Buddy front brake master cylinder life

[DeeDee]

Anyone here have to replace your front master cylinder? I've replaced 4 in the last 15 months. Granted they were all on scooters almost 15 years old. 3 on 125s and 1 on a 50cc. Genuine replacement is around $80.00. I found a good match on ebay for $20. It's almost a perfect clone of the PGO part.

[sc00ter]

What caused you to replace the master cylinder? On exposed models, like on my Helix, it was because the sight window would glaze over and start leaking. I've never had to change one on a Buddy scooter. I do "try" to change the brake fluid every 2 years but honestly I rarely do it.

Never tried the ebay pattern replacement. If it works and you have awhile of real world use on it please post a link. I'll usually buy the OEM part when it comes to safety related stuff BUT saving $60 is very tempting!

[DeeDee]

On all 4 scooters, the master cylinder no longer built pressure. I've used this twice: https://www.ebay.com/itm/183729739623 The end of the brake light switch is different, but the housing will accept the PGO switch. Owner's brought me PGO replacements on the other two. Next time I need one, I'm going to give this a try: https://www.ebay.com/itm/133604245461 The sight glass won't be visible, and the brake light switch wires will need female terminals installed.

[sc00ter]

One thing I learned over the years, it's a PITA to rebuild a master cylinder! I can do it, and have done one semi-recently on a older Honda motorcycle, but it was a tedious chore. I must have been lucky that my old black Buddy still had a great front brake at 40,000 miles and my wife's Buddy as well at 25,000. Now, none of these scooters sat for a extended period of time. I think sitting is the worst thing for any vehicle.

Thanks for the link(s) to the master cylinders.

[babblefish]

Seems odd to me that you had to change so many master cylinders. My 20K mile 2008 Buddy 150 is still on it's original master. I've changed the fluid once since I bought it 7-8 years ago. I wonder if where (indoors or out) the scooter is stored/parked and weather conditions has anything to do with it. Quite possible that condensation inside the master cylinder is causing the failures due to rust.