Weak Brake and fork upgrades

[jm2]

Exactly.
And as the boots are taken, what size is your other gear ?

PLEASE, leave the ABS alone  - it may actually help if you manage to grab a whole lot of brakes and they kick in and I can't imagine (at this time of night) how it'll improve anything by disabling it.

THEN overhaul the brakes or get someone you trust to do it.

PLUS, if they are that bad how about not riding it any further until sorted (by the sounds of it they aren't getting better by themselves).  The biffer is a weighty bike and can reach some very decent speeds, decent brakes are somewhat essential.

[smooth operator]

Course you can mate, but you gotta do the brakes too

[smooth operator]

JM2, I was only disabling the brakes for a test ride to try to a process of elimination.
If ABS disabled and brakes are good during test ride, I know all my working parts are good.
As for the other gear I'll let you know...
The brakes aren't that bad, ie unsafe to ride, they aren't as good as they should be......... well, in my opinion.
I have arranged for the bike to be professionally assessed when I am home...

[jm2]

I think a professional assessment is indeed required.

[Ianrobbo1]

Originally Posted by jm2

I think a professional assessment is indeed required.

I concur, if only to assure you that they are working correctly. 

[smooth operator]

Just a small process of elimination Ianrobbo1 

[davyayr]

Any update on this one..

I had the same thought when I first bought my 2011 CBF. Brakes always worked but I was a bit unsure how good, as I'm a newbie.

Asked a mate with years biking under his belt to try her out.

He suggested a couple of things, given that bike brakes are open to all the road crap that gets sprayed up on them.

After a strip down and a good clean of discs with break cleaner, and spraying the pads and a roughen up with 40 grit, they were  definitely better, after a quick bedding in.

I do the same when I adjust, clean and lube the chain.

[Leofric]

davyayr , sounds like you clean the chain with brake cleaner and roughen up with 40 grit !

[Scott_rider]

I also struggled a bit with the lack of 'bite' with the brakes on the Biffer when I got it in January this year but I've now done about 7,000 miles on it and I'm used to it. I changed the pads to EBC 388 and that helped but it was the first time I'd had a bike with linked brakes/ABS and I found that a small adjustment to applying the brakes with just a touch of rear brake at all times makes a big difference and they bite well enough using that technique (at times I still give it a handful of front brake only and get that sinking feeling that they aren't going to pull me up quickly enough ). Others with more experience of the Biffer might be able to advise more but I think it's definitely a bike that benefits from using both brakes, alien as that seems when you come to it from sportsbikes etc.

I also changed the fork oil in one fork leg (as the fork seal was weeping) and that made a HUGE difference to everything....I'd recommend changing the fork oil if you don't know the serice history.

[geoffdl99bt]

Im sure I read in the manual(as you do) that you need to apply both brakes to get the full effect its something to do with the linked system operating a third piston when both brakes are applied. Or I may have been pissed and made that up