Brake replacements

I've been doing some general maintenance and minor electrical work (Adding a secondary gauge bracket) on my VFR for the last few days. While I was working on it I noticed the fork seals were showing some signs of leakage and the front brake pads were starting to look a little thin. I ordered my fork seal kit (Go AllBalls!) but have some conflicting information on the brake pads I wanted to clarify on.

Since I am doing this I figure i'll do both front and rear. Per a parts diagram if I replace all three brakes There are three separate part numbers:

Front left: 06455-MCC-06

Front right: 06456-MCC-06

Rear: 06435-MAT-006 with a second option of 06435-MAT-016

My question here is, does this really require three different parts?? While I get front and rear might be different, It seems silly to me that Honda wouldn't just use the same pads for both fronts. 

Here is a pic of the three different parts (Right/Left/Rear😞

[image: image.png.5a7d62365293bc64d33dc85c79f18533.png]

R/L certainly look the same...

Also (Hopefully I don't spark some great debate here...) What pads have you had good luck with? I'm looking at EBC Double H sintered brake pads which seem to be very well reviewed everywhere I look. I'm also debating replacing the rotors. They brake smoothly at this point so I probably wont but That is dependent on further inspection.

I've always used the EBC HH sintered pads.  They fit perfectly, stop the bike very well, wear pretty long, and they're affordable.  And if memory serves, 6th gens take the same pads on all three calipers.

2 hours ago, TimC

I've always used the EBC HH sintered pads.  They fit perfectly, stop the bike very well, wear pretty long, and they're affordable.  And if memory serves, 6th gens take the same pads on all three calipers.

Agreed on the price. Seemed pretty reasonable to me. Weird that they would give all three sets of brake pads different part numbers. 😳

7 minutes ago, Blackened

Agreed on the price. Seemed pretty reasonable to me. Weird that they would give all three sets of brake pads different part numbers. 😳

Making things more complicated than they need to be is the Honda motorcycle way.  😕 

Also, just in case you've not changed motorcycle brake pads before (sorry, not making any assumptions either way here), make sure not to lose track of the little spring clips which hold the pads in place.

fix any fork seal leaks b4 replacing brake pads.

From what I understand, the front left and right are the same, however depending on the year the front calipers may take different pads than the rear. Mine is 09 and I needed a different set for the rear than the front 

TimC, 9/4/2020 at 3:15 PM

Making things more complicated than they need to be is the Honda motorcycle way.  😕 

Also, just in case you've not changed motorcycle brake pads before (sorry, not making any assumptions either way here), make sure not to lose track of the little spring clips which hold the pads in place.

LOL. Just my luck!

No worries. I've changed plenty of brakes before just not on a VFR. I'm going to work one at a time but will be sure to make sure nothing gets lost. 

TriumphTraitor, 9/4/2020 at 5:18 PM

From what I understand, the front left and right are the same, however depending on the year the front calipers may take different pads than the rear. Mine is 09 and I needed a different set for the rear than the front 

Ah... Figures. I'm still trying to figure out why they have two separate part numbers for the same part!!

squirrelman, 9/4/2020 at 4:03 PM

fix any fork seal leaks b4 replacing brake pads.

Wouldn't have it any other way. Last thing I need is pads tainted with Fork oil.

10 hours ago, Blackened

Ah... Figures. I'm still trying to figure out why they have two separate part numbers for the same part!!

My guess is Honda most likely has a different backer spacer on the pads from left to right - meaning they would be a different skew number in the system but the actual pad might be the same

I did some googling and found this

[image: HONDA Motorradteile Bremsbelag, Satz, rechts, vorne (für CB 1100 SF, VFR 800, NT 650 V) - HONDA Motorradteile][image: HONDA Motorradteile Bremsbelag, Satz, links, vorne (für CB 1100 SF, VFR 800, NT 650 V) - HONDA Motorradteile]

You can see the only difference is the Stainless steel backers are given for one of the pads in each kit.

The pads themselves are identical. Why Honda would do this is beyond me

I went with the Ebc hh’s. They’re similar to the stock pads. The stock pads are very good in my opinion. I think I actually like the feel of less bite better, easier to control the nuanced way I use the brakes lightly.

There was an excellent interview on AdventureRider Radio podcast about pads.  They interviewed a motorcycle brake pad scientist (I think from DP Brakes but not 100% sure).  It's the Aug 27, 2020 episode "Choosing Motorcycle Brake Pads--What is Brake Fade".  Very good episode.  Check it out.

I changed my rear pads last year (about 55,000 kms then) and left the caliper attached to the bike.  I remember it being awkward.  The manual said something about making sure that spring stays in place.  I had to really look to find the spring.  No problem, I thought, I won't touch it then all of a sudden PTWAAANNNNGGG as it flew across the garage!!

It took me half an hour to find it...then another half an hour to figure out how to put it back in place...ugghh...