Overheating discs / pads

nicklouse

beski
correct, but the front brake has the most grip, due to weight transfer etc.

a general rule is front for stopping and rear for steering.

and in the case of the OP the over heating is due to incorrect use of the brakes.

stumpyjon

Ok

I've no issue with the front brake being more powerful as long as the wheel isn't locked etc. and understand and agree with the weight distribution arguments.

However I tend to use my back brake more for general slowing down duties (proved by the fact I go through more rear pads than front pads).

Now according to a lot of the (rather heated) posts in this thread this seems to constitute poor technique and I don't understand why. My reasoning is that I want to maintain as much control as possibly through both wheels at all times. Therefore I tend to use the back brake for slowing down with a small amount of input from the front. The thinking behind this is that there is less of a problem if the rear wheel locks (I've still got control and I don't lock it up much anyway) and I've still got the majority of my braking power in reserve on the front (which is already covered anyway). If the back brake isn't slowing me down sufficiently then I start to apply the front brake more and more. With this technique I am trying to avoid the possiblility of the fornt wheel locking until the last possible second.

The issue I have (and I will accept this is probably skills related) is that if I'm using the front rather than the back occaisionally I'll end up involuntarily grabbing the lever which can have pretty nasty consequences.

I'm not trying to wind anybody up but could someone explain constructively why using your rear brake in the main is bad practice?

Anonymous

it is not bad practice if it works for you and is good enough for how you ride then that is fine.

i think the comments made by everyone else is thet fact that the front brake slows you faster and should be trusted as it is only poor technique where problems occur, i use my front for the main stopping duties and have never locked it up.

in all fairness, i ride so slowly that it doesnt really matter, i might as well just stick my foot on the back wheel, chilhood bmx styley

stumpyjon

Hmm, similar style to me then, don't usually need awesome stopping power as I'm not going that fast in the first place or if I am I start to brake early and the rear brake is fine.

xtreem

[b]beski[/b] wrote:

I would always use both brakes in conjunction at varying amounts, sometimes bias towards the front & others toward the rear.

Same to me. On the trails I always brake with the both brakes, because on that way I stop faster than using just one brake. And the pads are wearing equaly.

spdpug98

Thanks for all the advice

I have just got back from my ride and thought I would feedback, I took on board using the front brake more in conjunction with the rear and used it on the downhill sections with no stones / roots etc and it was fine I got to the bottom of the section with some rear brake left.

I did have a few scares on the switchback section though and will not be using it again there!!! Think I will stick with the rear brake on that section

Thanks again for all the advice

kegs

For the switchbacks and things like that brake hard before you get to the turn, then freewheel round, possibly slightly applying the rear if you feel you are picking up too much speed.

xtremedash

The front brake will always stop you quicker than rear brake. Yes it definately takes a lot of practise to cevelope the skills necessary to stop quickly and safely. But all because it takes time to learn, doesn't mean it's wrong.

cee

think of it this way.

its like a rear wheel drive car, but all backward.

pulling the back brake means the braking force is applied behind the mass so has to pull the rest of the bike back.....
pulling the front brake means the force is applied in front of the mass, so it is more of a push....

given discs the same size and an even application of braking force, the front will always offer more power than the rear.

Clearly, a balance has to be struck between the braking power and staying upright! I like to think of the back as an anchor to control the deceleration offered by the front. oh....and hanging off the back with your weight rammed into the deck stops you quicker too.

i do physics me.

KitsuneAndy

cee wrote:

think of it this way.

its like a rear wheel drive car, but all backward.

pulling the back brake means the braking force is applied behind the mass so has to pull the rest of the bike back.....
pulling the front brake means the force is applied in front of the mass, so it is more of a push....

given discs the same size and an even application of braking force, the front will always offer more power than the rear.

Clearly, a balance has to be struck between the braking power and staying upright! I like to think of the back as an anchor to control the deceleration offered by the front. oh....and hanging off the back with your weight rammed into the deck stops you quicker too.

i do physics me.

If you did physics you'd surely know that an equal force applied as either a push or a pull is still equal?

No matter which brake you pull there is a shift in weight towards the front of the bike, this lifts weight off the back wheel and loads it onto the front. So the back wheel has less traction during braking while the front wheel has more.

It's all about weight distrubution, not pushing and pulling.

cee

so when you pull the front brake, the mass of the the bike and rider PUSHES the front wheel into the ground creating a larger friction coefficient.

when you pull the back brake, the mass in front PULLS the back wheel away from the ground, thus reducing the friction coefficient.

that sounds an awful lot like pulling and pushing to me......

supersonic

Yes, it is the weight transfer that is key ie onto the front wheel as you deccelerate. Therefore this wheel is harder to lock, and provides more 'stopping power'.