Just a couple of questions for those in the know :)

[Billing]

Hi guys, I've been working on cleaning the CBR up and have come across a few things that I'm not too sure of, if anyone could help me out I'd really appreciate it.

1. Brake pads. The front pads on both sides have very little meat left, so I want to change them before I put the bike on the road. I would like to know what the difference between GG and HH pads is (I know it's something to do with the pad compound) could some one give the pro's and cons of both types?

2. Tyres. Both tyres have plenty of tread left, there's a BT090 on the rear and a BT90 on the front. Whats the best to use? BT090's front and rear or a different model tyre altogether? bearing in mind bike will eventually be used daily so tyres need to last more than 5 minutes, as far as I've found I'm looking at £180 for a set of 090's with fitting.

3. Bar ends. My left (clutch) side clip on has had the insides well and truly mashed, loks like someones tried to drill it out and failed, should I just replace the whole bar, or can I get the inside replaced? I can get the whole bar for £15 delivered so might just do it to save the hassle.

All advice and opinions welcome
____________________
'84 TS50X, '91 TZR125, '89 CBR400RR, '91 VFR400R NC30, '98 R1
"Hey copernicus! Why don't you navigate yourself to the back of the line with your feet and stand there with your shit."
BCF Eastern members map here ---> g.co/maps/2tm8b PM me to be added to it!

[chris-red]

1 GG are cheaper and craper you want HH I would go for HH sinters personally, I feel they provide best stoping power and feel.

2 Not sure what BT 090's are but the BT 021 is one ofthe best choice for mileage and grip.

3 Chances are if you replace the the bar if will have to replace the grip too, it will be glued to the bar. You could probably bodge a bar end on with chemical metal or something if you get the standard drilling and threaden chances are you would struggle to get a bar end too fit.

Short answer changing it is the best option but a PITA.
____________________
Well, you know what they say. If you want to save the world, you have to push a few old ladies down the stairs.
Skudd:- Perhaps she just thinks you are a window licker and is being nice just in case she becomes another Jill Dando.
WANTED:- Fujinon (Fuji) M42 (Screw on) lenses, let me know if you have anything.

[Billing]

Cheers chris, I'll have a set of FA142HH's ordered through tomorrow then.

Supposedly 090's are very close to Conti Road Attacks, not sure on how true that is though, will definately do some research into the 021's

I know the changing the bar will be a bit of a pain, but will probably be easier than fck arsing around with the current one, the grip isn't glued on, just a very good fit so can just swap it over when the new bar turns up
____________________
'84 TS50X, '91 TZR125, '89 CBR400RR, '91 VFR400R NC30, '98 R1
"Hey copernicus! Why don't you navigate yourself to the back of the line with your feet and stand there with your shit."
BCF Eastern members map here ---> g.co/maps/2tm8b PM me to be added to it!

[chris-red]

Haha don't buy another set of 090's

https://www.bridgestone.co.uk/filelibrary/English/Global/Products/MC/Pictures/Battlax_line_up_lg.jpg

You will be changing them quicker than your underwear

Putting this in perspective, I run bt014's on the S4 I get 3/4k miles out of a rear.

They are meant for smaller capacity bikes too.
____________________
Well, you know what they say. If you want to save the world, you have to push a few old ladies down the stairs.
Skudd:- Perhaps she just thinks you are a window licker and is being nice just in case she becomes another Jill Dando.
WANTED:- Fujinon (Fuji) M42 (Screw on) lenses, let me know if you have anything.

[Billing]

Thanks for posting that up chris, it's really good to see a graph like that

It looks like the 090 will cover me as the graph shows it to be suitable for 250cc to 500cc, but only if I want to use it every now and again rather than daily :S

I'll get a price on the 021's and have a chat with a local bike garage. Can anyone recommend any other brand of tyres that would be suitable?
____________________
'84 TS50X, '91 TZR125, '89 CBR400RR, '91 VFR400R NC30, '98 R1
"Hey copernicus! Why don't you navigate yourself to the back of the line with your feet and stand there with your shit."
BCF Eastern members map here ---> g.co/maps/2tm8b PM me to be added to it!

[Kickstart]

Hi

If it is an occasional bike then the tyre life is less important. You might be fine with them (think they are mainly designed for the sports 400s). However you might find the 92 to not really be any worse on the road but longer lasting.

