Blingy Rear Rotor

[Veefer800Canuck]

nevermind the pic is not of a VFR rear rotor, but here goes:

My OE rear rotor is wearing funny, it's thinner nearer to the rotational center and thicker at the edge. Pads are just about gone, I've a set of EBC HH in the toolbox waiting to go on, but no sense putting them on an old worn rotor with 60k on it right?

Compare at $180 USD (no shipping) for a stock replacement Vs $116 Cdn (incl. shipping) for this puppy.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...em=140315948357

Wish me luck! Roll the dice on Cheap Chinese rotor. Maybe made from Old Fortune Cookies? :laugh:

At least it's out back, so we'll see. Front stoppers are 320mm Nissins w/4 piston calipers so even with no rear brake at all, I should still be ok.

[AB-Oz]

Made in China from Australian Steel

She'll be right mate!

[Veefer800Canuck]

Good to hear Ab, because here's what I've got my eyes on next :laugh:

[HispanicSlammer]

I have always wondered if those wave designs act like a cheese grater on the pads? From what I have read it was a cnc computer mistake that started the whole thing in the first place? I would have a look at your rear brake and make sure the slider pins havent stuck, remove them and put some high temperature grease on the pins. Might as well remove the pistons too and clean and polish those too.

I tried HH pads on my rear they felt way too grabby and I could not get used to the feel. I went with a less agressive pad my next set - the OEM pads have a set of Asbestos pads or some such material in between the metal pad back and the pistons to keep from transfering heat. This prevents the brake fluid from boiling off - the rear rotor is smaller in diameter than the front so you get much more friction going into the pad, with not much stopping power. Just more heat.

[Veefer800Canuck]

Thanks Miguel, I always clean and grease the caliper slider pins with proper synthetic brake grease.

The original rear disc is worn kinda like this: \ / if you look at it edgewise.

It's noticeably narrow(er) towards the center on both sides of the disc, and normal thickness out near the outer edge.

Although the depiction above is quite exaggerated.

As for the cheese grater analogy, I guess I'll find out.

[SEBSPEED]

Good to hear Ab, because here's what I've got my eyes on next :fing02:

I've come very close to trying those out myself Rob. If you do try them, I hope they work well for you! :biggrin:

[Tightwad]

I have never bought the Wave Design either...especially with more surface area empty than filled in. I would thing less metal means more heat/cool cycles = more warping and less effective braking....let alone the cheese grater concept, which large holes would seem to encourage.

Slotted rotors run cooler, but 1/2 the surface area would seem to just heat right up.

[Tightwad]

Found an interesting article/feedback on the Galfer Wave Rotors, and how they are better. They did say that they chew through pads faster, but braking is much improved at the rotor bleeds heat better, and presents a new surface to the pad as the wave goes around.(but the pad gets chewed by the new surface....I guess it is a tradeoff)

http://www.webbikeworld.com/carym/wave/

[Alien VFR]

I have never bought the Wave Design either...especially with more surface area empty than filled in. I would thing less metal means more heat/cool cycles = more warping and less effective braking....let alone the cheese grater concept, which large holes would seem to encourage.

Slotted rotors run cooler, but 1/2 the surface area would seem to just heat right up.

I read somewhere that the advantage of the wave design is that there's more "leading edge surface area" sweeping across the pads. This provides better feel and improved braking. Your pads will probably wear a little faster, but at $100 for a set of front pads, it's not that big of a deal IMO.

[Veefer800Canuck]

I've come very close to trying those out myself Rob. If you do try them, I hope they work well for you! :biggrin:

Well, I read everything I could find on the IntardWebz about them, 98% of the people who posted said "They're cheap Chinese Junk, your going to !die!, I'd never ever use anything but Galfer or Braking (for $600+)."

And those people had NEVER bought nor used the Chinese rotors nor known anyone who had.

The other 1% said they used them on their trackbikes and warped them.

The other 1% said they used them on their streetbikes and love them, absolutely no problems ever.

What does it all mean? They're probably fine for street use is what I'm thinking.

I'll see how the rear one ($116 Cdn) works out before I try the fronts, which will set me back about $180 (Cdn) for the pair (IF I get them).

[SEBSPEED]

Let me know if you could save $$ by having them sent to me, then having me forward them to you. It would give me a chance to peek in the box... :biggrin:

[Guest onedowneaster]

Veefer; Just asking,but would it be possible to take your current rotor and have the surface milled flat,if so could you have the machine shop drill a simple pattern of holes on the rotor

so in effect you would have a good rotor surface with drilled holes for heat and weight without buying a new one and at least you would know what kind of metal you have.

Or am I just doing wishful thinking by trying to save an old rotor and paying the machine shop more than the Chineese rotor costs? eddie

[keny]

Here a pic of the one you buoght

And it looks exactly the sam as my JT Braking rotor I got for my -87 a year ago, witch looked werry good quality, better finnish than the EBC rotors I buoght for front years ago.

Keep us posted

[The Phantom]

There's not much wrong with Chinese metallurgy. Chinese QC may be a different story, but they do some pretty trick machining and welding over there. I'm interested in how this works out for you Rob... the dust has almost worn my rotors out

[AB-Oz]

I had a set of Galfer wave rotors on my Klingon before the SP2 front went on, along with a set of EBC HH Street pads.

I found them excellent, and did not chew up rotors or pads with either...

