my brakes are shocking in the wet

[dt50james]

I went out on the fzr the other day and got caught out in the rain unfortunately..

is there anyway of making my brakes better in the wet as they really are shocking on my bike once there wet....

braided hoses? would they help with the wet or just overall performance?

[Evilchicken0]

There are 3 things you can do

1. braided hoses, these will add more power to your calipers the rubber hoses flex like a ballon whereas the braided hoses are more stable.

2. check the brake disc wear, if the lever has a long travel or when you feel your discs from the center to the edge you find a lot of ridges and a lip at the edge then the discs are worn - look for a new or better secondhand pair.

3. clean the calipers inside and renew the seals. It's not a difficult job but your not to confident with it then ask. If you take it to a garage then you'll look at about £100 - that's mostly labour though.

4. ok so there's more than 3 things .... change the pads for a new set (2 per caliper) I use EBC HH. If you still have some meat on yours then rub them on some emery cloth to clean them up, they could be glazed. (put the emery on a flat surface first) Clean the discs with brake cleaner or nail polish remover before you put them back.

5. see I told you there were more than 3 .... change the brake fluid. You''ll need to this if you do any of the above. The fluid should be clear and a very light straw colour, if it's dark, dirty or has any swirly trippy oily patterns in it then you need to change it. Put a towel or big rag below the reservior before you start, brake fluid eats paint, use a paper towel to soak up the old stuff in the reservior then clean it with brake cleaner. Fill the res about 3/4 full and bleed the fluid through keep the res topped up and then fill it to the line before you put the top on. clean everything then wash the bike.

Brakes work by building up heat in the disc if your in the wet then that heat is reduced, lowering your brakes power. The tyres will also get cold quicker and the water on the road tries to get between the tyres and the road reducing grip and increasing stopping distances. Make sure our tyres are in good condition and always allow a bigger distance to stop in any wet conditions.

[Hogdigerdy Dog]

as evil said the best thing you can do is give your braking system a birthday

not actually that technical a job,
if you ok on the spanners, then this is egg sucking time

new seals - piston and dust seals only about £20 or less,
the full seal kit £35 ish, but i'd take em apart first as the internal O rings have no moving parts and unless their perished they'll be good to go again
(for both calipers front - but the rear is cheep as it only has 2 pistons so i'd do the lot)

braided hoses - from £50 up to about £110 depending what you buy, goodridge allot cheaper than hell and just as good imo
(2 line front and 1 line rear)

EBC HH pads - anything from £45 up so shop around (for both calipers front, again the rear is cheep so do it as well)

fluid £10 for 1/2 a litre and that will do both ends

i think this is the best upgrade for the fzr closely followed by the suspension

[Evilchicken0]

For the front
2 line kit for 3TJ
3 line for earlier otherwise the banjo bolt will hit the clocks. (Unless you fit a later master cylinder).