Levers and SS brake lines...

FZ1inTX

FZ1inTX

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Can anyone tell me if you've run into this problem? On today's ride, Michele noticed my brake light "wasn't working" so, with the headsets to communicate, I tested the front brake... nope. Rear brake. Yes. Front brake harder, nope. We came to a stop and squeezed the front brake hard... Yes, the light worked.

So, I came to this conclusion... the extremely minimal amount of lever needed to stop the bike using the front brake isn't enough movement to trigger the front brake.

Looking at it, there is no way to adjust the switch position. I didn't want to risk breaking the switch by modding it (taking some off the plunger) so I ended up taking the lever off and filing down the contact area for the switch so that it would come on with minimal pull of the brake lever. I got it where I want it to be now with some tweaking. It lights at the point the brakes BARELY start to engage.

Has anyone else noticed this after putting on SS lines? Of course these take very little effort to stop the bike now which is awesome but I never considered the brake lights not activating. This was the first day trip for us in a long time.
 
As far as I know it you are the first one to encounter that kind of problem. I installed the SS brake lines and the rear light was working fine without any problems. Maybe the contacs on the switch under the brake lever are damaged....

I really don't have any other explanation for your problem....
 
Cobalt said:
Can anyone tell me if you've run into this problem? On today's ride, Michele noticed my brake light "wasn't working" so, with the headsets to communicate, I tested the front brake... nope. Rear brake. Yes. Front brake harder, nope. We came to a stop and squeezed the front brake hard... Yes, the light worked.

So, I came to this conclusion... the extremely minimal amount of lever needed to stop the bike using the front brake isn't enough movement to trigger the front brake.

Looking at it, there is no way to adjust the switch position. I didn't want to risk breaking the switch by modding it (taking some off the plunger) so I ended up taking the lever off and filing down the contact area for the switch so that it would come on with minimal pull of the brake lever. I got it where I want it to be now with some tweaking. It lights at the point the brakes BARELY start to engage.



Has anyone else noticed this after putting on SS lines? Of course these take very little effort to stop the bike now which is awesome but I never considered the brake lights not activating. This was the first day trip for us in a long time.
Click to expand...

SS lines will not cause this but if you have an after market lever it may be not touching the brake switch as a stock lever would resulting in what you discribe.
 
Changing lines isn't going to cause your switch to stop working.
It's all about your brake lever and it's distance from the plunger on the switch, I wasn't paying attention to whether it's a Gen 1, but on my Gen 2 the plunger is pushed in by the lever being out, then released by my pressing the lever, which turns the brake light on.


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In other words the brakes engaging has nothing to do with whether the brake light comes on. That's all about lever position.


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Well, some of you are wrong. The switch is a plunger that needs to be released by the lever's tab that extends for this purpose. There is nothing wrong with the switch or the lever. With the OEM lines, the amount of pull on the lever was more than what is required with the SS lines to allow the plunger to extend out enough to light the brake light. It worked fine with the OEM lines.

With the SS lines, I barely need to pull the lever to actuate the brakes. In doing so, the lever is not allowing the switch's plunger to extend out far enough to turn on the brake lights unless I squeeze VERY hard. In traffic, if I was to pull the lever hard enough to actuate the light, I'd either lock the front or do a front end-over stoppie! Take a look at your own lever and switch. Pull the lever and listen with the bike off. You can hear the audible click when the light should come on. Mine wouldn't "click" without a death-grip.

The difference is the SS lines do not expand when you pull the lever. Because the OEM lines did expand, the lever was pulled farther and actuated the switch. With the SS lines, I didn't have enough movement, without pulling a wicked stoppie, to release the switch's plunger.

Thus filing the down the lever's contact tab for the switch now allows the plunger to extend and the brake light to come on BEFORE I do a stoppie.
 
Sounds like you may have more brake fluid that before the SS lines were put on. I doubt there was enough expansion in the stock lines to make as much difference as you describe.
 
Fluid level was checked for the third time and is within limits.

