Topic: Help with brake caliper identification K7

[anotherCB]

Can someone help me to identify my brake caliper? My bike is a 1977 CB 750. I went to the Honda dealership and ordered original brake pads for this model. I don't have a photo now, but whatever they sold me doesn't fit. I checked on ebay and saw the pads that will fit here, so it seams my brake caliper is of an earlier model year. Can someone look at the photos of my caliper and confirm? Thanks a lot!

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Honda-NOS-750-Front-Caliper-Disc-Brake-Pads-CB750K-450-_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQhashZitem4aa961ffa4QQitemZ320669351844QQptZMotorcyclesQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories

[rklystron]

If you go to this link it will tell you everything you need to know. http://www.cmsnl.com/honda-cb750k7-four-general-export-mph_model14389/partslist/F08.html
There is a difference in the pad from the early to late CB750's. Look at the pads and see how they are cut on the top.
Hope this helps.

[754]

You have a 76  cb 750 or down, and cb 450 caliper..
 I can and will work, IF you change the swing bracket or mill it properly.
 Yours should be smooth, check bolt pattern closely if you buy another, 500s and  350/400 use a smaller version and they look pretty close.. it got me a few times..

[anotherCB]

Rklyston, thanks for the link, that's actually what we saw at the dealership and those are the wrong ones, so we pulled up a K6 and that seems to be the exact same caliper i have on mine.

754, are you saying my bike is a 1976 or does that just refer to the caliper and what you see in the photos, because my bike is a model year 1977 (see attached photo when i got 3 weeks ago, looks waaaay different already

[754]

The caliper in the pics is a 76 or earlier mounted to a 77/78 K  swing bracket.

[anotherCB]

That's what i thought. Doesn't look to nice, since the caliper is not a perfect fit, anyway will have to live with it for now, pads are on the way. Thanks again.

[754]

You may have to shim the moving puck, as the caliper 1/2's are further apart.. a scenario similar to wore out pads as far as piston position goes..

[anotherCB]

Thanks for the heads up! Will look for a correct caliper also, don't like the looks of what it is now.

[cobra2411]

As other's have said early caliper with late bracket. You either need the later caliper; smooth, 43mm piston, 50mm mounting hole spacing or you need the early bracket (K3-K5) which is 10mm thick. The bracket you have should be 17mm thick.

[anotherCB]

Are you saying that the combination I have (early caliper, late bracket) won't work properly? When I got the bike 4 weeks ago i rode it home and brakes weren't great, and I thought going through the caliper and master cylinder and getting new pads might help. I haven't been on the road yet, since I am also working on a cafe seat, so I can't tell whether there is any improvement, but hopefully there will be!

[754]

7 mm is just over a 1/4 inch, good thing you got nre pads..
 Dont go roadracing, till you sort it out.

[Nikkisixx]

It will work, but not properly.  The caliper arm/bracket is different on the 77-78's.  The arm is longer and thicker because the forks have different mounting points.  This requires the proper caliper setup.  Find an F1 or F2 or 77-78 caliper.

[754]

Mounts are in the same place as on K models.. if they were not, riotors, hubs, and hangers would not interchange.
 Seal area is further from mounts as legs are longer.

[Nikkisixx]

Mounts are in the same place as on K models.. if they were not, riotors, hubs, and hangers would not interchange.
 Seal area is further from mounts as legs are longer.

Why is the arm longer?

[rangelov]

The fork sliders are longer on the 77-78s.  The fork seal is further from the caliper mounting bracket.  But this has no effect on brake interchangability on the K models.

The brake mounting location didn't change.  The length of the caliper bracket didn't change, but the thickness did, due to a change in machining on the caliper.  The caliper had a step that was removed.  The caliper bracket was made thicker to compensate for the removed caliper material.

Mounts are in the same place as on K models.. if they were not, riotors, hubs, and hangers would not interchange.
 Seal area is further from mounts as legs are longer.

Why is the arm longer?

[Nikkisixx]

The important point is that you should not mix and match those parts. 

Yes, the sliders are longer on the late models.  So what?  We are talking about caliper components.  Had each in my hand last week.  The 77-78 is now on my '78 Bonnie or I'd show them side by side.  The older "C" style arm is about 1/8 shorter than a late model "T" style:

[rangelov]

We aren't talking about the early,early c-type mounting arm.  anotherCB has the K3-K6 style caliper and K7-K8 caliper mounting bracket.  anotherCB needs an K3-K6 caliper mounting bracket or K7-K8 caliper bodies.  anotherCB has the brake line for the early model, it would be easier to swap out caliper mounting bracket, even though the K7-K8 caliper body would be correct for the 1977 CB750K7.

As far as I can tell, which includes matching them up side by side and measuring them, K3-K6 caliper mounting brackets and K7-K8 caliper mounting brackets are the same length, just different thickness.

Nikkisixx, you brought the early c-type caliper mounting bracket into this topic, but anotherCB doesn't have it and doesn't need it.

[754]

I brought up slider/seal area because they had said brake mounts were in a different location.. I dont believe they are, but looking at them in relation to seal area..MIGHT give that imprssion.  77/78K and F arms may be longer but the T and caliper should fit on the 73-76 sliders, and the discs and hubs interchange (77/78 hub looks different, but bolts up)

[Henkies]

How about  the bolt hole distance: 50mm for both the k7/F and older k-types?