More Engine Braking is Good!

1299 and 959 are two different animals , I think the breaking on the 959 is going to be perfect for 95% of motorcyclist the other 5 percent can do the pad or caliber upgrade if needed.

I had 310mm Nissin's on my kawi and they were more than plentiful whereas the 959 has bigger brakes all around so I think most of us will be perfectly fine with the 959

360turbo said:

1299 and 959 are two different animals , I think the breaking on the 959 is going to be perfect for 95% of motorcyclist the other 5 percent can do the pad or caliber upgrade if needed.

I had 310mm Nissin's on my kawi and they were more than plentiful whereas the 959 has bigger brakes all around so I think most of us will be perfectly fine with the 959

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For sure, but the reviews have been intent on using the bigger bike as a reference point. I can see where the observation/comparison came from

360turbo said:

1299 and 959 are two different animals , I think the breaking on the 959 is going to be perfect for 95% of motorcyclist the other 5 percent can do the pad or caliber upgrade if needed.

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I agree that the power of the brakes is definitely good enough. My only issue is the feel through the lever. Sometimes when i'm squeezing the lever i feel like its nothing....nothing.....nothing....ejected through the windscreen lol. I tend to use the engine braking a ton for that reason.

Would pads/lever/cylinder changes make a big difference on that front? I'm a newb when it comes to break modding

You'll see the biggest improvement by changing the brake lines to something that's SS braided or better. The "mush" you experience is because of the lines expanding and moving under pressure.

Lastknight0 said:

I agree that the power of the brakes is definitely good enough. My only issue is the feel through the lever. Sometimes when i'm squeezing the lever i feel like its nothing....nothing.....nothing....ejected through the windscreen lol. I tend to use the engine braking a ton for that reason.

Would pads/lever/cylinder changes make a big difference on that front? I'm a newb when it comes to break modding

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The stock brakes on these bikes are extremely good and I have not personally experienced the feeling you described. Mine feel super smooth and predictable. As Dingo suggested, you may see an improvement in the lever feel with an after market brake line mod. But perhaps you my try bleeding the brakes first to see if that improves the feel. Make sure you bleed at the caliper and at the master cylinder. I bleed my clutch master every few rides or track sessions, makes a huge difference in the level feel. You can see the tiny air bubbles come out. Kind of looks like foam.

dougo1199 said:

The stock brakes on these bikes are extremely good and I have not personally experienced the feeling you described. Mine feel super smooth and predictable. As Dingo suggested, you may see an improvement in the lever feel with an after market brake line mod. But perhaps you my try bleeding the brakes first to see if that improves the feel. Make sure you bleed at the caliper and at the master cylinder. I bleed my clutch master every few rides or track sessions, makes a huge difference in the level feel. You can see the tiny air bubbles come out. Kind of looks like foam.

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Cool. i'll give that a try, and if no luck, i'll go braided lines. I put a ton of miles on (120+ a day) so i may need to start doing this weekly at minimum when i clean my chain

Lastknight0 said:

Cool. i'll give that a try, and if no luck, i'll go braided lines. I put a ton of miles on (120+ a day) so i may need to start doing this weekly at minimum when i clean my chain

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Probably a good idea. I've found that the brembo clutch systems (on Ducati's anyway) tend to collect air in the masters fairly quickly. No so much with the brakes. It's really very slight, but you may notice the clutch lever getting softer at the beginning of the stroke. Bleeding the master works wonders! I change out brake fluid at least once a season on the street bike. It can break down from the heat and also collect moisture.

I have been unimpressed with the brakes as well. My CBR 1000 without ABS stopped much faster and brake feel was much better. I am going to experiment with EBC 2 setting. I don't like getting thrown forward when letting off the throttle.

Stock lines are braided on the 959. The problem with brake feel is linked to the ABS system. I'm going to bypass ABS on mine soon and switch to a brembo rcs19 to get a better feel. My zx6r has the rcs19 and one finger could flip it end over end

Rinzlr said:

Stock lines are braided on the 959. The problem with brake feel is linked to the ABS system. I'm going to bypass ABS on mine soon and switch to a brembo rcs19 to get a better feel. My zx6r has the rcs19 and one finger could flip it end over end

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So brake lines are already braided stainless steel ? I changed the stockers out for braided on the cbr.

I agree that the ABS will interfere with lever feel. I have mine set to 1 but I can still feel it intruding under hard braking. (rear wheel off the ground) I personally have not had an issue with the brakes feeling underpowered on these bikes, or any Ducati I've owned for that matter. A couple of things you guys may want to check before throwing a bunch of money at new brake bits -
1) Is there any air in the system? (bleed at the calipers and the master)
2) Is the lever adjusted properly? (if your lever is set in towards the bar too far you it's possible to run out of lever)
3) Any foreign matter on the rotors? (A quick scuff of the rotors with a Scotch Brite pad works wonders)

The stock brake pads are designed for aggressive street use and are more than capable IMO. You can move to a "race" pad which will offer more braking power but the trade off is you'll need to keep them hot for them to work properly. That is difficult to do on the street. They will also wear a lot quicker.

blackbolt22 said:

So brake lines are already braided stainless steel ? I changed the stockers out for braided on the cbr.

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This isn't a Cbr. Yes the stock lines are braided

Rinzlr said:

This isn't a Cbr. Yes the stock lines are braided

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Wow! Trying to make a little small talk here. I won't do that again. No need for sarcasm. The second sentence is all I need from you.

I put mine in RACE mode this morning and switched EBC to 3. Way way better for me. The engine braking has diminished greatly.

I felt like I was getting pushed forward constantly every moment I was off throttle and it was putting a strain on my neck and wrists.

Rinzlr said:

This isn't a Cbr. Yes the stock lines are braided

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It was an innocuous question...

Can we please tone down the attitude? Let's remember this is a place for all experience levels and new and old Ducati owners alike...

So to make a quick response long... my R6 got fork oil on the front pads. I have repaired the fork seals but the pads sit in my toolbox. I forgot I hadn't done them and pulled the bike out... it was like trying to stop with bicycle brakes. My FZ09 has adequate brakes. Been about a year since I've had the R6 at the track(btw stock brakes with added braided lines and hh pads) but the 959 brakes feel good to me thus far. I'll have to get a feel for them at the track to really know. ABS will always have some effect. Anyone know what pads the 959 comes with, soft pads are incredible in cars and bikes they make a huge difference.

After break in ebc will be set to 3. I bought an ecu flasher for my R6 in large part to eliminate engine braking believe it or not. My riding style is you're either on the brakes or on the throttle, anything else slows your losing time.


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Puckered up tight at that first intersection👌🏼

blackbolt22 said:

Wow! Trying to make a little small talk here.

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Don't stop the dry, far side stuff. We could use a bit of humor here. We got to laugh sometimes!

Don't know about everyone here, but i just love the engine braking in the morning...feels like victory!