Topic: Front drum brake

[DV Red Herring]

I'm thinking of converting to a front drum brake off of a CL450. My front disk set is fubar, and in need of complete replacement. I got a great deal on a complete cl450 front end. Anyone have experience on this???

[seanbarney41]

not enough brake for a 450, let alone a cb750...your stock disc sucks, but not nearly as bad as a drum

[Bodi]

Bad idea. The original H1 500 - with similar performance - weighed 100lbs less that a 750 and the drum brake early model earned its "Widowmaker" name. Mabe Honda learned from that?
A disc brake system is quite a bit cheaper to make than a twin leading shoe drum system, so one might think it's just an economic decision... no. The 2LS drum brake is actually very good and has comparable stopping power from top speed to an early single disk from Honda or Kawasaki. Once. Try it again without a long cooldown - and hope there's nothing hard in your way. Fade is the killer with drum brakes, disks will fade as well as they overheat but will manage about 10x the hard stops of a drum brake.
Plus the disk will hold equally well forward and reverse, with a 2LS brake you need a gorilla grip to hold still on a steep uphill stop.

[slikwilli420]

Agreed. At a bare minimum use a GT750 4LS hub if you absolutely feel the need to do this. That would be decent but setting one up right is not nearly as simple as dual discs and you will not have the same stopping power, and it will weight a ton more. It will certainly look cool, but proper disc brakes make the bikes better, rather than worse. A proper 4LS hub will probably cost more than good dual discs as well.

[greenjeans]

I'm the idiot that has put several drum brakes on the front of several CB750s.  A couple 4LS brakes off Suzuki GT750s and a few more with CL/CB450 2 shoe brakes.
If you have original CB disc brake with 40 year old lines, the drum off the CB/CL is actually quite comparable.  They will stop the bike and even do quite well in a panic stop.  If you were to race them, then as the others have stated, there is a problem with fading.   I don't race and typically, the bikes I build are babied, so they work for that application.    You can't compare them to a modern bike with modern brakes. Night and day.   If you put new brake lines on your old discs and get a decent pad, you'll be surprised how much better they are.   If you do decide to go with a drum, make sure that the linings have enough material on them to be surfaced/turned on a lathe -  or, spring for new linings. (I used Vintage Brake)  Take a look at their site.  They have some tips and tricks.  I always use new shoes that I "lay back" as recommended by Vintage Brake.  That actually makes a difference that I could feel.   I ride many miles, but I'm not what I'd call a good or experienced rider.  It can be done.  The brake on my almost daily rider is a 4LS with new linings and shoes and is great, but will never be comparable to a new disc. 

I'm pretty sure the triple tree spacing on the CB/CL 450 is a tad narrower than the 750 so, all you'd need would be are spacers.  I typically use one of the fork/brake mounts to mount the stay.  Axles are the same diameter.  Fork tubes are the same diameter as well.  Pretty easy swap.

[DV Red Herring]

I appreciate everyone's input. I've decided to scrap the drum brake idea and rebuild the disc brake system. While the novelty of the drum brake is appealing, the performance of the disc is ultimately what I need.

[Airborne 82nd]

I appreciate everyone's input. I've decided to scrap the drum brake idea and rebuild the disc brake system. While the novelty of the drum brake is appealing, the performance of the disc is ultimately what I need.

Good Idea All The Way Every Day