brake properly, so now the rear brake is practically useless.
Like others my front brakes squeal just before coming to a stop. Never had either of these things happen on my CB550XA, a bike almost half the price of my EX.
