Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R Forum banner

Rebuilding/Improving my front brake system

5K views 64 replies 14 participants last post by  PinoyRider88 
#1 ·
Well I suppose it's time to finally post. My big winter project for Zinarah is improving the front brake system.

Currently rocking the OEM stuff over 24k miles to include the rubber hose.

Having said that, I currently have in my possession the Galfer Wave Rotors and EBC Sintered Rotors.

What I'm also looking for is a Brembo RCS19. Necessary(for my skill level)? No. Will it make me Rookie to Rossi in 3 track days? Also no. But having heard everyone Novice to racer say how much better the "feel" is, I couldn't help but add it to the list.

Finally...LINES! Looking at doing the Galfer or Speigler lines. I can appreciate speigler because you can adjust the line ends utilizing the tool provided but reviews are somewhat blah. Galfer I haven't really seen any issues.

Last things last. Do it myself vs. Getting professionally done. I know how horrible karma always seems to bite me in the @$$ whenever I get too deep in a Mechanical job. Bleeding my brakes isn't a big a deal so much as it is installing the rotors/lines/MC. I really need to know how to get the fluid out of the rubber lines BEFORE removing lines. And no I don't have an air compressor to suck it out.

Also...I need a new chain lol
 
See less See more
#3 ·
Sweet...i have Spieglers on both of my bikes and all my boys use them as well..they are top notch imo.

Just bleed the lines and then remove them that’s what I did...taped them up after. It wasn’t bad putting them on my ninja they were pretty straightforward.

DID ERV3 on eBay they’re a lot cheaper.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#4 ·
I have Galfer lines on mine if I remember correctly, I'm also using SBS brake pads up front and added the speed bleeders. I can tell you it feels much better than the OEM set-up, to be fair though I removed the ABS lines and just went straight from M/C to the calipers since I'm not really riding on the street that much.

You plan on retaining the ABS lines?

You can just bleed your rubber lines then plug them, or let them hang and drip into a bucket. I used a cheap vac system from Advanced auto but it was total trash. Would have been better off doing what I said above.

As long as you have the tools it is an easy job, I wouldn't worry about messing anything up too bad. Just read the manual for torques on the rotors. You will know if you messed up the lines/ bleeding process based on how your lever feels.

One thing to mention is when you replace your lines and fully pull all fluid out it can be a pain to get brake fluid into the system again. I found it worked best to open the banjo on the M/C for a bit and give it some squeezes until some fluid starts to leak out around the banjo bolt, then I tightened it up and continued bleeding like normal.
 
#5 ·
One thing to mention is when you replace your lines and fully pull all fluid out it can be a pain to get brake fluid into the system again.
Oh, yes! I've seen me spending over 1hour on them and then giving up in frustration and going in for a cuppa to come back out and then they bled straight away!

Only thing i would say you dont need to do is the Brembo MC - the stock kawa one is really good.
 
#8 ·
Can someone post a pic of a speed bleeder? Is that like a different kind of nipple?
 
#12 ·
What size are the Nissin BC? Fronts? Master Cylinder size?
 
#15 ·
Lines arrived today.

Anyone know if the Brembo RCS is course or fine Banjo bolt?
 
#21 ·
So in my quandary to do all this myself vs. Dealership do it($300). The main reason I am apprehensive is because I have heard of folks' front brakes locking up on them after install of any big brake component(pads, rotors, lines, Brake bleed etc.)

My question is what do you guys think they did wrong? How the eff can I avoid that. Especially dont want the front locking up at 140mph on Summit Mains straight...or worse a corner
 
#23 ·
I’ve heard of that happening with cheap Chinese brake levers that stick.. as long as you install everything according to the service manual and bleed the fluid it should be fine
 
#25 ·

Picked this up at the local CG. Order speed bleeder nipples for each Caliper too
 
#27 ·
The issue with this is when you release the brake lever... you'll suck air past the threads on the bleeder.

Speed bleeders will have sealant on the threads to prevent this.

One tip would be to put a small amount of Vaseline around the outside of the bleeder to seal it. Then you can just wipe that off when your finished.

.
 
#26 ·
^Yeah what he said. I've never heard of brakes locking up when replacing/upgrading anything on your brake system except for overfilling with fluid and not installing lever correctly (usually Chinese levers). I don't see how else it would be possible to mess something up that bad to where everything seems fine and after a couple of laps/miles your brakes lock up. The most common issue when doing this stuff is you don't bleed your brakes right and you still have air in the line, so your brakes just suck but they won't lock up.

When I built up my R3 I put new steel lines and I got the front to work fine, but for some reason could not get all the air out of the rear. I tried several times and it was still pretty mushy at the lever. I gave up and left it like that. I didn't care much since I don't use the rear anyway, but it actually came in handy to have it like that because when I ran off the track and went through the grass, I hit the rear brake and it didn't lock up on me :D

So from now on I'll set my rear brake up so I can lock the wheel when I'm just sitting on a bike (aka to pass tech), but soft enough to not be able to lock it at speed.
 
#38 ·
And here I'm just looking for a bump in Novice. Lol

In all honesty I'm worried about my fresh pads(thanks to someone I know ;) and rotors with 0 miles on them on the track.

Dont wanna eff them up on day 1 and I hear you need a good 100 miles o. Them before you can go endo at corner entry on them
 
#40 ·
100 miles?? Yeah that's bullshit. 1-2 laps and they'll be good to go. And that doesn't mean they'll be shit in that first lap. They may not be at their full performance level, but they'll still be good. Think of endurance racing teams. Those guys change out pads during a race. Do you think they wait to "bed in" the pads and take it easy the first lap out? lol....spoiler, they don't! lol
 
#41 ·
"bed in" refers to "bed the pad material to the rotor' ... as in...

when you change to a different type pad you should clean your rotors of the old material by mechanical means.

And then... "bed in" the new pads to the rotor....

However, if your swapping in the same type pads... no "bed in" is necessary.

Then again... you should clean your rotors as part of your regular maintenance program. Thus you'll need to 'Bed in" your pads being used or new to the rotors once again.

All that... I just scuff up my new pads on the way to the grid. After that it's game on

:wink
 
#42 ·
As usual, Tim is spot on. Once the rotors are bedded in with the same pad, you're good to go. Go out and let 'er rip.
 
#43 ·
Thanks for all the input guys. Especially @Backmarker. I'll be sure to do endo's at pit out.

Next up. Which nipples do I bleed or do I need to bleed all three nipples for the front?

All this attention to the front has me kinda itching to slap a steel line on the rear.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Backmarker
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top