Front brake vs back

GoldenMotor.com

craigbett

New Member
Mar 16, 2011
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0
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US
I basically need to get rid of one of the levers (and can't do the double brake lever). Which one should I take out? Front or back. I;m putting a 66cc motor on it.

Here is a pic of the bike: (don't know if it maters)
 

rustycase

Gutter Rider
May 26, 2011
2,746
5
0
Left coast
there should be plenty of room to run the clutch lever angle downwards beneath the brake lever.

i would not want to give up either brake.
rc
 

2door

Moderator
Staff member
Sep 15, 2008
16,302
175
63
Littleton, Colorado
Find a way to keep both. Getting rid of a working brake is not the way to fix a crowded handlebar problem. Get longer bars, get rid of a shifter, go with coaster brakes in the rear. Relying on just one brake on a motorized bicycle is not wise.

I see you have the throttle on the left bar. Is that by preference or...? That will reverse the action meaning you'll have to twist the grip to the front instead of to the rear as it was designed to be used. Also the kill button will be hard to find/reach.
Tom
 
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young grease monkey

New Member
Sep 20, 2011
362
0
0
Chicago
Ya dude, don't get rid of either. And what's with the throttle on the wrong side? It's not that hard to use one hand to operate the clutch and a brake, but switch the front brake cable to the right side because you need all the control you can get for the front brake. That's how they have it on motorcycles.
 

BarelyAWake

New Member
Jul 21, 2009
7,194
21
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Maine
Traditional bike brake lever setup & location, save they've been moved in jus' a bit to allow for the additional clutch lever and the extra space for the throttle housing. It's very easy to use both brakes while also pulling in the clutch lever at the same time - note the clutch lever is further out than the brake lever, but canted down, this allows the clutch to be held in while also braking but doesn't get in the way during a "panic" stop ;)



It's also not uncommon to see a similar arrangement on mopeds w/a clutch BTW
 

tooljunkie

Member
Apr 4, 2012
663
5
16
Manitoba,Canada
throttle is on the wrong side,rolling it forward to make it go will be uncomfortable to say the least.
if the right cant be used for some reason,perhaps a thumb type lever is in order.
i have clutch and brake levers on one side,is not an issue at all to operate clutch or brake.
dual brake levers are ok,but i run a lot on gravel so its not a good idea.
 

BikeBerry.com

Dealer
Nov 7, 2008
38
0
6
California
www.bikeberry.com
I basically need to get rid of one of the levers (and can't do the double brake lever). Which one should I take out? Front or back. I;m putting a 66cc motor on it.

Here is a pic of the bike: (don't know if it maters)
Honestly I highly recommend you try to make it work for both brakes with your dual brake lever, because you will have even distribution. Lets say you go with just the front your risking at that speed to flip on the front of your bike. Please ride safely and sometimes coming up with creative solutions is the way to go.
 

Cavi Mike

New Member
Dec 17, 2011
189
0
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Rochester, NY
Flipping over on one of these things is highly unlikely. If I lean forward, I'm able to do an endo but otherwise I typically get lock-up. I'd much rather have the slight chance of locking up my front but being able to stop on a dime than just have my rear tire sliding right into whatever jumped in front of me.

Back wheels don't stop bikes in time. They don't stop anything in time. Everything is front-brake biased because when you hit the brakes, all of the weight lifts off of the back wheels rendering them almost useless to stop the vehicle. This also means you don't want one of those "dual-action" levers because they brake each wheel evenly which is - yet again - just going to get you a locked up rear-wheel and not enough force on the front wheel to stop you.
 

KCvale

Well-Known Member
Feb 28, 2010
3,966
57
48
Phoenix,AZ
NEVER RIDE A MOTORIZED BIKE WITHOUT 2 BRAKES!!!!!!

I have the handlebars down to a simple science for those bikes.

Step 1. Strip EVERYTHING from the handlebars.
Step 2. Get a SickBikeParts 'teeter-totter' dual brake lever.
Step 3. Either remove the cable to your front derailleur or remove the whole darn thing.
Step 4. Assess you rear derailleur controller..
Is it a simple twist with it's own mount? Or does the brake lever attach to it?
If it attaches to brake lever you will need a twist or the old lever kind.
Step 5. Put your dual pull brake and then throttle on the right.
Step 6. Put your clutch, then the rear shifter control (it will read upside down but work), and a short grip on the left.

Personally I don't use kit or existing bike grips unless they are the kind that can stretch, specifically stretch over a throttle barrel.
For the most part they don't so I use BMX foam grips on both sides, they will squeeze over the throttle.

When you are done you have something like this.



If you want to change the chain on your front sprocket just move it by hand, otherwise you have a fully functional and SAFE ride!
 

Dan

Staff
May 25, 2008
12,765
115
48
59
Moosylvania
I agree whole heartedly. Ya want front and rear brakes and the best ones ya can get.

