Motorcycle Brakes

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Motorcycle brakes are an art in themselves! Modern bike brakes have just amazing stopping power, well beyond that of what the regular rider will encounter while riding. Here is a closer look at brakes and how they work.

For a long time motorcycles were stopped by drum brakes which work by pushing shoes up against the inside of a drum and causing friction to slow the motorcycle down. Drum brakes are easy to recognize with the 'drum' mounted on the wheel.

Drum brakes worked well and are still being used for smaller bikes. However, drums are prone to overheating and wear-outs, even the high performance ones. These motorcycle brakes need regular adjustment for optimal use. Disc brakes started to appear in the seventies with Honda leading the pack (the CB750). A disc brake works on the simple principle that a steel disc is gripped by two pads held by a hydraulic caliper.

Disc brakes are much friendlier for a motorcycle rider, less prone to overheating and require little (or no) adjustment. The downside was/is (especial during the early days) that wet weather didn't let these motorcycle brakes function as well. Modern day bikes use twin front discs and only one at the rear. Using more brake power at the back would lead to wheel block ups due to the dynamics of braking.

Each disk is gripped by calipers, where every caliper is pushed by four or six pistons. This greatly improves the brake power the riders feel when braking. Many tour bikes use a combination of different motorcycle brake hydraulics to divide the front and back braking power in the most optimal way. Additionally some bikes now also have ABS (anti block system).

The steel disk floats in the wheel so it can accommodate the temperature influences which occur while braking. The pads are fitted loosely in the clamp around the steel disk. Over time the disk pads need replacing, which is just standard maintenance. However keep an eye on disk damage due to incorrect placement of brake pads or anything else. Damaging the steel disk can result in a costly replacement.

Be careful when replacing brake pads (brake fluid is corrosive and motorcycle brake dust is toxic) Once you have replaced the brake pads carefully test them. Make sure you get the feel back.

Brake maintenance should be a regular part of your service schedule - check shoe pad wear - check hose connections - bleed hydraulic brakes system - change hydraulic brake fluid.

Good tip is to service your brakes every time the wheel comes off. It's the easiest way to access the brakes and it avoids having to remove wheels for brake maintenance only.

Make sure you use the right brake fluid: it can be a (dot 3 or 4) glycol based or a silicone based (dot 5). Using the wrong fluid will screw up your system.

Your disk brake system can be fitted with single acting calipers (one piston pushes the brake pad from one side) or double acting calipers (two pistons push two brake pads from either side). Of course double calipers have more braking power.

Most modern calipers have multi pistons pushing the brake pad on the disc, creating an awesome braking force.

Brake discs are slotted and/or drilled so that cooling air can run through and past the hot discs for a better cooling effect.

If you replace brake lines, pistons or you feel your brake system is going soft you will need to bleed your brakes. See your owner manual for exact details.

One of the easiest maintenance jobs is to replace your brake pads however you must make sure you have checked and rechecked that you have done everything exactly right. Brake failure isn't what you need on a motorcycle.

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