stock rubber brake hoses vs stainless?

[akckhim]

I purchased ss lines from Spiegler very nice stuff work great last forever sure they cost more but why not have better when it comes to brakes.

[tkent02]

Ducati, KTM, BMW, Aprillia and the others must just use them for the placebo effect. Husaberg uses them because they don't work. MV Augusta uses them because ???

Because they all love ****ing away profits to put placebos on their motorcycles.
Uh huh.

Makes more sense that the industry is going that way because they work better, last longer and are cheaper to make.

[Grimly]

Another opinion.

Braided lines are braided to prevent expansion under pressure, good for the race track. Non braided lines expand a tiny bit under pressure.
This means ... Braided lines have more "feel" but no modulating effect, this can be a good or bad thing depending on your point of view.
An example: panic braking in an emergency with braided timed in milliseconds - you apply full braking force to the front and all is good, then the wheel hits a bump, your fingers remain clamped round the lever. The extra forces caused by the bump initiate a lock up of the front wheel and unless you have superman reflexes (i don't) now you go down.
In the same situation with non braided lines there is a tiny amount of "give" in the system which is enough to absorb the milliseconds of extra pressure caused by that bump, this prevents the wheel locking which is a good thing.

IMHO putting braided lines on old bikes like these just makes the brakes feel wooden by amplifying their inherent lack of feel and power compared to more modern machines. Sticking with rubber lines gives a nicer feel at the levers and helps in hard braking situations.

Which is why I never put braided lines on the rear of my bikes - especially with the GS's propensity to lock the rear at the drop of a jaywalking pedestrian, I didn't need any extra tendency for that.
Otoh, the braided fronts are worth their weight in dried fruit.

[kochic]

I have braided line on my gs1000, I even have one line for each front caliper, no T or union.I bought the fittings and around 12ft of hose and made them myself.
Marc

[wymple]

I have braided line on my gs1000, I even have one line for each front caliper, no T or union.I bought the fittings and around 12ft of hose and made them myself.
Marc

I'll bite. How does one master cylinder feed 2 front lines without a T or a union? Does it not split SOMEWHERE?

[tkent02]

Which is why I never put braided lines on the rear of my bikes - especially with the GS's propensity to lock the rear at the drop of a jaywalking pedestrian, I didn't need any extra tendency for that.
Otoh, the braided fronts are worth their weight in dried fruit.

After owning and riding hundreds of GSes of different sizes, never heard of a propensity to lock the rear wheel.
Must be a technique thing.

I'll bite. How does one master cylinder feed 2 front lines without a T or a union? Does it not split SOMEWHERE?

Put the double banjo at the master cylinder.

[srg]

I'll bite. How does one master cylinder feed 2 front lines without a T or a union? Does it not split SOMEWHERE?

Use a longer banjo bolt and put both of the brake line ends on to the same MC connection.

This image might help:

http://www.spieglerusa.com/media/useruploads/images/spiegler_brake_line_routing.jpg

[Nessism]

I'll bite. How does one master cylinder feed 2 front lines without a T or a union? Does it not split SOMEWHERE?

Use a long banjo bolt, similar to the one holding two lines onto the splitter attached to the lower steering stem.

[rudeman]

And you have had this bike from new?
Just asking.

I've had my 1000ST from brand new and it did make a difference when I switched to braided lines back in 1983. I even went with DOT 5 silicone-based brake fluid. Totally pleased with my decision; would do it again.

[bwringer]

Lots of new bikes have stock brakes that could stand improvement. Many V-Strom owners, for instance, replace their rubber lines with braided stainless very early in the bike's life. Everyone reports an improvement in feel. It doesn't suddenly turn the brakes into race-quality units or anything, but it is a noticeable and needed improvement on such a heavy and large motorcycle; you can, of course, squeeze the lever just as hard either way, but the stainless braided lines take some of the "slop" or "flex" out of the system.

That said, I also replaced the hydraulic clutch line on my Vee with a stainless line, mainly to gain the benefit of far longer life. Plus it looked cool. The V-Strom factory maintenance manual requires replacing all brake and hydraulic lines every four years, which is completely ridiculous.

[SNOWBLIND78]

I plan on installing SS lines on my bike. Based on the braking technology/condition of my 37 yr. old bike I tend to think the performance difference would be somewhat negligible unless the rest of the system was updated as well (master cylinder rebuild etc.) . I have to admit it is mostly an aesthetic pursuit for me in this case. But I don't see the harm in replacing my old brittle hoses with a material that is stronger and seemingly more resistant to grime, UV, chemicals and so forth and that should provide at least a few years of hassle free use if it's installed correctly.

[Brendan W]

Given the two year replacement interval mandated by Suzuki. replacement of hoses of indeterminate age is a good move. From the oil story this machine may not have had the best of attention so you also need to ask questions about the condition of the pistons, slider pins and master cylinders.

[SNOWBLIND78]

Brendan I agree and thanks for the other suggestions, I will add them to the long list of items I plan to go through and inspect and/or replace.

While the treatment of the bike over the years is a mystery I have seen way worse for bikes which were neglected and sitting around. A couple indicators that maybe the original owner took decent care of it is the original paint still looks brand new from the factory and rust on the chrome and frame s minimal so I think it was garaged or covered for most of it's life. The electrical/charging system works great and the bike starts right up. The chain and sprockets look clean and maintained. The motor and trans are the biggest question mark I suppose but I have not ridden many other GS bikes from this era so in my mind it is hard to develop a baseline from which to judge by. Looking through the forum and learning about how others bike's run has been helpful to determine what kind of issues I may or may not be facing.

[Brendan W]

Brendan I agree and thanks for the other suggestions, I will add them to the long list of items I plan to go through and inspect and/or replace.

While the treatment of the bike over the years is a mystery I have seen way worse for bikes which were neglected and sitting around. A couple indicators that maybe the original owner took decent care of it is the original paint still looks brand new from the factory and rust on the chrome and frame s minimal so I think it was garaged or covered for most of it's life. The electrical/charging system works great and the bike starts right up. The chain and sprockets look clean and maintained. The motor and trans are the biggest question mark I suppose but I have not ridden many other GS bikes from this era so in my mind it is hard to develop a baseline from which to judge by. Looking through the forum and learning about how others bike's run has been helpful to determine what kind of issues I may or may not be facing.

The colour of the brake fluid and the presence or absence of sediments in the master cylinders are good clues to the overall health of the braking system. You know how it goes - coffee coloured fluid probably not changed in years and who knows what has accumulated in the calipers just waiting to seize the pistons.
Ironically the better looking bikes can be the bigger traps - years in drydock can mean years with no regular maintenance. A well worn bike with clean fluid speaks loud.