Topic: Mounting brakes behind the fork on a 550

[caferacer550]

I was wondering if there was an advantage to mounting the front brake calipers behind the front forks by swapping legs.
This would be done on a dual disc set-up.
I originally wanted to do it for looks - but read on one the postings that there might be a performance gain as well.
Should I be concerned about the fork seals and stability of the forks under hard braking?

Plus, are the supersport calipers much better than the 550k calipers?

Thanks.

[bryanj]

You will have to modify the front fender and all the calipers are identical as to better performance--dont know

[Chris Liston]

From what I've read on this forum, it puts the brake mass behind the forks will when applying pressure pushes on the forks instead of pulling them.  This apparently is better as all new bikes have brakes behind the forks too.  I'm going to be adding another caliper to my setup soon and may or may not flip the brakes.  It should work perfectly either way.

[chippyfive50]

that sounds intriguing, but a little scary to me, possible CHATTER?  the F models and newer forks have the caliper mount attched to the fork, as opposed to out on the aluminum bracket.
I am currently fitting dual 750 disks with a new 5/8" master cylinder which should more than make up for the design difference, but it would be cool to know if inverting them  it works.
please post the results if you try it...

[ProTeal55]

I got my dual-disc setup back form DRAGMAN yesterday, and it seems (by the direction of the tire) that the brake calipers will sit behind the fork legs, closer to the motor.

Either he did this on purpose, or mounted the wheel wrong , not sure..
It looks kinda odd, as I am used to the caliper sitting on the outter side of the forkleg, not inside.
I am not running a front-fender, so I doubt their will be any issues with the fork-legs being (backwards), if infact they are.

I will post pics after work today...

[bill440cars]

You will have to modify the front fender and all the calipers are identical as to better performance--dont know

               You're right, from what I've seen on the subject, you'll have to remove the center brace,
      turn it around and reattach it either with rivets or screws w/ nuts. There won't be a performance
      change but, it should (from what I've seen on the subject) improve the handling. There was a
      post on this, earlier this year (I believe). If I can find it, I'll pass it on. I'm interested too because,
      I've got this in mind myself.              Later on, Bill

[cb650]

I think (trouble there) strength of mounting is a issue also.   Behind the fork the rotation is driving the caliper into the fork mass.   In front it is pulling on the mounting tabs. 
As tires have gotten stickier it might come into play.  How many street bikes in the 70's could do stoppies.   



            Terry

[STLrocker]

i have the caliper mounted behind the legs on both of my 750's. they've been like this for a while now. there is no problem with strength, or chatter, or any other problems. it works just like it should. didnt notice ny preformance advantage. i just like the look a lot better. if there is any performance advantage is is very small and not noticeable.

i am running stock single disc. i had a fender on one. i just drilled the mounting holes on the fender to fit. no big deal. with the single disc, when you turn the wheel around backwards, it makes the spedo drive run backwards, so your speedometer wont work. no big deal to me cause i dont run one anyway. dont remember the trick to get the speedo drive to work, but i think it can be done with the correct parts.

[cben750f0]

mine are behind the forks also now, and have not had a problem, i was told it was better, becasue of trying to pull the forks under the bike, it is pushing them... well thats what i got told from a post classic racer... so figured he would know.... i did feel much difference, but the brakes look cool.... though after looking at it for a while, am thinking of going back to standard..... now that looks different..... peace

[crazypj]

Did anyone see Two Wheel Tuesday last night (18th April)
The Cal Rayborn Harley had CB750 brake caliper behind fork leg (Honda Davidson )
PJ

[kyre]

I've had a dual disk set-up on my 400/4 (550 front end) for a few years now with the calipers flipped. Like other people have said, no chatter, no real gain in braking from what i've noticed, but I like the looks better and they work great.

[TwoTired]

Theoretical argument for doing it Honda's way.  Nothing serious here, just discussion nits.

We all know what happens when you pull on a rope.  The other end follows (if not anchored) and the rope stays straight.
However, if we push on the rope, the other end of it is unlikely to care and the rope squirms about in silent laughter.
The CB550 brake arm is pretty solid.  But, when it is mounted in front of the fork, braking action will tend to pull on the arm.  When behind the fork, braking action pushes on the arm.  When you pull on the arm, alignment is natural and assured between anchor and friction point.  When you push on the arm, some external mechanism is required to maintain the alignment.  The friction pads and disk rotor likely provide that stabilization.  But, it seems to me there will be some sort of lateral bias developed as the arm attempts to pivot out of alignment.  These sideforce stresses will also likely change in magnitude as the stationary pad wears down, effectively changing the arm angle between fork and caliper. Hopefully, there is enough overdesign of the pivot arm and the brake rotor to take these side loads over long term use.  But, I'm just not ready to get that deep into materials analysis.

Cheers,

[dusterdude]

i agree with tt,its obvious that the behind the forks deal works ok,but with the caliper bolt to an arm/lever it would seem that the pulling action could be detrimental.if the calipers were bolted directly to the lower leg,then i dont see any problems at all with that.

[cb650]

On the 650 (did honda make one) the caliper bolts directly to the leg. And they are behind the leg.


             Terry

[TwoTired]

On the 650 (did honda make one) (Snip)

No, I think they made four.  That's all I've ever seen, anyway.
And, one of those was in pieces in a salvage yard!

Sorry, couldn't resist.  (snicker)

Cheers,

[cb650]

Actually they made 6 if you where over the big pond.



           Terry

[traveler]

Soory to resurrect an oldie again....but a question that begs to be asked has popped up in my noggin...

Are you telling me, that if I take the wheel off and rotate the fork slider 180 degrees, that I can re-install the wheel, and have the caliper trailing the wheel now?  If so, then that's a definite must do in my book.

Also sounds as though both legs are identical on my '77 550K.  if so, then dual trailing disks are a few parts away from fuition.

I'm going for looks.  Dual drilled rotors look fantastic!   and, I will get the added benefit of being able to stop faster....not such a bad deal.

Then have to figure out a rear disc setup......

~Joe

[Retro Rocket]

Yes you can and there is a mod that will restore your speedo drive as well, so its not that hard to do. Regarding  it not being the right thing to do, thats just plain wrong. I have had this set upon all my Honda 4's {18 of them} and had absolutely no ill effects and i used to ride as hard as you could ride these bikes on the street, i am very hard on brakes and if there was a problem doing this i would have found it, i also had mates that raced these bikes in the 70's and they did the same thing. The twin disc setup increases brake performance by reducing fade and shorter braking distances due to the increase in braking surface area. It does on the other hand add unsprung weight and increases centrifugal forces but this was never a problem for me, i just preferred having better brake performance overall.

Mick

[traveler]

ok...thanks, Mick.

I'll go ahead and "flip" the slider around.

~Joe