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SuperATV disc conversion lackluster braking.

5K views 4 replies 4 participants last post by  richief 
#1 ·
Just installed a SuperATV front disc conversion on my '03 Rubi.
I have solid lever feel but the braking performance is definitely way below what I was expecting. They are better than the drums that were on there but not by much.
I scuffed and cleaned the discs to help seat the new pads with cleaner before installing the calipers.
I have done a 25 mph to dead stop probably 20 times and am getting on the brakes HARD, trying to lock up the front, this was done on asphalt, I didn't expect to be able to lock up the tires but you know how hard I was on the brakes.
The first of several stops will be pretty weak and subsequent, floor it to 25mph and hammer on the brakes cycles, will get better braking but not great.
I noticed that the pads could have been probably 40% bigger based on the disc coverage so that was a screw up on the engineers part IMO. All that wasted opportunity.
All the reviews I read mentioned that the upgrade was one of the best mods they did. I am not convinced...even going slow you have to get on the lever pretty good to stop...more than I feel I should with discs.
I made sure the discs were grease free before I installed the calipers and the brakes don't pull in the least.
I am basing the performance on the braking of my '02 XR400. It has one disc the same size in the front instead of two like the ATV but weights half as much and brakes MUCH better.
Have you all had to scuff the pads as well as the rotors to help them seat? On cars/trucks and small A/C scuffing the rotors is normal.

Am I just expecting to much from this?

Darrell
 
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#2 ·
You get them bled really well? Sounds like you have air in the system.

Tie the brake handle back and leave it for a few days. It should let any air in the system bleed up to the MC.
 
#4 ·
Update: My super atv brake conversion is getting better at stopping the more I use it. It's been on 2 weeks now. After multiple hard braking attempts to break them in, they now work better than the drums did when they were freshly cleaned. Just takes some time to break on I guess.
 
#5 ·
Just put on a front end i got from ebay, that allready had the super atv disc kit installed. When putting it on my rubicon I noticed callipers and bracket were mounted to the front, wwhich is good, because lines bolt right up, no rerouting like directions say, BUT they had the callipers upside down, the bleeder was under the line, ya cant get air out that way, so swapped callipers and all is good. Might be worth a look.
 
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