A Chicken in Every Pot

[isleoman]

Thats what the politicians say..... So I'll be down two chickens after the election.

Just swithed over my six pot calipers to four pot calipers. Took a short ride tonight and haven't made up my mind if they are better than the six pots or just different.

The good news is they were easy to bleed and get a rock hard feel at the lever. I have a GSXR brake lever and master cylinder so it has four adjustments in terms of how far it can be positioned from the handle bar. With the six pot tokicos which came with my 95 GSXR1100 front end, I had to keep the adjustment on one, which is the furthest position from the bar. If I moved the dog leg lever closer to the bar (even one position) it would feel mushier. If I moved it two positions it would touch the bar when you pulled on it.

The other good news is each four pot caliper weighs about a pound less.

With the four pot calipers I can move the lever closer and its still rock hard. I've heard the four pots can lock up easier. I was able to lock the front a couple of times tonight but it didn't seem too drastic. Of course the locking up issue is most important in a panic stop where you don't really want it to happen.

The six pots look better. The four pots are tokico units off a 98 GSXR 600. Came with brake pads that still have a lot of meat on them. Picked them up on ebay for $18 plus $10 for shipping so I said what the heck might as well give them a try. I can always switch back.
I had watched a couple auctions over the last few months and they typicaly go for high $40's.

Took about an hour and a half to pull them apart and clean out the old Dot 3 fluid. One side looked like new the other looked like moisture had gotten in some how. No rust just milky brake fluid.

I put back Dot 5. Yea I know all the issues, but that's what I prefer for keeping the paint safe.
May take awhile to decide which ones I'll go with long term. No pics yet.

[salty_monk]

That's one reason for a Mushy Lever.... only times I've used Dot 5 silicon you could definitely tell the difference for pedal/lever feel.

Sounds like you MC doesn't move enough fluid for the 6 pots... is it matched to those? Sounds like the piston size is better matched to the 4 pots.

Your bike is a favourite of mine regardless of what brakes are fitted....

Dan

[isleoman]

Dan,

The six pots and the master cylinder all came from the same GSXR1100 so Suzuki thought they were a good match( for what thats worth). You see a lot of people with 4 pots moving towards six pots and you see a smaller number moving the other way.

I bled the six pots several times and they never got as hard as the four pots did right off the bat so to me its more the calipers than the fluid. The six pot calipers seem to hold alot more fluid in them. I could see how silicone could absord moisture and get mushy over time but not brand new. I don't know for sure how many miles were on the GSXR1100 front end and brakes when I bought it, probably more than 20K.

The other issue I've had with the six pots is you could hear them clink/click if you pulled the lever while you were walking the bike to move it. The six pot pads were new 6K miles ago but I think the edge channels/grooves that the pads ride in in the calipers were a little worn on the bottom allowing the pads to shift side ways. I think the clink noise was the top off the pad hitting the aluminum cover that goes over the pads. You wouldn't hear it while riding, just moving it at walking speed. I can't tell yet if the four pots are stopping the bike any faster. Its kinda kool that Suzuki set things up to allow for so many swapable components.

[isleoman]

OK heres a pic of the four pots




From a little further back

[isleoman]

Six pots for comparison, ignore the difference in the body pieces, just look at the brakes



To me there's no question the six pots look a little better.

[lecroy]

.... only times I've used Dot 5 silicon you ...
Dan

Isn't the DOT rating just the breakdown temperature for the fluid? I have never dove into this.

[Nessism]

Isn't the DOT rating just the breakdown temperature for the fluid? I have never dove into this.

Dot 5 is a different beast, developed for militarily vehicles that see long storage time. Dot 5 is silicone based and does not absorb water like other brake fluids. Dot 3 and 4 are similar, and 4 does have a higher boiling point. 5 is not compatible with 3/4 and is reputed to create a spongy feel at the lever.