Rear Brake is way too sensitive! Put me down yesterday...
Road Master
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 949
Likes: 1
From: Way Down Texas Way
Well,
Don't know.....wasn't there.....never rode your bike,
but I had a car once when I was a kid that I bent the fender on a couple of times and everybody told me I couldn't drive....found out the steering box put on at the factory was the wrong one for the car and was the wrong ratio....the tires would just jump out of line and wobble when you ran across an uneven patch or a seam sometimes and if the road was wet the back-end would just come around on you before you knew what happened...........of course you could never duplicate it when you wanted to...they finally found it and fixed it when we told 'em the next time it happened the car was coming back in and going up somebody's a$$........
If it doesn't turn out to be mechanical...you can try one of these things....don't know if I agree with the principle or if they work, but it's an alternative........Lifesaver TCB
http://www.lifesaverstcb.com/
Don't know.....wasn't there.....never rode your bike,
but I had a car once when I was a kid that I bent the fender on a couple of times and everybody told me I couldn't drive....found out the steering box put on at the factory was the wrong one for the car and was the wrong ratio....the tires would just jump out of line and wobble when you ran across an uneven patch or a seam sometimes and if the road was wet the back-end would just come around on you before you knew what happened...........of course you could never duplicate it when you wanted to...they finally found it and fixed it when we told 'em the next time it happened the car was coming back in and going up somebody's a$$........
If it doesn't turn out to be mechanical...you can try one of these things....don't know if I agree with the principle or if they work, but it's an alternative........Lifesaver TCB
http://www.lifesaverstcb.com/
Banned
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 300
Likes: 1
Trail braking has nothing to do with scrubbing off speed once you're in a corner, rather prior to the apex of a corner and used for changing direction of the motorcycle quickly. Acceleration, not braking, lends itself to stability.
Any more ignorance you'd like to share?
Elite HDF Member
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 4,128
Likes: 27
From: florida swamp
It's really hard to say anything without riding and comparing your bike. Maybe you hit some gravel or sand that had built up in the curve. Were you able to check the road? Was it hot out and therefore may have made the road greasy. I've hit the rear brake some in a curve as you describe and never had a problem but I'm careful about it. I've had the rear end go loose just pulling away from a stop and turning right because of a little sand or gravel. I've come up to a red light and when I put my foot down, had it slip on dry asphalt so you just never know. I would get it checked out though. Sounds like your pedal may need adjusting. Normally it shouldn't be so sensitive.
Road Captain
Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 723
Likes: 2
From: Nc
Trail braking is not for slowing down once in a corner. Trail braking involves use of the front or both brakes going into a corner and gently ease off the brakes once you've reached the apex. This actually lends itself to motorcycle instability and is used to upset the motorcycle in order to change direction quickly.
Trail braking has nothing to do with scrubbing off speed once you're in a corner, rather prior to the apex of a corner and used for changing direction of the motorcycle quickly. Acceleration, not braking, lends itself to stability.
Any more ignorance you'd like to share?
Trail braking has nothing to do with scrubbing off speed once you're in a corner, rather prior to the apex of a corner and used for changing direction of the motorcycle quickly. Acceleration, not braking, lends itself to stability.
Any more ignorance you'd like to share?
Trail braking well past the turn-in point allows the rider to continue slowing the bike and help it steer
Thread Starter
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Road Master
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 1,127
Likes: 0
From: Houston, TX
It's really hard to say anything without riding and comparing your bike. Maybe you hit some gravel or sand that had built up in the curve. Were you able to check the road? Was it hot out and therefore may have made the road greasy. I've hit the rear brake some in a curve as you describe and never had a problem but I'm careful about it. I've had the rear end go loose just pulling away from a stop and turning right because of a little sand or gravel. I've come up to a red light and when I put my foot down, had it slip on dry asphalt so you just never know. I would get it checked out though. Sounds like your pedal may need adjusting. Normally it shouldn't be so sensitive.
Last edited by spike95; May 11, 2009 at 01:59 PM.
Banned
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 300
Likes: 1
The issue is that applying a little rear brake shouldn't have upset the bike enough to cause it to go down while he was scrubbing off a little speed.
I might add that majority of the crashes in GP are directly associated with trail braking...no thanks, I'll continue to brake before a corner and accelerate through it.
Ultimate HDF Member
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 5,356
Likes: 8
From: Roswell, NM
Hey man, you asked for opinions, don't get upset when they're not what you want. Everybody has different ideas.
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Road Captain
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 683
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From: Tallahassee, FL
Ultimate HDF Member
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 6,975
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From: NJ
Thanks for sharing your experience. Glad you survived it with only minor injuries. Don't have any advice on how to fix your brake or how to use it. I use my rear brake very sparingly and keep my foot away from the pedal because I found out early on it doesn't take much to lock it up. I've witnessed a few other riders going sideways, tires screeching, smoke flying, and it doesn't look like much fun.
If you think there could be something wrong with your rear brakes, it might not be a bad idea to have a tech check them out. You might not be so lucky next time.
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If you think there could be something wrong with your rear brakes, it might not be a bad idea to have a tech check them out. You might not be so lucky next time.
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2008 Heritage Classic: His
2008 Deluxe: Hers