Bad Dog Brake Levers?

Looking for a replacement brake lever after dropping my CBR. Looking at these on sportsbikeshop wondering if anyone had any experience with the brand or any alternatuve recommendations. I want something decent, adjustable and durable but ideally want to avoid ASV prices. 

http://www.sportsbikeshop.co.uk/motorcycle_parts/content_prod/190204

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They look exactly the same as the cheap Chinesers I have but with an added white logo and a higher price tag

They look exactly the same as the cheap Chinesers I have but with an added white logo and a higher price tag yourebarred
That was my concern. Any reasons not to go for cheap Chinese ones? One of the main reasons I liked these was my trust in sportsbikeshop 

I had Cheap Chinese ones on my GSXR and they were perfectly fine, no issues with them for the year i had them on, they were adjustable and foldable and cost about £30, i would buy them again in a heart beat.

Same again, I’ve run cheap ones without issue.

I remember reading something something about a pair of cheap chinese levers that snapped in normal use. 

Yeah, the issue with cheap ones isn’t that they’re all rubbish, it’s that the QA is less good so the consistency’s poorer. They’ll generally be as good as the posho ones, but there’s a higher chance of any one of them being shit.

Or not, they might be the same as clothing as T.C highlighted yesterday.

Though indubitably there are still poor quality ones out there to be avoided. Not sure how you tell before buying, mind :slight_smile:

Yeah, though often the ‘creamed off’ bits from the factory are the seconds. But, still, the problem’s in the uncertainty :slight_smile:

I must’ve been lucky as i slid my Gixer on its side and the lever done its job by folding up and i only replaced it as it was scuffed rather than snapped.

If you are buying anything from a UK distributor or shop, then you are, I believe, protected by UK laws.  Try litigating a company for your bike not being able to be stopped because a brake lever broke from an Ebay supplier, and I reckon that would be an uphill struggle.  

I know i am going to be shot down in flames here and there will be loads of Halfords Helmet comments lol.  But i find most people who slag off chinese stuff have never used them, i don’t know anyone that has said they have had a lever or any other chinese stuff fail, they only know someone that met someone down the pub who’s uncle played poker with a bloke who’s dog once met another dog over the park who’s owner had one fail!! My chinese fairings were spot on, my chinese levers were spot on and i would 100% use the stuff again

baddog lever snaps: people will say it’s a one-off, they’ll get replaced on warranty

chinese lever snaps: people will say it’s bad QA and the owner will have to buy a new one. 

Difference being the amount of money you save. and that’s only IF it snaps, which I’ve never heard any concrete evidence of this happening

I know i am going to be shot down in flames here and there will be loads of Halfords Helmet comments lol.  But i find most people who slag off chinese stuff have never used them, i don't know anyone that has said they have had a lever or any other chinese stuff fail, they only know someone that met someone down the pub who's uncle played poker with a bloke who's dog once met another dog over the park who's owner had one fail!! My chinese fairings were spot on, my chinese levers were spot on and i would 100% use the stuff again Marmablade
Yeah, but we're all about making ridiculous extrapolations based on tiny sample sizes, just see the praise threads for that. If I knew anyone who got through enough brake levers to be able to make a reasonable comment on their failure rate based on personal experience I'd assume he was the reason they were all breaking anyway. 

Is snapping the normal concern?

^^^^Agreed

I would say seizure of the moving parts would be my worry over snapping, if they did snap it would be down to either an accident or neglect rather than poor quality, at the end of the day it is metal not butter they are made of and they aren’t being abused are they, they are being pulled and not with a great deal of force either. 

But i would also say only one failure would be enough not to use them, but i haven’t even heard one report of them failing under normal use and without a reason ie accident etc

Some levers use brass bushings on the pivot the bolt goes through, and I’ve seen Chinese levers fail there, where the bushing collapses under pressure and the lever doesn’t return. I’ve only ever personally seen that on mountain bike levers, but I don’t imagine there’s so much difference with motorbike stuff. As a general rule, though, when I buy a chinese thing I buy the most mechanically simple option, so my cheapo chinese levers use the bushings from the OE levers.

^^ Yes mine too, i only buy the part that incorporates the OEM bracket etc so it is just the lever you are replacing rather than the whole part

love them 

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Thanks everyone. Decided to give them a try. Looking at them in the box they look decent. If I like them I’ll probably go for the adjustable clutch lever too

Let us know your feedback. Cheers