I put EBC HH pads front and rear and took a 4500 mile trip.  Next thing I know, I can tell I need new pads, my rotor does not look good, having NO PAD LEFT will do that.  I put EBC organics on and it seems ok.  But now I am worried about my fronts.  They seem ok for now.  I have used EBC HHs before with no issue.  I was in a mountain or 2 in SD, WY, UT and CO.  I use my rear a lot on this bike, the FZ1 I never use it at all as the rear barely touches when you use the front heavily.

Is there some sort of issue I am not aware of?  I don't think they were hanging up and dragging and I don't think I was dragging the rear that much.

Oh, pics at www.flickr.com/cpsmith58  - Look for Out West 2011 in the top right. Great trip.

I can only tell you what happened to me - I've never cleaned the caliper pistons before, just pushed them back in and put new pads.  One time a couple years ago I noticed my back brake pads wore out really fast and it was steel on steel for a while.

Lesson learned.  Clean the pistons before pushing them back in. I use a small cloth and some light oil, fish one end thru and work it back and forth best you can.  I suppose you could remove the piston but I've never done that.  Also, with caliper off, I lightly pump the brake to extend the piston a little more to make sure I expose some clean surface and feel better that I've got all the scum off.

Also, the rubber boots (my 87 anyway) can be removed and the sliding areas there regreased too.

Was the bag pressing on the caliper when loaded?

Was the bag pressing on the caliper when loaded?

This is very common with older bikes as when loaded down the right bag will sag and push against the caliper a scrub off a pad in very short order; the very same can be said about not tearing your caliper down and cleaning the piston and bore for aged gunk. The Service Manual calls for caliper rebuild every 3 years I believe to which I've seen bikes on the road for 20 years with never a rebuild; that will cause a sticky caliper and pad wear in short order.

Wow, great lessons to be learned on this board, gotta go check my brakes.

This bike is an 03 but only had 18,xxx miles on it when I got it. 27k plus now, but it's not terribly old or lotsa miles.  I will go check to see if the bag could drag on it.  I only had raingear and heated gear in it, I doubt it had more than 5 lbs in it.

A friend told me these had cast rotors (not SS) and EBC HH pads don't play well with them. But he rides a Moto Guzzi, so what does he know? Obviously not the sharpest tool in the shed, eh?

I would think that if the bag was rubbing on the rotor, the bag is stable and the rotor moves up and down with the swingarm, so I would see a groove or scratch worn in the bag. Checking now ...

Ok, there are a couple small notches in the bag.  I can't force the bag down with my hand to interfere, but the notches/scratches are there so... Hmmm.

Yeah, what do I know...I. ride a Moto Guzzi also...

This bike is an 03 but only had 18,xxx miles on it when I got it. 27k plus now, but it's not terribly old or lotsa miles.  I will go check to see if the bag could drag on it.  I only had raingear and heated gear in it, I doubt it had more than 5 lbs in it.

A friend told me these had cast rotors (not SS) and EBC HH pads don't play well with them. But he rides a Moto Guzzi, so what does he know? Obviously not the sharpest tool in the shed, eh?

I would think that if the bag was rubbing on the rotor, the bag is stable and the rotor moves up and down with the swingarm, so I would see a groove or scratch worn in the bag. Checking now ...

Ok, there are a couple small notches in the bag.  I can't force the bag down with my hand to interfere, but the notches/scratches are there so... Hmmm.

My calipers started sticking at 30k. Easy fix, just pump the piston out, carefully remove the square seal, clean everything with brake fluid (I prefer Dot 4), reassemble and bleed. Then do the next one. Don't need to buy any parts unless you ding something up.

A friend told me these had cast rotors (not SS) and EBC HH pads don't play well with them. But he rides a Moto Guzzi, so what does he know?

Nuttin against Guzzi's but your friend does not know quack about Kawasaki rotors; the brake coefficient of the stock pads is an HH... To which many of us myself included run EBC HH all around; although today I use EBC rotors too.

. . . he rides a Moto Guzzi, so what does he know? Obviously not the sharpest tool in the shed, eh?

Yeah, they're all like that 

I'll have you know I just had my knife sharpened!
At least we know how to put a v twin in the frame so the cylinders stay cool unlike those "other brands".   

At least we know how to put a v twin in the frame so the cylinders stay cool unlike those "other brands".   

Yep those dam Italians sure done right with that one.... What started life as nothing more than a V-Twin Utility Cart Motor when properly hung in a steel tube frame made for a bike that was simple to build, had a low center of gravity for ease of handling, and had the torque to pull stumps out da ground.

That's a popular misconception. The utility cart had a 500cc single with the cylinder facing forward. A dealer has one that he drives around the farm.
Now, let's hope the brake pad mystery is solved. Hate to see a rotor get trashed.

That's a popular misconception. The utility cart had a 500cc single with the cylinder facing forward.

Dammed Internet!

This bike is an 03 but only had 18,xxx miles on it when I got it. 27k plus now, but it's not terribly old or lotsa miles.  I will go check to see if the bag could drag on it.  I only had raingear and heated gear in it, I doubt it had more than 5 lbs in it. ...

Statically, the bag to caliper clearance may appear fine. However when you hit a bump the bag may tick the caliper causing premature pad wear. Tell tale signs may include an arc shaped scuff on the bag near the same location as the 'nib' on the caliper. Another sign would be the clearance between the bag and the red reflector on the inner fender. Clearance of a finger (pick your favorite finger ) should be the minimum. Shim the pad at the antler to frame joint with a disk cut from an inner tube, or other suitable material. I often recommend a piece of rubber truck bed liner mat.

Check for a crack in the top of the bag where it  attaches to the antler too. No amount of shimming (or glue) will fix that.

Sticky caliper is another cause, check the bags first.

Rick

FWIW, I replace pads every other tire. My tires last about 4K miles at best.

More gas and less braking!