Originally Posted by Mr Zippy
...the one thing I haven't worked out is why they aren't. Is it that they aren't directly attached to the brake cable ?
Aside from the mechanical-leverage issues that MacG pointed out, the other problem is trying to hold your weight under deceleration forces with your hands on the tops of the bars. When you squeeze the suicide levers, the only thing holding your body back is your thumbs! A lot of people ended up breaking their thumbs under panic braking situations, then flying over the bars and end up hitting whatever they were trying to avoid anyway
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