TOPIC:

Have any of you guys rebuilt a front master cylinder for the one year only 76 900 LTD ? 
I placed an order thru Brake Crafters and the front brake master cylinder kit they sent the piston seems smaller in diameter, I just got of the phone with Brake Crafters after sending the guy pics of what I have and he didn't seem to have an answer for me, he thought the master may have been changed but I told him that's not possible having owned the bike for 45 years.

If anyone has rebuilt one of these what kit did you use? Here's some pics of what I have.

Have you actually measured the new one & compared to the old one to be absolutely sure they're not the same size?  Your mind can play tricks when lighter colored objects are compared to darker colors.  Even if the metal portion is slightly smaller I'd say it's more important that the seal fits.

I wasn't able to take a measurement my digital calipers took a crap, but I did have another master cylinder that I think came from a 77 or newer 1000 LTD and was able to take it apart to compare. As you can see the newer one is marked 5/8 and the 76 is marked 11/16, the kit I was sent from Brake Crafters is for 77 and newer with a 5/8 piston and seals so that's not gonna work. If anyone has a 76 LTD don't order the kit they advertise on their website or you will get the wrong part.

The person I spoke with at Brake Crafters was very helpful and sent out a kit for a 75-77 Honda Gold Wing ( at no charge ) I'm hoping I will at least be able to use the seals from this kit and I should be able to use the first kit they sent to rebuild the newer master cylinder I have.

11/16...wow, that's a new one for me.  So you're saying they sent the wrong part...do they have the rebuild kit for the 76?

I had this same proplem with brakecrafters when i was rebuilding the rear cylinder on my gpz unitrak.
the kit they supply fits the earlier gpz models but is too long for the unitrak.
it took me 3 rebuilds of a sticking caliper before i realised the problem. The piston was about 4mm too long and blocking the return valve.
I spoke to the owner of brakecrafters and he was helpful enough but couldn’t help me with a correct sized piston. Although he aknowleged the kit was wrong size.
moral of the story is don’t assume the kit is correct and always compare with the old piston if possible before fitting as moose1800 did.

Well I got the new rebuild kit yesterday, it's made for a 75-77 Honda Gold Wing and was a perfect fit. The piston and seals are same as what I removed from my master the only difference is the return spring in the Honda kit is smaller in diameter and about 3/8-1/2 inch shorter so I just used my old spring. So far I have rebuilt both front calipers and the rear caliper and this master with the rear master still needing to be rebuilt. So far I've got $400 bucks in rebuild kits. I really enjoyed doing business with Brake Crafters ! Great quality parts at a good price and best of all made in Japan and not China!

This seems like an excellent topic for a technical article, so that the information will be easily accessible to members in the future.

Great info. The rebuilt M/C looks great. 

Oh wow...great job on the paint!