do you always have to use your rear brake on a motorbike?

Question

or are the front brakes good enough unless you want to stop from high speed?

here's another one: how do you brake in racing conditions?

Answer 1

not always. it depends on your speed , size of bike. 75 or 80% of your stopping power is your front brake.

Answer 2

First, let me say that you should absolutely ignore diogenese19348! Physics says no such thing! If it did, then the motorcycle manufacturers and racers have found a way to brake the laws of physice 100% of the time.
Motorbikes have brakes on BOTH ends for a reason.
The vast majority of the braking power is in the front. This is due to several factors. The chief of them is this:
Weight transfer. The kenitic energy of the forward momentum transferes forward which, in turn, puts extra pressure on the front contact patch (where the rubber meets the road) and, in effect pushes the front wheel harder onto the road. This also lessens the grip of the REAR tire.
Racers, even though they can consistantly lift the rear tire upon very hard application of the brakes, still use both brakes. There exist several reasons for this also. Three reasons:
1. to calm the bike
2. to slide the rear
3. to tighten the turning radius

Flipping the motorcycle, while it can happen, is rare. the more common cause is locking the front wheel and causing the bike to "Fold" underneath the rider.

Every few years, the Motorcycle magazines do variations of the "which brake do I brake with?" tests.
best to worst 100% of the time:
1. both brakes applied as hard as possible as soon as possible
2. front brake only applied in the same manner
3. back brake only
#3 is alway far and away the WORST choice and can quadruple your stopping distance
why do you think that the front wheel, although having a skinnier tire, runs two, large discs (common now, even on non-sporting bikes) and the rear has a tiny single unit?

Answer 3

Whoa, Nelly! Talk about some bad advice!
You should NEVER use the rear brake unless you are stopping in a straight line. Using the rear brake stands the bike up and gets you going straight, which can (and has to my certain knowledge) lead to running off the road in a curve and risking injury and death!
That is DEATH!
The front brake will NOT "flip the bike" or any of that horsehockey. Modern bikes are designed to stay reasonably level (some even rise a bit) when the front brake is engaged.
The reason - and I know it seems counter-intuitive - is that the bike's turning geometry is very different from a car's. Counter-steer (turning the front wheel to the right in order to turn left at speed) and body steer (leaning into the curve in order to skoot around a curve) are both valid and most experienced riders will use both, depending on the situation.
But do not use the rear brake to slow in a curve. Please. The front brake is fine. Use it.

Answer 4

That really depends on the type of bike that you ride. For instance, I have a 2003 BMW 1200GT with partial ABS (partial in the sense the system works only on the rear wheel). When I brake with my front brake, the system automatically distributes breaking power to both the front and the rear brake to prevent the rider from going over the handle bars during hard breaking. So I use the rear brake alone only seldomly. On motorcycles that are not equipped with ABS, you can still use your front brake only in most situation because 75% of your stopping power comes from the front brakes. When you really need to slow down or stop quickly, it is a good idea to apply both the front and rear brakes, but be careful not to lock your rear wheel because your motorcycle will be prone to fishtailing (in other word, pump the rear brake without just holding it down as hard as you can). Hope this helps.

Answer 5

I don't ride a motorbike, so I am probably not your best person to answer, but physics would say, brake with the rear brakes only. Cars use, both, but they have a better center of gravity, and even then, they tend to brake with the rear first.

The problem is, you brake with the front ones, you still have the back of the vehicle wanting to move. The front stopped, the back didn't. At a low enough speed it probably does not make much difference, but it strikes me as a real bad habit to get into.

Answer 6

You should have both front and rear brakes working. You are supposed apply the rear brake first and then the front brake when stopping. In some conditions having only a front brake would be dangerous. Gravel roads, wet roads etc. If the rear brake doesn't work, fix it. If it does work, use it!

Answer 7

Front brakes typically provide 60% or more of your stopping power. Best bet is to use both. Some situations require u not to use the front brake at all, like if you are steering through loose gravel, dirt or other debris on pavement. If you are on a dirt bike, it depends on the track, dirt and other conditions as well as the direction of the turn, and if you need to throttle through the turn or not. In most cases, just using the back brake will result in a speedy wear out of your back brake!

Answer 8

the reason the front brake is 70 to 80 percent of the stopping power is because the bikes weight/center of gravity shifts forward when the brakes are applied and more weight over the front wheel translates to more friction/stopping power...the rear brake is obviously less effective as the back of the bike gets "lighter" meaning less friction etc...both should be used...there is a lot of bad advice here...u really want to know take a motorcycle safety course...u can usually get info on where they are held from your dmv....and as far as using the rear brake for other activities..when doing wheelies...you can tap the rear brake lightly and control them (careful or u bring the front end down hard)...also when going slow as in parking lot manuevers etc i use my rear brake to straighten the bike etc....makes slow manuevers easier to control...and if the rear brake locks up the tire (not enough weight and too much brake) just leave it locked and ride it out otherwise the back can snap around if released suddenly...(bit extreme description but best i can supply)
and don't take my word for it or anyone else's....lots of bad advice here...take the motorcycle safety course..sometimes it can even get u cheaper insurance.

last

p.s. all this assumed u have a modern bike with disc brakes...if riding a bike with drum brakes then they aren't going to be as effective and u may need to apply them much earlier but same theory...lol..i have more than one bike and i can say there is a world of difference between a heavy old sporty with drum brakes and a modern sportbike with disc brakes...

Answer 9

No, the only time I've ever used the rear brake is either stopping from high speed or slowing down in a turn. To be honest I don't use the rear brake hardly ever.

Answer 10

85% of your braking power is in the front brake. The rear brake settles the bike. If you use only your rear at high speed, you're going down.

Answer 11

No, but you should balance the front and rear. Skillful riders do. Make sure you apply equal pressure to the front and rear brakes when braking under normal conditions. That way, they wear evenly.

Good luck!