If they needed to be bled, wouldn't they have more lever and a spongy feel as in trapped air? They certainly are not spongy at all.

Troy, the difference between OEM and stock lines are literally night and day. I had to re-learn my bike's braking all over again. It stops so much better now with no fade at all.
 
Eric, this is good to know. I have SS lines on my list of things to do to the bike. They are after the rear shock and maybe the fork springs, as you did. It's just odd that the handle doesn't seem to pull in far enough to engage the brake light. I'm not really sure what to tell you. I'm sure it will be a while before I can do the SS lines on mine, but I'll let you know how it turns out when I do it. I'll be sure to check the brake light, as I don't always activate the rear brake when stopping. Good luck. I'm glad Michele caught that for you before it was a problem. I love headsets. :yes:
 
While pressure may push the lever out further, your brake light still has nothing to do
With the action of your brakes. I have had my switch off twice, and installed stainless steel lines. Never had an issue, and I know how it works. The levers action with the plunger is what activates the light. The way your original post sounded you were intertwining brake action with light action. I agree with the post that it sounds like a brake fluid issue if there's that much pressure in the system. While SS lines do make a lot of difference, I don't see how, nor had I heard of, it changing the position of the lever.


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Cobalt said:
Fluid level was checked for the third time and is within limits.

If they needed to be bled, wouldn't they have more lever and a spongy feel as in trapped air? They certainly are not spongy at all.

Troy, the difference between OEM and stock lines are literally night and day. I had to re-learn my bike's braking all over again. It stops so much better now with no fade at all.
Click to expand...

Fluid level is not an indication that air is not in the system, if there is air it tends to make the lever stiffer as you use the brakes, when the bike is cool as in parked over night the lever would feel spongy at first.
 
And on my 2007, to install the switch the plunger is compressed behind the lever. Pulling on the brake lever does not compress the plunger on the switch on mine. It releases it.


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Missy, are you talking about the plunger for the MC that pushes fluid down the line? That has absolutely nothing to do with the brake light. The light is activated by a switch mounted under the MC with its own plunger that works when it extends out at the same time as the fluid plunger is compressed in. Go look under your brake lever and squeeze the front brake... you will see that switch and hear that click.
 
I've been under it. And yes that's exactly what I'm talking about. The plunger on the SWITCH. Not the plunger to the master cylinder.


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Missyl1713 said:
And on my 2007, to install the switch the plunger is compressed behind the lever. Pulling on the brake lever does not compress the plunger on the switch on mine. It releases it.


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Click to expand...

Than this is exactly what I said and am referring to. ;) Mine, because of the limited lever movement when pulling on the lever, does not allow the switch plunger to extend far enough to actuate the brake light. Think of it as a light switch where you quickly turn it on but the switch stopped half way and the lights didn't come on. :D
 
firefly said:
Fluid level is not an indication that air is not in the system, if there is air it tends to make the lever stiffer as you use the brakes, when the bike is cool as in parked over night the lever would feel spongy at first.
Click to expand...

Whether the brakes are warm, cold, or on the move, if you have air in your system, your lever will never feel firmer. It will always feel soft/spongy. This is why, when air is in the system, you have too much lever and would need to pump the brakes to compress not only fluid but also air.
 
Missyl1713 said:
View attachment 11167
Looks like that. Has nothing to do with brake fluid, or the action of your brakes. I still say its strange, because it shouldn't have changed where that part of the lever hits it.
Click to expand...

Missy, it's not the brake fluid... I think you've misunderstood me. It is the amount of movement in the lever. With the SS lines, it takes a lot less brake lever movement to go to full lock.

The lever, when squeezed, pushes the plunger to compress the fluid behind the caliper pots. At the very same time, the same lever releases the electric switch to actuate the brake light. This is an on/off switch and there is a point where it clicks. If the lever doesn't have enough movement, the switch will never extend far enough to "click" which was my case. This is an equal and opposite reaction to the action of applying the front brake. You cannot depress the fluid plunger without simultaneously releasing the electrical switch plunger.
 
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