Brakeing.

[Baz]

Would you very experienced Trikers please tell me how you go about brakeing. ie do you front brake 2 wheel style or do you use the rear more so??

[Nana]

Would you very experienced Trikers please tell me how you go about brakeing. ie do you front brake 2 wheel style or do you use the rear more so??

Great question, and I look forward to all the replies!!!
Personally, I have continued with what I was taught years ago in the MSF, which is to use both front and rear brakes when stopping. My instructor was fanatical about that and drilled it into us incessantly! LOL!

I don't know if I need to change that with the trike, but it has been working....I've stopped whenever I needed to!

[Ironhorsepilot]

Ditto Nana's post. I use front and back all the time. My instructor was also fanatical about it.

[Gorilla]

From an old rider I agree with the above replys. Train yourself to the feel both front and rear systems. Get the feel down for where the maximium braking comes on without lockup. Also remember most of your braking comes from the front. This is a very important skill to a good rider. You brake with both systems. Ted

[Juju]

I was taught to do the same as what everyone else has said, in the MSF class I took before I got my 2-wheeled motorcycle. But since I had a hard time reaching the rear brake pedal on my Suzuki, I had gotten into the bad habit of mainly using the front brake and just applying the rear brake for quick or hard stops. I know--not very smart, but there it is.

Since I've had my trike, though, I've retrained myself to use both front and rear simultaneously when braking.

It's interesting that I also find myself sometimes applying very slight, very gentle pressure to the rear brake when turning--another thing I learned to do when riding on 2 wheels.

[Lunchbox1983]

I am curious about this as well, it would seem with a trike you have twice the brakes in the rear, so it would be reverse of a Bike making the rear brakes your primary. This is moot with stallion of course but I am curious about other trikes as well.

[The Wolf]

Yes I am with the two brakers. Daft this is I know but... for some reason I pulled the front on in the wet and the trike shot away to the side. Luckily nothing was coming. I sort of learned a quick lesson. I know you are supposed to brake with both front and back but I don't know to this day why I did only pull the front.:eek:
Be safe and take on board the tips of the triking professionals

[Baz]

I am curious about this as well, it would seem with a trike you have twice the brakes in the rear, so it would be reverse of a Bike making the rear brakes your primary. This is moot with stallion of course but I am curious about other trikes as well.

Good point because rear brakes will transfer weight to the front without the risk of locking the front and loosing traction as per Wolfe's moment. I'm no expert thats why I'm asking the question of people with vastly more experience than me.

[John Luciano]

My front and rear are linked so the rear brake operates both front and rear. I use the front on hills an for final stop (last 4 or 5 feet ) or in a panic situation.

[Ozarkryder]

I brake on the trike same as on the 2 wheeler - both hand and foot brake used all the time.
On our Motor Trike Goldwing, the rear brakes are linked to one side of the front brakes and the hand lever controls the other side. Some kit makers leave the linked brakes if they are on the original motorcycle, some seperate them.
There is quite a bit more braking surface in the rear, both on the contact patch of the tires and the swept area of the brake pads. The VW based trike we had didn't have a front brake at all, and that would stop very fast indeed. Of course all the weight on that trike was from the pilot on to the engine in back.

Juju- Is that the Slow, Look ,Lean and Roll from the MSF classes? I still do that on both the bike and the trike, except on the trike the lean is just me, not the bike. I also learned the racer's technique of slightly braking in turns to help set the suspensionm on the 2 wheeler. Not really useful on the trike.

[ben721364]

While the front brake(s) deliver 70+% of the stopping power because of weight transfer, one should use both the front and rear brakes.

[Ozarkryder]

While the front brake(s) deliver 70+% of the stopping power because of weight transfer, one should use both the front and rear brakes.

This is most certainly true on a 2 wheeler, but I have always wondered if it holds for a trike. Seems that the larger brakes, more rubber on the road and the 2 tires at the back vs. the realativly small brake rotors, pads and contact patch at the front would move the stopping power to the rear even with the weight transfer. Never have seen any studies on this. Would be interesting.

On something like the Can Am Spyder, I would think that more than 70% of braking is the front wheels, especially under very heavy braking as the rear becomes lighter.

[ron owen]

As you slow down, the weight transfer moves to the front of the trike, like it
or not. Just because you have big tires on the rear of your trike the stopping
power doesn't transfer to the rear. The more aggressively you apply the brakes, the load on the rear tires becomes lighter and lighter.

Try this experiment:

Attach a small weight to a 18" length of string. Secure it to the headliner
of your car and watch what it does when you step on your brakes. The weight
will point to your front tires. (Weight transfer).

[Ozarkryder]

I am not saying there isn't a weight transfer to the front on a trike, physics dictates that there is. And the braking power doesn't move to the rear of a trike, bad choice of words on my part.

What I am wondering is if the 70% holds true for a trike as it does on a 2 wheeler. A bike has a potential braking force of 50% on each wheel. As the bike stops the weight transfer moves a percentage of that force to the front, up to 100% like the stunters do when performing a stoppie.

Most trikes have 1 wheel in front, 2 in back, giving the front wheel 33.333% and the rears 66.666% of the potential stopping force. As the trike stops the weight shift moves the braking force to the front wheel. But, because there was more braking to begin with on the rear, less of the percentage is transferred to the front as compared to the bike.

Also there is usually about the same amount rubber on the ground front and rear on a bike. On most trikes there is much more of a contact patch on the rear wheels than the front. I would think that that would have some effect on braking, too.

I really would like to know-
Does this hold water or am I blowing smoke?


(How is that for mixing metaphors?)

[Lunchbox1983]

Quoted from the SC DMV Book on Side cars & Trikes

Braking
Your trike/sidecar has two brakes: one for the front wheel
and one for the rear wheel. Use both of them at the same time.
During braking, the front brake becomes more effective as the
weight of the trike/sidecar transfers forward. While the rear
brake provides the most power on trikes, the front brake
provides the most power on a sidecar equipped motorcycle.
15
Remember:
· Use both brakes every time you slow or stop. Using both
brakes for even “normal” stops will permit you to
develop the proper habit or skill of using both brakes
properly in an emergency. For a complete stop, roll off
the throttle, squeeze the clutch and front brake
simultaneously while pressing down on the rear brake.
Grabbing at the front brake or jamming down on the
rear brake can cause the brakes to lock, resulting in
control problems.
· Braking should be completed before entering a turn;
however, if you know the technique, using both brakes
in a turn is possible, although it should be done very
carefully. With sidecar equipped motorcycles, braking
during sharp right turns may cause the sidecar wheel to
lift off the ground. Motorcycle and trike/sidecar tires
have a limited amount of traction or “grip” on the road.
Traction is greater when the tire is rolling versus
skidding or “slipping”. When turning the trike/sidecar
some of the traction is used for cornering. Less traction
is available for stopping. A skid can occur if you apply
too much brake.

Also, using the front brake incorrectly
on a slippery surface may be hazardous. Use caution
and squeeze the brake lever, never grab.
· A sidecar greatly increases the braking forces needed.
Increasing the speed of a three wheel rig from 30 to 40
mph increases the kinetic energy or momentum by
100%.