Hi Guys,
My warranty is now finished on my 08. Kawasaki replaced the front rotors 2 times no charge. The third set is now starting to shake again at 57000 Kilometers. I decided to try some aftermarket rotors. The oem discs obviously have a problem.
I found these on ebay for $194.00 US for the set. FREE SHIPPING!   Ordered them on Oct-31 and they came in this morning Nov-9. That's 7 working days delivery from China to Canada.(no extra fees or taxes)
The quality is excellent. The carriers are cnc machined while the oem carriers appear to be a stamping. I installed them this morning and went out for a test ride. Smooth as silk. Time will tell if they stay straight, but if they last as long as the original rotors,, for 97 dollars each I'll be very happy. 
The only difference dimensionally i could find is the oem rotor has a small recess on the inside where it rests on the hub. There is a thin gasket/shim that fits flush in this recess. Since the new rotor did not have this recess, i did not install it with the spacer.
I'll do a follow-up after i put some miles on them.   

My Galfer rotors were the same design with no recess, so Galfer told me to leave the stock shim out.
Good luck with the new rotors.

I will be very interested to hear how these rotors hold up.  Once my warranty expires (2 more years) I might try a set of them if they work well for you.

Wow. They look pretty well made. Hope the work good for Ya.

Can't work any worse than than the stockers.   Well maybe they could, but we'll see.

I think I will as well. I do have this "china" thing in mind, but its not logical.  I've been screwed my way more "made in usa" or  "EBC" products than I care to comment on.

Non-union made too

Am I the first person to put these on a Connie?  The zx14 forums have positive posts about them. I did a search here but found nothing.     

It's possibly the first time here...  ZX-14s have the same rotor issues that we have.

There was a member who posted a thread stating he was thinking about them and IIRC he was swayed by the naysayers.   

Which occurs whenever the C word is mentioned....

What's the actual make of the rotors?

Brand is ARASHI. part number DBS059W.  Here`s the link..
 http://www.arashimoto.com/product/604.html

Never know.  These might prove to be superior to OEM.  China's manufacturing has gotten a lot better over the last decade.  Time will tell I suppose.

Never know.  These might prove to be superior to OEM.  China's manufacturing has gotten a lot better over the last decade.  Time will tell I suppose.

And for all we know, the STOCK OEM ones might be made in China.  Japan outsources, too.

I love it when people put down Japanese vehicles as "Foreign" when lots of them are even made in the USA, and a lot of "native" brands are made with more than 50% components, design, materials, or labor not from/in the USA.  It is a global economy now.  There is some very good stuff made in China, and a lot of really bad crap.  But that can be said for many points of origin.

One thing is for sure- the vast majority of every electronic devices we consume are made in China, as is furniture, toys, housewares, etc.  If we suddenly stopped all Chinese imports, our entire economy would instantly collapse and the standard of living would be decimated.

And for all we know, the STOCK OEM ones might be made in China.  Japan outsources, too.

I love it when people put down Japanese vehicles as "Foreign" when lots of them are even made in the USA, and a lot of "native" brands are made with more than 50% components, design, materials, or labor not from/in the USA.  It is a global economy now.  There is some very good stuff made in China, and a lot of really bad crap.  But that can be said for many points of origin.

One thing is for sure- the vast majority of every electronic devices we consume are made in China, as is furniture, toys, housewares, etc.  If we suddenly stopped all Chinese imports, our entire economy would instantly collapse and the standard of living would be decimated.

 

Sorry I won't be able to report on the long term reliability until spring. It's pretty cold up here in Canada . We've been lucky enough to be able to ride this late in the season, but it's about time to put it away for the winter.

Mike
 

Thanks for posting the price, source and photos. It would be great to have a second, more reasonable source for rotors for this bike. Those rotors actually look like they are pretty high in quality and are better looking than the OEM's IMO, and the carrier certainly looks more rugged.

Rotors are a pretty basic device, and as long as the steel used is not terrible in quality (which is really touch to do with modern equipment), and they are ground flat to begin with, they should be quite serviceable. There have been Chinese rotors available for autos for years and they have been successful from what I have seen and without any particular problems or failures.

Brian

Sorry I won't be able to report on the long term reliability until spring. It's pretty cold up here in Canada . We've been lucky enough to be able to ride this late in the season, but it's about time to put it away for the winter.

Mike

Sorry I won't be able to report on the long term reliability until spring. It's pretty cold up here in Canada . We've been lucky enough to be able to ride this late in the season, but it's about time to put it away for the winter.

Mike

What pads are you running and did you change them when you installed the rotors?

Rotors are a pretty basic device, and as long as the steel used is not terrible in quality (which is really touch to do with modern equipment), and they are ground flat to begin with, they should be quite serviceable. There have been Chinese rotors available for autos for years and they have been successful from what I have seen and without any particular problems or failures.

Brian

Exactly. The oem front rotors on my volvo are over $150.00 each. I have had no problems with the $35.00 Chinese replacements from my local auto parts. Over 50000 km on them!