Topic: lots of end play on front brake lever,cb550f

[mario medeiros]

Have a 1975 cb550f the front brakes work just fine only problem is the lever at the bar has a lot of play.And as you ride around you can see the lever moving around.On a bike with drum brakes you want and need a bit of play at the lever but as far as I know there should be none on a hyd. brake?Thanks

[KeithB]

I have the same issue on my 550 project.
There is quite a gap before the lever even touches the master cylinder piston.
Drilled a hole in the end of the tab on the lever that pushes against the piston and screwed in a small bolt...length cut to size.
The head of the bolt makes up the difference and now there is about 1mm of gap.
Works great!

[jonda500]

I have the same issue with both my cb500's - swapping the oem levers for aftermarket black levers cured one, the other one I was thinking of supergluing a shim on the end of the rod in the master cylinder that the lever pushes against when the brakes are applied.
   Another cure is fitting an appropriate sized pin in the hole underneath (covered by a thin metal plate held on by the nut on the bottom of the lever pivot bolt) which will limit the outwards travel of the lever- I don't like this method as 1. I have long fingers and 2. it makes the brake lever sit closer to the handle bar than the clutch lever..
  I wonder if possibly both of mine and your master cylinder have been rebuilt with a kit where the piston rod is a couple of mm's shorter?? (I rebuilt one of mine with a cheap aftermarket kit)

[SohRon]

There's a small rubber tube that goes into the hole on the bottom of the MC. It's covered with a small plate that attaches by the lever pivot bolt. Get a short length of vacuum hose, insert it into the hole and cut it off even with the bottom of the MC, then install the plate to keep it in place. Should help eliminate excessive travel and keep the lever from flopping around loose.

[mario medeiros]

Thanks SohRon,at 1st I had no idea what you were talking about but once I went outside and removed the lever there it is ,the hole! but a small tube in there and it works just fine,love this site!