LI150 Brake upgrade

[Hammer RB230]

Hi All

I have just fitted a RT195 kit to my LI 150, the standard front and rear drums actually work pretty well, however now that I have more power I am considering a cheap front brake improvement. I do not want to fit a outboard/inboard disk due to all my money has gone on my engine. So would I be better off fitting new higher spec shoes ? if so can you recommend any, Ive seen so called race spec shoes , or is it possible to do the reverse pull conversion on a drum ? I am aware that this can lead to the brake jamming on but surely this is when the shoes are worn down allowing the arm to go over ?

Or should I just leave alone ?

Any ideas comments would be appreciated

Cheers

[Wack]

Don't bother with "race shoes",go for something softer like NOS or Indian Makino.

[Tractorman]

Reverse pulls are OK on the front I converted the combo to reverse pull and it is very effective.

[Hammer RB230]

Thanks Chaps I will look at buying some new shoes and convert to reverse pull.

[gaz_powell]

I use Makino shoes and reverse pull all my front drum brakes.

The makino shoes work well but are soft and don't last (on the back) but at circa £11.00 it's no problem....

Agree about "race" shoes.........

[TrackTen]

Interesting thread

Are you using the older light coloured Makinos ( sort of buff cream colour ) or the newer darkey (greyish ) ones ?

[gaz_powell]

The buff coloured ones - the "standard" type I believe.
Think the grey ones the "race" compound??

[Fast n Furious]

Just be careful with reverse pull on drum brakes. They can in extreme cases "lock on" under really heavy braking conditions. The original conversion instructions negated this conversion for drum brakes for this reason.
Basically though, you will never realise full possible braking potential with a cable operated drum brake.
The thought of having to rely on a drum front brake these days makes me shudder, but i guess it depends on how you ride and what your front suspension setup is like?

[Warkton Tornado No.1]

Just be careful with reverse pull on drum brakes. They can in extreme cases "lock on" under really heavy braking conditions. The original conversion instructions negated this conversion for drum brakes for this reason.
Basically though, you will never realise full possible braking potential with a cable operated drum brake.
The thought of having to rely on a drum front brake these days makes me shudder, but i guess it depends on how you ride and what your front suspension setup is like?

Although I disagree to an extent, a reverse pull drum properly set-up is only feasible IMHO if it is the TV175 SII type with OEM type disc links & well chamfered shoes. The relationship of drum swept area to wheel diameter is actually good, compared to similar motorcycles. In their favour, they never, ever fade & the fluid can never boil as could occur with an hydraulic (I own one somewhere that was leant to a ‘Top Tuner’ for a copper to start racing on a shoestring budget, so I suppose I will never see that again)

However, roads are so bad these days (compared to the track) that they are a true test of suspension & brakes & I find my road bike bottoming out even with a reverse pull sintered pad disc brake (which I figure has a bit more feel than if it were the excellent drum set-up I mention)