Braking

[Frag]

When I did my training, my instructor told me not to use the front brake under 20mph and when doing the controlled/emergency stop, not to use the rear brake. Somewhere I read that you should apply the front slightly before the rear and there's a chart showing: use of front and rear most effective followed by front only then rear only. However, I've heard a few people say they never use the rear, with Martin( I think ) suggesting the brake pedal is only there to balance the gear shift I'd be interested to hear your views.

[DynaMight]

Never use the rear in any case. Thats just me though.

[billinom8s]

dont remember when i last used rear brake, mind you some might say i dont go fast enough to use it

[Stu_yzfr6]

panic pedal when the front comes up to high

[r1dave]

panic pedal when the front comes up to high

[jason]

never use the rear brake, you couldnt even get to it if you wanted to on my current bike Becuase I havent bothered adjusting it into a usable position when I set my rearsets back.

some people use em some don't - it certainly doesnt slow you any quicker using it if your half ok with the front and your bike has decent brakes.

foggy is probably one of the more famous bike riders who never used the rear brake.

[Rab]

I use the rear when I'm filtering
and sometimes if i go a bit hot into a corner you can scrub a little bit off speed
using the front to scrub a bit of speed off might sit the bike back up if you squeeze a bit to much

[thelastsuperpower]

Just a question to those who never use the rear- What do you do when youre stopped on a steep upwards incline and you go to move off again?Do you juggle the front brake and throttle in the same hand?
Im not having a go or owt,just genuinely curious


i usually find the rear is very effective when used in any slow speed manoeuvres such as u-turns.
If youre in creeping traffic dragging the rear as well as slipping the clutch can help stabilise the bike as you can keep your revs higher.something about gyroscopic forces....and some bikes lurch at low revs

ill normally apply more rear brake on steep downhill sections too.

Very rarely,as rab also mentioned, ill need to trail it into the corner to lose speed

[Blimey]

Have been known to only use the rear brake in dodgy situations when its raining and wet.

But never in the dry unless i remember to help tip the bike into a corner if going in too hot and the front brake is a deffo no no then as it stands the bike up.

Steep inclines is easy as i only use 2 fingers on the lever and the rest twist the throttle.

[deej]

when training we always teach people to use the front brake first at any speed as its more powerful, 80/20% in the dry and 50/50 in the wet. the back brake has a lot of good uses for general round town riding but not on track,its very effective when practicing u-turns and for slow speed bike control ie when filtering,stuck in slow traffic and hill starts,i use it a lot round town but never touched it on my trackbike
james buckingham spent a fair few quid on a brembo thumb brake, rear brembo disc n caliper and only ever used it to keep the fron wheel down at places like under the dunlop bridge,over knickerbrook at oulton,anywhere the front was likely to rise,never used for stopping or in the corners.

[leatherpatches]

I'm using mine lots at the moment... But only cos I know the front pads are pretty low.

[jason]

Steep inclines is easy as i only use 2 fingers on the lever and the rest twist the throttle.

yeh same here.

Another thing is its dependant on bike or type of bike - its fine to completely avoid the back brake presuming your on a modern sportsbike as your likely to have a killer set of front brakes, decent suspension and a sticky front which will have your back wheel in the air way before the front lets go, and will let you brake the bike heavy handed as hell whilst still keeping itself in good shape. The whole front end of the bike really dictates its ability to brake quickly and controllably.


...jump on a CG 125 however and apart from limited brakes the poor suspension and a commuting tire are gonna vastly limit how quick you can pull yourself to a halt or keep control under heavy front braking - so you are gonna need to ride using both and would be foolish not to. thats a sort of polar opposites example obviously.

I used to use the rear brake on my VFR400R quite alot because the front brake setup wasnt the greatest and the bike would get outa shape under heavy front braking, on the flip side I have never used the back brake once on any of my GSXR's and I have had 6 of them. Brake setups on sports bike have moved on massively in the last 5 years let alone in the last ten.

I think if you are new to biking its good to get used to effectively using both first, that way you master it then have the choice to drop it if you dont want it going forward. there are places where you would always want to use it - I might use it say if I was carrying pillions, or riding in icy conditions (but no way will you catch me doing either of those!)

[TLS-Moose]

Pretty much as said by others ....... I use it in wet weather to help modulate the front, or when stationary on a hill if I want to take my hands off the bars for some reason. Otherwise rarely touch the pedal ...... can't remember the last time (in 20+ yeqars now ) I have had to buy rear brake pads ......

Bikes like tourers or hardley ablesons are able to use the rear more effectively as more weight stays over the rear whel when braking - most sports bike shift too much weight to the front for the rear to be effective in dry conditions

[Cheese Monkey]

Use mine for corners and hill starts. Occasionally for slowing for lights just to make sure its still working. Saved me ass a few times mid corner when I've gone too fast. Only ever had to do an emergency slow down once and had to use it, and that was [Censored] terrifying .

[chris_1127]

never used the back brake on my GSXR, but use it loads on the Gilera - mainly because the forks are so soft and there's so much travel in them that touching the front brake can really stand it on it's nose and upset the balance of the bike - much easier to just scrub a bit of speed off with the back and not upset the "feel" of the bike