Is not hard to do any of what is suggested above.

Really don't want to see any more folks in the "MB in the news" thread.
 

Mind_Reader7

New Member
May 1, 2010
392
1
0
Northam, Western Australia.
Flipping over on one of these things is highly unlikely. If I lean forward, I'm able to do an endo but otherwise I typically get lock-up. I'd much rather have the slight chance of locking up my front but being able to stop on a dime than just have my rear tire sliding right into whatever jumped in front of me.

Back wheels don't stop bikes in time. They don't stop anything in time. Everything is front-brake biased because when you hit the brakes, all of the weight lifts off of the back wheels rendering them almost useless to stop the vehicle. This also means you don't want one of those "dual-action" levers because they brake each wheel evenly which is - yet again - just going to get you a locked up rear-wheel and not enough force on the front wheel to stop you.
True to a certain extent.

I had my dual handle set up so the back brakes would only lock up if I forced it.
 

donphantasmo

Member
Oct 3, 2010
372
11
18
Middleburg, FL
Don't get rid of either. I'll tell you how to keep all three levers.

First of all... Your front brake provides 60-70% of braking power. Move that lever to the right hand side.

Second step, put the clutch on your left hand. You will need it there.
Then angle your rear brake lever down, so you can use it when you reall need it.

If you were to get rid of one lever, it needs to be your rear. But it would be wiser to keep both, if you can
 

edangel

New Member
Sep 7, 2010
50
0
0
seveirville tn
i got a china girl on my bike 66 cc and i got both of my brakes all u have to do is put on the left hand about 4 in under ur brake usely u want to used ur back to do most of ur stopping i got my rear brake on the right becouse as soon as u let the thotle go u got ur brake and left is cluch
 

BikeBerryKelci

New Member
Oct 25, 2012
37
0
0
brea
I basically need to get rid of one of the levers (and can't do the double brake lever). Which one should I take out? Front or back. I;m putting a 66cc motor on it.

Here is a pic of the bike: (don't know if it maters)

It will really be in your best interest to get the dual brake lever. Think of it like this if you just keep your front brake, you might being flying over your handle bars. If you just keep the back, your probably not going to have enough stopping power. And if you just rely on a coaster, that will snap as soon as you really need to use it, going even 15 mph. brnot
 

bigbutterbean

Active Member
Jan 31, 2011
2,417
3
38
Lebanon, PA
The OP has not responded back to this thread since he started it. Having said that, I will still offer my opinion here. Firstly, coaster brakes are not as inferior as people think they are. My first bike was coaster only, and I never had any problems with it. I will say in all honesty that it was on a heavy duty rear wheel which I am still running, with double walled steel, 12g spokes, and a Shimano clone hub. This rim is now almost 3 years old, and it has been great with regular service. I have also run a caliper brake on my current ride, first in the back and then in the front. I had problems with pads wearing out, but I now run a front drum. For routine stops I rely on the drum (Worksman btw) and if I need to stop a little more quickly I use both brakes. If I were to need front and rear brakes, I would run a dual lever. I am curious as to why the OP does not want to run a dual lever, but I am sure that by now he has figured out his problem.
 

NunyaBidness

Active Member
Jun 29, 2008
1,062
2
38
memphis tn
... Lets say you go with just the front your risking at that speed to flip on the front of your bike...

I hate seeing this kind of advice. If you're scared of flipping over the bars from using the front brake, then you don't know how to properly use a front brake and should NOT be giving advice on brakes. Learn how to properly use a front brake and you WON'T go over the bars. I've got over 100k mile by bicycle and when I really need to stop NOW, the front brake is what does it.

Simply remember this, if the rear wheel starts to come up let off the front brake. The rear wheel comes back down and you are stopped. If the rear wheel is starting to come off the ground that means the front wheel has stopped. If you let off when you're stopped then you don't go over the bars.

I'm not trying to be confrontational, I'm just trying to help people learn to NOT be afraid of the front brake as it has the majority of your stopping power and is very much needed, especially when you have a motor on a bike.
 

mew905

New Member
Sep 24, 2012
647
9
0
Moose Jaw
yup, if you need to stop quickly, you need your front brake (and believe me, I learned with my short time riding a motorized bicycle, you'll want that stopping power). Weight transfers forward under braking (the reason you feel yourself being pushed forward when braking in a car). meaning the rear wheel has less traction, less traction means the tire doesnt have as much grip, not as much grip means easy to lock the tire, skid, etc. This will happen with front OR rear brakes, its inevitable. Your front tire on the other hand gets all the weight, which means its got MORE grip, more grip means more stopping power AND harder to lock the wheel (which means you gotta have really strong brakes to flip over the handlebars). thus, if I could only choose one (and I have had to before I got my dual lever), I'd go with the front brake.