Has anyone fitted a thumb brake on a 1098 and thinks it was a good idea ?. I only ask as I cant remember the last time I used my rear brake and have gotten out of the habit of even thinking of using it ! Now whether thats a bad thing or not is about your riding style I guess. Without use of the rear brake I keep thinking I'm missing out on more stopping power allowing me to brake later , on the other hand I could be upsetting the stability and handling prior to corners by using rear brake ? So for quick-ish road riding or track days is it something worth considering as I would imagine its easier and more controllable to apply rear brake from the bars rather than your right foot ? Probably wrong but no harm in asking what others think
If the effectiveness of my rear brake is anything to go by and the amount of pressure that requires to be applied, I'd need Popeye arms to apply the required pressure. Of course careful sizing of the M/C with a long travel would help but I'd still need to go the gym for a year to gain the physical attributes necessary to even think about it. But I suppose we're not all 65kg weaklings
Well to be quite honest my rear brake cant even lock the back wheel as the MOT tester pointed out to me !
I've never used a thumb break, but intuitively it does feel like it should be more controllable than a foot brake assuming it doesn't require gorilla thumbs as already posted. The point I wanted to raise though is I think you have your idea above backwards. The rear brake isn't going to give you more stopping power, at least not from a maximum perspective, as you can easily lift the rear wheel off the ground with the front brake under heavy braking so the back brake is clearly largely irrelevant for the meaty part of your braking. I think the benefit of the back brake is actually primarily about improving stability, not reducing it. In the early phases of braking, applying the rear brake should reduce/slow weight transfer onto the front tire. And I would think that the talented riders are using it mid-corner to balance the bike rather than close the throttle. And of course, it definitely gets used by racers to control wheelies. Though pretty much all of that is only my understanding of the theory, not having anywhere near the capability to execute any of those things. Ian
I think I know what you are saying , I was querying if by using a thumb brake I would get the best of both worlds , more stopping power and improved stability as I have been getting some air between back tyre and the track ? Mind you this is probably a case of my ambition outweighing my talent, always loved that quote , thank you Mr Stoner
Yeah - I hear you, it's beyond me as well. You should see some improvement by using the rear brake to preload the suspension before really hammering the front brake, but easier said than done. Overall, I think if you're looking to improve your braking performance, there are larger gains to be made by figuring out how to control how your body weight transfers forward under braking, rather than switching to a thumb brake. I've been playing around on my mountain bicycle lately doing stoppies (it has disc brakes, so easy to do). It is phenomenal how easily the back wheel comes up if I have weight on the handle bars, compared to if I focus on keeping my weight back over the seat. Same principle should apply to a bike I guess. I've no idea how the motogp riders appear to have so little weight running through their bars under braking given the kind of forces they're experiencing. Must have Velcro on their arses or something. Ian
couldn't bend my foot enough to use mine with the std rear sets and never really looking into trying to adjust them. find it a lot easier with the new rear sets and will try to use it more. not too sure how i'd get on with a thumb brake though.
Same here , my rear sets aren't even setup to use the rear brake. I would have to make a conscious effort to find it :Shamefullyembarrased:
I run a 1098R track bike with a thumb brake. As pointed out already, you need to give it heaps with your thumb for effectivness. This is mainly because you have a lot more strength in your foot than your thumb so to get the same effect you have to press as hard as fuck with the old thumb. To be honest the only time I use it is to help control wheelies on the gas. Anyone with a 1098R will know what I mean. As stated, the fast guy racer types use the rear brake for corner stability stuff but not me! I keep a positive throttle mid corner but leave all brakes well alone.....
ryan farquar had an aluminium rear disk made solely to pass scrutineering ( unsprung weight )as he never uses it,and that was at the tt.
I only ever use mine to just keep the front down a bit over big crests when I'm pulling 5th gear wheelies at 160 mph............. (not)
Like the man says, use it mid-corner when if like me you have over cooked it and it's too late to re-apply the front!
My rear lever fell off on the way to the alps. I only noticed when i stopped at some lights on a hill and went to use it to stop me rolling backwards. Only time i use it really.
