Cycling UK Forum

Today I was using my back brake as the front one was squealing in the wet. I found it surprisingly effective, but I think on the Dahon folder my weight is a fair bit closer to the rear wheel axle than on the Pashley.

The use of both brakes will always be better than using just one right up to the point at which there is no weight on the rear wheel due to the severity of braking. At this point, of course, the rear wheel lifts off the ground, the bike stops but the rider doesn't.

The maximum braking force available depends on the angle to the horizontal of a line through the rider's centre of gravity (roughly vertically a little behind the bottom bracket and a little above the saddle) and the point of contact between the front wheel and the road. This is generally about 60 degrees meaning that the deceleration can never be more than about 50%g whatever the method of braking. In practice, it is seldom more than half this (and usually much less) and at least one third of the total weight of the rider and bike remains on the rear wheel. The rear brake can therefore provide at least a third of the braking force. MickF is right to use both brakes equally for normal braking as this makes maximum use of road adhesion - important if riding over manhole covers, white lines or other slippery surfaces. In an emergency, the front brake will give extra stopping power, but this has to be used cautiously as a rear wheel skid is fairly easily corrected, but a front wheel skid can be disastrous.

Riding down steep hills where the need for rapid braking can be greatest poses a bigger problem. The angle referred to above is made larger by the slope of the road and the maximum braking force available is therefore reduced just where you need it most. In these conditions, the rear wheel can make only a small contribution before it locks up and there is no choice but to rely on the front for rapid stops. However, the safe procedure is still to use the rear brake to its maximum (just short of skidding) and the front with great care in order to avoid going over the top.

Despite the comment above about MickF's technique being right, I was taught to use only the rear brake for normal braking and both only when extra stopping power was needed. I still do this and find that this roughly equalises the wear on front and back brake blocks.

I definitely agree in the wet it's best to use both, it seems to take an age for either brake to provide any meaningful stopping power in the rain.

A couple of months ago when a car turned in front of me I made sure to apply my rear brake ever after my bike started to skid, this made me fish tail and consequently it was my shoulder that smashed through her car window instead of my head. The physio I'm having now is far better than the alternative...

What an interesting thread.

Lots of arguments about physics and the technicality of it, but thats all by the by if you ask me. Do you not cycle for comfort and the joy of it all?

On that basis I use the rear brake all the time. It gives a smoother, more sedately braking experience than the front brake and I always know I have more in reserve. When I come downhill and I'm starting to drift over 40mph the last thing I wish to be 'experimenting' with is my front brake tipping me over my handlebars, so I use my rear brake to apply a gentle amount of force that slows me in comfort.
When I emergency brake, I use both.

It's probably because I'm heavier than you that I never have to worry about getting tipped over the bars

JennyAdcock wrote:What an interesting thread.

Lots of arguments about physics and the technicality of it, but thats all by the by if you ask me. Do you not cycle for comfort and the joy of it all?

On that basis I use the rear brake all the time. It gives a smoother, more sedately braking experience than the front brake and I always know I have more in reserve. When I come downhill and I'm starting to drift over 40mph the last thing I wish to be 'experimenting' with is my front brake tipping me over my handlebars, so I use my rear brake to apply a gentle amount of force that slows me in comfort.
When I emergency brake, I use both.

Comfort & joy of course. But what if you have to stop suddenly going downhill at 40mph? You should be practising use of both brakes just in case things become uncomfortable and joyless.

i mainly use the front but i use both when coming to a complete stop. my average 105 brakes with swissstops make the back wheel very easy to skid if im going at any decent speed. even without the skidding my front has all the power i need and dont have much use for controlling speed through corners.

ive had front pads almost completely wear out and the back ones look brand new.

My rear brake is a handbrake, so both front brakes get used (dependant on cornering)

On my upright, I rely heavily on the front brake. Emergency stops will result in both being grabbed, but I try to avoid them...

Went up the Cat and Fiddle today from south Manchester today, and back down it. Never thought of using my back brake once, even on the steep drops into Macclesfield and Alderley Edge.

By the way, where was everyone? I didn't see any cyclists at all either on my way up or down except for one lycra clad young man on his sleek road bike who zoomed past me with a cheery 'hello' about a mile from the top. And even he didn't brave the bone chilling ride back down as he was greeted at the top by his wife and toddler and put his bike on the roof rack of his car.

I never use my back brake! Why? Because I ride a fixed wheel. The only reason the back brake is there is because the Old Bill told me (wrongly) that I needed two brakes.

You do. It's just that the rear calliper isn't one of them.