Brake line education

Hi,

Looking for some education on brake lines. I've heard that you can get a lot more feel out of the brakes on these old KZs by upgrading to braided stainless steel lines.

Is this so? This is for a '79 KZ750 with a big single disc up front.

I assume I'll need some banjo bolt to straight adapters and the proper length stainless steel lines. Anything else?

Anything I should look out for when choosing the lines themselves?

Thanks!

i dont know that u will feel a big dif Topper. maybe if your line r old and loosing there stiffness. i have stainless lines, but i changed everything at once (modern cals, disks, master, lines)so i cant say for sure. from what i read, the steel lines r firmer so they dont flex when u apply the brakes. the racers say that as the fluid heats up from heavy breaking, u can notice the lever getting closer and closer to the handle bars. the heat from the fluid softens the rubber lines and they expand as the pressure builds in them. Then the brakes don’t feel as hard, crisp or firm. They feel softer or mushy. They call this brake fade.
so on casual braking u wouldn’t notice it as much as repeated hard braking. the rear brake would be for looks only.
but the lines r cheap at Z1E so i'd say change them out if there old. i'll say about $10 per fitting and $15 for a line . for a ball park $.They have the Russel universal lines . u order the lines and the fittings and just screw the fittings on yourself. its all pretty straight forward.the trick will be that cal fitting. cal Z1E and ask for help. they r great guys.

I just added a stainless line on my 650. The brake feel is better, but the feeling you'll have knowing you have a better line than before is the best.

I bought two lines, 3 angled and 1 straight banjo, and a package of crush washers. I reused the banjo bolts. Got everything from Z1 Enterprises for about $85, which included shipping. Check out Z1's brake line pages and follow the suggestions, it's easy. I bought the Goodridge lines, so you measure your old line length from banjo to banjo and subtract 3" (the length of two new banjo's) for your new line length.

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More possible choices:

Brake Lines
www.galferusa.com/html/ss_line_kits.html
inlinetube.com/
www.spieglerusa.com/cfm/brakelines.cfm
www.helusa.com (the brand I'm using on my bike)
www.russellperformance.com/metric_two-line.shtml
www.goodridge.co.uk/motorcycle-brake-lines/kawasaki.htm
www.cyclebrakes.com/html/galfer_brake_lines.html

Hi,

Be sure to buy a set with the proper angles on the fittings to match your stock brake lines. Also, get lines that are plastic covered; the raw stainless will saw though anything it rubs against. Below is a link to a supplier so you can see some of the options. There are of course other suppliers that may have even more goodies.

Ed

www.cyclebrakes.com/html/custom_lines.html

Try this vendor on e-bay: rennsport auto parts

The guy's name is Raymond. I've ordered several sets of lines from him and he has the best combination of quality and price. Besides the lines, he includes all the fittings and copper washers.

If you can't reach him at the number listed on e-bay, try this one: four 16, two 91, three 953.

It's a good idea to take measurements of the lines, note whether the banjos are straight or angled, write it all down, and then be next to the bike when you call him in case he has other questions.