With the bar, take it to an small engineering shop and see if they can drill out the remains of the old bolt (assuming it is a bolt through the bar end weight).

GG / HH is just a measure of how much friction the pads have. Think most HH pads are sintered one and will probably eat your disks a bit more quickly.

All the best

Keith
____________________
Traxpics, track day and racing photographs - Bimota Forum - Bike performance / thrust graphs for choosing gearing

[Bikeless]

I agree with Keith on the pads,i used to use organic GG's on my 400 as they were pretty strong enough but didn't eat the discs.Discs are expensive,pads are not.

[Billing]

cheers guys, when the tyres come up for renewal I'll probably switch to the 92's or the 021's.

the bar weight itself is ok, its the bit inside the bar that the weight screws into thats been mashed, i've tried unscrewing it, but it didnt seem to be coming out, so have bought another clip on for £10

Also I have another question I was meaning to ask before. I've heard that my bike should be fitted with japanese spec headlight bulbs, whats the difference between these and british spec ones? is it the wattage? I've heard that the british ones don't fit properly, but don't know for sure
____________________
'84 TS50X, '91 TZR125, '89 CBR400RR, '91 VFR400R NC30, '98 R1
"Hey copernicus! Why don't you navigate yourself to the back of the line with your feet and stand there with your shit."
BCF Eastern members map here ---> g.co/maps/2tm8b PM me to be added to it!

[Kickstart]

Hi

Think with the bulbs you can bodge UK bulbs to fit, but think they higher wattage. As the charging systems are a bit marginal it can help to flatten the battery.

All the best

Keith
____________________
Traxpics, track day and racing photographs - Bimota Forum - Bike performance / thrust graphs for choosing gearing

[stinkwheel]

To me, the main advantage of sintered brake pads is they are unaffected by water. The initial "bite" is just as good in the wet as it is in the dry.

[chris-red]

I consider the cost of discs to be negiliable in a per mile basis. I am fairly sure I have original discs on both my bikes the TDM has done 35k miles(had a new rear at 30 due to a binding brake cost £45) the S4 14k I have always used sintered pads if I have to replace the discs abit earler I would gladly have that and better breaking. How often do you replace discs anyway? has anyone replaced discs more than twice on a bike? Buying GG pads to save your discs is false economy IMO.
____________________
Well, you know what they say. If you want to save the world, you have to push a few old ladies down the stairs.
Skudd:- Perhaps she just thinks you are a window licker and is being nice just in case she becomes another Jill Dando.
WANTED:- Fujinon (Fuji) M42 (Screw on) lenses, let me know if you have anything.

[Kickstart]

Hi

Depends on the bike.

On the RS125 the HH pads made a massive difference. On the 1200 Bandit they made a barely detectable difference and I wouldn't bother with them again.

On the Bimota they made no difference in the dry but had frighteningly bad lag in the wet.

All the best

Keith
____________________
Traxpics, track day and racing photographs - Bimota Forum - Bike performance / thrust graphs for choosing gearing

[Bikeless]

Jap bulbs are 35W/35W IIRC,the tangs are different to an H4 so i just bent the bottom 2 tangs backwards and located them using the top tang only,never affected the charging system or battery on my 400.

[Billing]

Cheers for the info on the light, not a problem atm as both work

As for the brakes, I think I'll be using HH's for the extra braking in the wet, also the discs are either barely worn or the lips been shaved off (doesn't look ground though) If and when they need replacing, I'll probably upgrade to EBD Prolites or something

Got a pic of the bar thats giving me grief. I sat with a pair of pliers and turned the bit inside for ages and made no progress at all I've bought a second hand bar now, so should be ok I also got a new set of bar ends because the L/H one had loads of electrical tape round it and they were Farbon so got black anodised aluminium ones (they have got a strip of real carbon fibre though, but were the best there)

Here's the picture
https://i207.photobucket.com/albums/bb73/sam_billing_91/14112009202.jpg
____________________
'84 TS50X, '91 TZR125, '89 CBR400RR, '91 VFR400R NC30, '98 R1
"Hey copernicus! Why don't you navigate yourself to the back of the line with your feet and stand there with your shit."
BCF Eastern members map here ---> g.co/maps/2tm8b PM me to be added to it!