brake lines, Rubber or Stainless braided steel

which one?
preferences?
upsides and downsides?

and why is it all so expensive?
i think i just quoted over 300 dollars for the whole stainless front line set...
haven't seen rubber yet.
local store says discontinued from manuf...

 

With my mods I had to get custom hoses done. Was going to pay $40 each to get rubber ones made, but changed to the braided lines at the shop. I cant help myself when it comes to shiny new things sometimes.

Both will stop you just fine, but braided have a slightly more solid feel and look the goods.

 

Whoa. Price way too high; CHECK WITH CHACAL! (XJ4Ever)

The stock Yamaha lines are soft to begin with; so you get a "springy feel" even when everything's 100%.

Stainless lines are a very worthwhile upgrade; they come with various color sheaths if you don't want to be obtrusive about it, and they're only slightly more expensive than the stock rubber lines.

Upgrading to stainless lines is the single biggest improvement you can make to the front brake on any '80s Yamaha.

Highly recommended.

 

$300 dolars for stainless?!!!!!!
How many sets are you buying? (J/K)
Tell us who quoted that price so that we can avoid them.
Now, on the other hand, was that the price for you to take the bike into a shop and have them do all the work of removing the old stuff, installing the new stuff, bleeding and out the door. Then that would seem about right depending on the hourly shop rate plus parts.

 

I just bought some braided stainless ones for my Maxim from rennsportautoparts on EBAY tested to 3000PSI. Total cost for 3 custom lines delivered $71, DOT approved, lifetime warranty and they came with new banjo bolts and crush washers. They took about a week to get. Just make sure you measure the lengths and orient the banjo fittings correctly.

 

I bought a set from chacal for my XJ700. These are probably the best SS brake lines I have ever seen and will probably outlast the lifetime of the bike. I paid around $170ish with all new hardware also.

 

well chacal wasnt selling it as a kit, it was everything priced each...
here was his prices (obviously they are subject to change but)

BRAKE LINES:

Braided Stainless Steel Brake Lines:

1981-82 XJ750 Seca models:

HCP2837BLKST Aftermarket DOT-approved braided stainless steel BRAKE LINE ASSEMBLY, from the distribution joint to the left brake caliper, with black sheathing.
$ 49.95

HCP2836BLKST Aftermarket DOT-approved braided stainless steel BRAKE LINE ASSEMBLY, from the distribution joint to the right brake caliper, with black sheathing.
$ 49.95

HCP2834LHBLKST Aftermarket DOT-approved braided stainless steel BRAKE LINE ASSEMBLY, from the left caliper to the left anti-dive unit, with black sheathing.
$ 37.95

HCP2834RHBLKST Aftermarket DOT-approved braided stainless steel BRAKE LINE ASSEMBLY, from the right caliper to the right anti-dive unit, with black sheathing.
$ 37.95




BRAKE HOSE HARDWARE:

Brake Line Union "Banjo" or Union Bolts:
TOTAL SINGLE-DEPTH UNION BOLT USAGE BY BIKE:

XJ750 Seca (use 4)

HCP4232SET4 Aftermarket brake hose junction UNION BOLTS, used to attach a brake line end fitting to the master cylinder, distribution block, caliper, or lower fork tube anti-dive valves. Set of 4:
$ 17.00


TOTAL DOUBLE-DEPTH UNION BOLT USAGE BY BIKE:

XJ750 Seca (use 1 per side)

HCP4233 Aftermarket brake hose junction UNION BOLT, used to attach a brake line end fitting to the master cylinder, distribution block, or caliper. This is a double-hose-attachment length bolt, bright polished chrome-plated finish, and is used only on the following models, and only in the listed positions: All XJ700 models, right side of the distribution block. All XJ400 dual-disc models, all XJ550 dual-disc models, and all 1983 XJ750 Maxim and Midnight Maxim models, outlet side of the distribution block. All XJ750 Seca, XJ750P (37H models), and XJ900RK and RL models, at the caliper where caliper lines and lower anti-dive brake lines join together. All XJ1100 models, left side caliper line, upper end. These bolts should be tightened to a maximum of 19 foot-pounds of torque! Each:
$ 6.00


Brake Hose Union Bolt Crush Washers:


TOTAL BRAKE CRUSH WASHER USAGE BY BIKE:

XJ750 Seca (use 14)
HCP4231SET14 Aftermarket brake hose union bolt copperCRUSH WASHERS, set of 14:
$ 14.00

Total Cost from Chacal 212.8 + 8.5% california tax
Total Total
230.88 + shipping


i feel like im missing a line because local store told me 5 lines...

 

bigfitz why did you take off your antidive line?

 

That's a 550. They weren't blessed with anti-dive.

 

I agree with Fitz. The SS braided lines are the single best purchase I have made for my bike. Knowing what I know now I would pay $300 for the upgrade

 

I just bought stainless steel lines from rennsportautoparts as well. All three lines, banjo bolts and crush washers to fit my 85 Xj750XN were $61 - $20 for shipping. Ray was great to deal with and I received my lines in three days. A bunch of XJ owners in the Toronto, Canada area did a mass order from these guys and I haven't heard any complaints about the product. Maybe one of them will chime in and give you their two cents worth on the product.

 

That should have been $61 + $20 = $81 in total.

 

Damn! Wish I knew about that, I'd like to put those on my X during the resurrestion phase.
Got a link or info I can use.

 

ME TOO!!!

skillet

 

The fifth line is a steel line from the master cylinder (behind the headlight) to the union between the forks. I didn't need to replace this. But $300 or more is what you'll pay to refurbish the front brakes on a 750 seca (throw in caliper rebuilds, any anti-dive bits that you can replace, master cylinder rebuild and pads. Still worth it all things considered, and your brakes will be better than new.

 

heres the link, looks like im gonna be doing it too, for 70 bucks ill fold

http://myworld.ebay.com/ebaymotors/rennsportautoparts/

if you go to one of his ebay listings and look at his description, he has all the info you need to order custom length lines

 

He sells on ebay:

http://bit.ly/gYE7y9

If the link doesn't work do a ebay search for iten # 190499473579

and here is their web site:
http://rennsportautoparts.com/

and here is a link to brake line specs for the Maxim X put togeather by HAP:

http://xjcd.org/node/440

 

Hey Maxfly, do you have a link to the dealer with that set?

 

A quick caution in regard to "eBayed" (or other) custom stainless brake lines:

In addition to the angle of the fitting at each end, the "clocking" or rotational relationship between the two ends of each line is critical to fitment, as a stainless line cannot be "twisted" like a rubber one can.

If you're having custom lines made, by anyone, then not only do you need to specify which fitting for which end, but you also need to ascertain and duplicate the "clocking" of the ends relative to each other, or they MAY NOT FIT.

Keep in mind that the brake lines chacal sells for the XJ series are properly "clocked" for the bike they're for, so this isn't a concern when buying them from XJ4Ever. However, when buying elsewhere, be aware of this or you may end up with some custom made stuff you can't use.

 

Good point...The best way to be sure is to remove the brake lines from the bike before ordering.