[ggathagan]

I had a set of Galfer wave rotors on my Klingon before the SP2 front went on, along with a set of EBC HH Street pads.

I found them excellent, and did not chew up rotors or pads with either...

:fing02:

I had them on my 4th gen and really liked them. Very good bite, but progressive. I didn't notice undue wear on the pads either.

[meddle1999]

I convertet my KTM to wave rotors and noticed a substantial difference in stopping power... (although were talking in the dirt here!) didn't notice any increase in wear on the pads either.... They definately run cooler as well. when the rotors on the Viffer are sacked thats where ill go as well.....

[Guest trickster]

Setting the record straight on the quality of chinese machine parts, some is ok more is trash. on chinese steel it is trash at this point across the board. The problem is in the chinese idea behind quality control, if you hold it up and it looks right it must be ok. (forget about welded assys from china they really can't weld, but a lot of that is their poor steel if it is domestic, kind of if it sticks the weld is good :fing02: )

There can be stuff made there that is as good or better than any place in the world, The Zeiss factory is a great example, the German parent company built the factory, supplies the raw material, trains and educates the plant staff = quality, They also basically built the town and housing around the plant it is like a 3 sq mi, of Germany plopped in china (weird actually).

the rotors will probably be fine for you (you will know very quickly if not)

big disadvantage of wave rotors on the street is they cool off to quickly and loose braking, on the track you are on the brakes enough to keep them warm enough to provide proper friction, on the street often times you are not, so you get the cold rotor nothing nothing nothing....jerk type of braking like a wet rotor feels. If you want to see this in spades go ride a r6 or r1 great brakes on the track but pretty poor on the street, they wind up feeling inconsistent.

Just do yourself a favor, pop the pistons out of the caliper and clean them in brake fluid with #3 steel wool, wipe out the calipers with a lint free cloth, and flip the seals. you will be ready to fly. remember to remove the pads and scuff them after they bed in, also the perfect time to bead blast the rotors when you do. (and keep it clean)

Your pads should have come with new anti-squeal shims, also do not forget to clean the bores of the caliper pins and grease them, probably should get new pad pins too just because,

If you can afford to do the whole front and rear together it would be good as bleeding the whole system is a bitch, at any rate take the opportunity to flush the whole system and change the fluid if it has not been done in the last 2 years, you really need to clean well and look closely at the caliper given the odd wear you have on the factory rotor. make sure that the caliper mount to the bracket fasteners are straight

OH YEAH blue locktite every thing except the pad pins and covers!

When I had to replace my fronts I was a little annoyed that EBC had quit making the plain round drilled rotors, I had to settle for the x rotors. those and matching HH ebc pads have been very nice.

[Veefer800Canuck]

Veefer; Just asking,but would it be possible to take your current rotor and have the surface milled flat,if so could you have the machine shop drill a simple pattern of holes on the rotor

so in effect you would have a good rotor surface with drilled holes for heat and weight without buying a new one and at least you would know what kind of metal you have.

Or am I just doing wishful thinking by trying to save an old rotor and paying the machine shop more than the Chineese rotor costs? eddie

Hi Eddie, a long time ago, before my rotor started wearing funny, I had the rear end apart for some other mtnce and decided, just for play, to redrill all the rear rotor holes up to 1/2" diameter.

Chucked it up in the drill press at work, it came out just fine, and worked alright.

As for the cost of saving it, I'd have to measure, but I suspect it would be too close to the thin end of the tolerance limit, plus the new one is only $116 Cdn.

[Veefer800Canuck]

Setting the record straight on the quality of chinese machine parts,

Thanks for the input Trickster. Yeah, I'm still a touch leery about the QC, but it's only the rear, so not as critical.

I will be "upgrading" my rear caliper at the same time, to allow more brake clamping force, sort of a followup mod to my brake delinking, which was, in itself, an offshoot of the RC51 front end conversion.

http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/forum/index.p...c=50838&hl=

[Veefer800Canuck]

Just an update to say that I got the rotor from the EBAY vendor in the UK, anybody wants to deal with Sandy Bike Spares, they did great in my book.

Here's their website:

http://www.sandybikespares.co.uk/

No time to install the rotor yet, perhaps this week.

[Guest KenTastic]

Just an update to say that I got the rotor from the EBAY vendor in the UK, anybody wants to deal with Sandy Bike Spares, they did great in my book.

Any updates, veefer?

[YoshiHNS]

My experience with chinese steel has been very poor. We had two or three jobs in the machine shop where we were supplied the metal. It was chinese, and it was terrible. When you mill normal carbon steel, the edge cuts the steel and it breaks off as the edge exits the steel. This stuff didn't do that. Easiest way to explain what was happening is to imagine milling into a giant wad of chewed gum. The steel would just stretch and stick. Almost went through a grand of tooling doing that job.

Now, that may have been the customer's fault for supplying the cheapest steel he could, or it could have been a fluke, or it could have been a good representation of chinese steel. Don't really know as after that job we made it a policy to not do any jobs that involve chinese steel.

[Veefer800Canuck]

Just an update to say that I got the rotor from the EBAY vendor in the UK, anybody wants to deal with Sandy Bike Spares, they did great in my book.

Any updates, veefer?

Pads are bedded in, rotor working great, no noises, lots of bite.

[The Phantom]

Pads are bedded in, rotor working great, no noises, lots of bite, dog ate my digital camera.