Rear break is to sensitive.

[Guest]

Hi

I almost crashed in my riding buddy today. Add to that the fact that I'm a noob rider. Any way it was a combination of my riding position, to close to the tank, my long legs and the break leaver peddle sensitivity. I was not able to pull my foot up high enough to allow the wheel to unlock. Made a nice long black snake on the road and scraped his saddle bag.

Yes I know you are suppose to use the front breaks more.

I have a 1981 GS1100E.

I have just about 1 inch of play before it locks up the wheel.
Where should I start?
Any thing to look out for when adjusting.

Thank you.

[tkent02]

Hi

I almost crashed in my riding buddy today. Add to that the fact that I'm a noob rider. Any way it was a combination of my riding position, to close to the tank, my long legs and the break leaver peddle sensitivity. I was not able to pull my foot up high enough to allow the wheel to unlock. Made a nice long black snake on the road and scraped his saddle bag.

Yes I know you are suppose to use the front breaks more.

I have a 1981 GS1100E.

I have just about 1 inch of play before it locks up the wheel.
Where should I start?
Any thing to look out for when adjusting.

Thank you.

A noob on an 1100E would be the first thing I'd fix. 450s are nice to learn on, easy to pick up when you drop it, not as likely to kill you from a little noob mistake like using the the brake or the throttle incorrectly. If you don't even know which brake to use yet, try a nice light 250.

Check for worn out brake pads. Oil soaked brake pads will be grabby and lock up sometimes. Maybe you have the wrong boots. Or the wrong bike.

[c&c]

Nah, the 1100E is to big if you ride like an idiot/jkass. You can also crash with a 250 just takes more time to get to the crash.

I rode other bikes and they all had more play in them.
I also had shoes and full foot motion. My feet are pretty flexible.

Just checked and the pads are nice and clean.

I'll try to find the adjustments and give it more pedel play.

[tkent02]

Nah, the 1100E is to big if you ride like an idiot/jkass. You can also crash with a 250 just takes more time to get to the crash.

A lot of idiots say that until they dump their bike a few times. Oh but that can't happen to you.

[chuck hahn]

Sounds more like a panic reaction from you rather than an I know what to do reaction. Have you taken a MSF course yet? I would suggest you find a big empty lot and do some familiarization practice with the bike..if you have an inch of travel BEFORE the brakes lock, then the problem is in the weight of your foot and not the bike.

[subforry]

If your weight is shifting forward when you brake then rear brake will lock with little effort. Also the stickiness and age of the rear tire will effect this.

When did you last bleed the brakes? It might be time to rebuild the rear brake system. Different pads might help. Also I think you can adjust the foot lever. If you are heavy footed on the brake then, maybe lowering the lever might reduce this.

As a sanity check have a friend ride the bike to determine if the rear brake is odd.

Either way practice some panic stops - use the front brake.

Using a bicycle with good front brake is a good way to discover how much front brake can be applied and how quick a bike can stop. At low speed and keeping your weight form shifting forward you won't go over the handlebars.

[Crankthat]

It sounds like a newbe/new bike mistake, but you never know possibly is a problem with brakes.

I agree with getting to know your bike better in a parking lot, the slower movement in a parking lot will help you learn your and bikes balance better and become more familiar with controls and bikes reaction to using the controls.

I only have a couple of friends i ride with on a regular basis. Normally i don't care to ride with others.

I don't care for the extra awareness i have to put out while riding with people I am unaccustomed to.

When riding with others i like to keep a good distance and that distance will change based on a number of factors. Experience, speed, and stopping power of bikes involved being my main concerns.

Is important to note that many modern or lighter bikes will stop a lot quicker then your 1100 will.

Probably a few of us in this forum who will never have to replace our rear break pads as they don't get used often unless applied while already stopped.

On the suggestion of rebuilding brakes.

On BikeCliff Website there are a couple of tutorials.

Really simple, the most difficult part will be in getting pistons out of calipers, I used compressed air blown through bleeder hole worked like a charm, wish i had rinsed all brake fluid out with alcohol first though. Wiped off face and laundered off clothing easy.

If you don't have to replace anything you will be out $0. Make sure if you do paint them to use caliper paint. Make sure your pistons and seals are really clean.

Like i said its a easy job so you might as well build up some mechanic confidence, and piece of mind.

You can take what you have learned to disk breaks on cars when you are done that will save you even more money down the road.(Is that a pun?)

Any ways be extra safety minded for now, and survive to have more fun as your experience and comfort level on bike grow.

[Crankthat]

P.S.
I noticed your post that the pads were nice and clean. You already have them out so give them a nice long spray with brakeclean anyways just to be on safe side.

[subforry]

I use a bicycle floor pump to pop out the pistons.

[hjfisk]

1 inch of movement in the pedal is about right for that bike, that is all mine has. but I don't use a rear brake , only in a full on emergency or trail braking before a corner at a real high rate of speed on the track, when you have to back it into the corner.

[BassCliff]

Hi,

Are your tires worn or old? Perhaps you could move the brake pedal itself and place it one tooth lower on the shaft.


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff