40 Schwinn DX Klunker project

[Lightfoot]

Motorcycle and bicycle braking dynamics (pretty dry reading)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicycle_and_motorcycle_dynamics#Braking

The way I ride, a rear coaster and flintstone emergency brake works just fine.

 

[62Higgins]

"You act like we're pulling this out of our ..... or something."

LOL

 

[Hooch]

ride a motorcycle with no front brake and you will be lucky to make it home alive

 

[mastershake916]

Although its equations of motion can be linearized, a bike is a nonlinear system: its behavior is not expressible as a sum of the behaviors of its descriptors.

Well that settles it.

 

[12bcruzin]

You act like we're pulling this out of our ..... or something.
I don't know the background of your bike, I don't know how fast you were going when you attempted to stop.[/quote]

I am not going to start a pissing match here but think about this, a typical 40-plus lb cruiser has 70-75% of its weight on the rear wheel (like a raked chopper, not a car or street motorcycle). There is little weight transfer due in part to little front suspension. With all of the weight staying in the rear, the rear brake does the majority of the braking-period. The drum brakes I have was not designed to stop 250lbs of bike and rider. Probably work fine on a narrow tired 3-speed rinning 100 lbs of air and 80lb rider. The lever that operates the shoes and the cable operated bar lever do not provide enough leverage to apply enough pressure on the shoes so there is not enough friction for the given application. As to weight transfer, I ride my cruiser upright, not leaned over the bars like a motorcycle, down hill MTB or road bike. In those applications, there is a lot more weight over the front wheel and even more when the brakes are applied so front braking is more important and more effecient.
And do the math if you think I am pulling any of this out of my ass.

 

[12bcruzin]

Although its equations of motion can be linearized, a bike is a nonlinear system: its behavior is not expressible as a sum of the behaviors of its descriptors.

Well that settles it.

Yeah, what he said...LOL...now get on your bike and ride

 

[mastershake916]

You act like we're pulling this out of our ***** or something.
I don't know the background of your bike, I don't know how fast you were going when you attempted to stop.

I am not going to start a pissing match here but think about this, a typical 40-plus lb cruiser has 70-75% of its weight on the rear wheel (like a raked chopper, not a car or street motorcycle). There is little weight transfer due in part to little front suspension. With all of the weight staying in the rear, the rear brake does the majority of the braking-period. The drum brakes I have was not designed to stop 250lbs of bike and rider. Probably work fine on a narrow tired 3-speed rinning 100 lbs of air and 80lb rider. The lever that operates the shoes and the cable operated bar lever do not provide enough leverage to apply enough pressure on the shoes so there is not enough friction for the given application. As to weight transfer, I ride my cruiser upright, not leaned over the bars like a motorcycle, down hill MTB or road bike. In those applications, there is a lot more weight over the front wheel and even more when the brakes are applied so front braking is more important and more effecient.
And do the math if you think I am pulling any of this out of my butt.

Again, I just said that as a general thing, and I took offense to that fact that you scoffed it off as BS. It may not apply AS MUCH to your bike, but I stand by the fact that the front brake will work better.