Sherville

Hi,

I recently bought my very first road bike. (I don't know anything about road bikes so please bear with me.)
I love everything about it except the brake levers.
I took it back to the bike shop and they charged me $50 to change the handle bars to put on some brakes that should make it easier for me to reach.
I got the bike home and went for a ride and I STILL don't have the power to squeeze the brake. The right hand break seems really easy to squeeze, but the left hand one is next to impossible for me to use.
I have to lower my hand to the drop bars in order to get any leverage.
I don't feel safe riding in traffic.
Is there anything else that can be done to help me?
I have small weak girl hands. Is it just a matter of using them until I gain some strength in my hands?

Thanks,
Amy

Beaker

Not quite sure I understand this part. Do you mean that the right hand brake lever has more travel in it, and is easier to get leverage? If so, then it might be that you need to open up the brake calipers a little on your wheel to get a bit more travel in the lever.

Sherville

I'm not sure exactly what "travel" means. Can you explain please?

What I was saying is it's super easy for me to use the right hand brake, but of course I wouldn't because I'd fly over the handlebars at any great speed.

I'm having difficulty managing to get leverage on the left-hand break. When I come to an intersection and I have to stop I freak out because I know I can't stop.

I am new to road cycling and I'm used to being able to slam on the brakes at the last second on a mountain bike. Someone told me its a balance between both brakes and that you should never lock the brakes on a road bike.

Sorry if I'm being daft, I really have no idea about this stuff, I just enjoy cycling.

Beaker

By travel, I mean how far the lever moves when you pull it. My thinking was that if you don't have much movement in the left hand lever, then that might explain why it's more difficult to use than the right hand brake. That wasn't clear from your post, but I was guessing that might be what you meant. Opening the brake caliper with the adjuster above the brake will give you more movement in the lever.

A couple of other things from your post above. Firstly, you shouldn't be worrying about flying over the bars all the time. Braking should be more subtle - slow down in advance of a junction, right? Secondly, if you were to lock up the front wheel, normally the left lever operates the front brake (easy to check). Honestly I wouldn't worry about that though. You need to use the front brake to effectively stop the bike - as more of the mass goes through the front wheel when decelerating.

ptle

My friend has a new road bike with some old brakes that are pretty tough to squeeze compared to mine. I think it's mostly a matter of getting used to it. You may want to change out the pads so they gave more stopping power, which means you'll have to squeeze less. Changing out brakes would probably be expensive along with brifters.

liquefied

You shouldn't really be using the rear brake to stop on a road bike unless you really need all the braking power of both wheels. The front brake should be used for most situations.

KiddSisko

Sherville - It would help if we knew more about your bike, like the make, model and year, and especially what kind of brake levers (Tektro, Shimano 105, Sora, etc...). Shimano does make a brake lever set (105 R700) designed for smaller hands. Shimano Sora levers are also adjustable. Another option is buying a pair of in-line brake levers that mountain bikers are familiar with. They mount along the horizontal part of the handlebars, giving you another option for braking with road bike handlebars.

So let's have the details please.

AnthonyG

This is your problem right here. The right hand lever for the FRONT brake IS the one you are supposed to use. Practice, practice, practice until you get the feel for it. There is no other solution. The rear brake is really for limited use and is not suitable for stopping a road bike.

Also it is a good idea to be braking from the drops to.

Anthony

Ratfish

Wow, you guys don't use your rear brake? Wacky.

coasting 

when i was new to cycling i was scared to grab the front brake fearing going over the top, but once i learned to shift my weight back and to brace the arms to take the forward force on braking, i never feel that i will go over the top even if i brake hard with the front in an emergency.

if i grab the back brake hard i normally skid the back wheel which is a bit scary so i never stop using the back. the back is used to moderate speed when riding along and for extra stopping force in conjunction with the front if i need it.

AnthonyG

Not to stop the bike, No.

Seriously I don't use the rear brake except for the odd occasion where I test it out to make sure its still working fine if ever the front brake fails. I have small weak hands so I firmly grip the bar with my left hand and brake with my right.

There's some physics going on here too. When your brake you transfer your weight forward onto the front wheel. I know we have these arguments about braking every couple of weeks (I think I remember Ratfish was in the last one) but I'm in the camp that uses front brakes exclusively.

Anthony

Ratfish

Well, sorry for thinking that pedaling might be a complex action involving many forces. Didn't think that would get me blacklisted.

So, in this case you're going to tell me that braking with both front and back is somehow less effective than braking with just front? Every single time I brake I use both and I've never had a single problem.

Machka 

Rarely.

Only for sudden stops in combination with the front brake, or to alternate when braking down a long, curvy descent.

Machka 

To the OP, can you post a pic of yourself on the bicycle reaching for the brakes?

You say, "I have to lower my hand to the drop bars in order to get any leverage.", and I'm thinking, "Well, yes, of course."

Sherville

I've got an 2008 Vivente Lugano with Shimano 105 Flight Deck brakes.

I had a little mess around with the back caliper and it seems to have more travel now, but I haven't taken it out for a proper test ride yet.

This whole using the front to brake thing is so weird and new to me, but as AnthonyG said "practice practice practice"

I will also try to get used to breaking from the drop bar position too.

x136 

The rear brake is the "safe" brake. Which isn't to say that the front is unsafe, but that the rear brake is very easy to use, and harder to get yourself into trouble with. The problem is, it's much harder to stop with the rear brake alone, for reasons mentioned in this thread.

Using the front brake is going to feel scary at first, especially if you're used to exclusive use of the rear, but it really is the brake you want to rely on. Once you get the modulation of the brakes down, you'll find that you can stop faster, easier, and in a safer manner.

So yes, practice. Don't worry, it'll come to you.

grolby

Not less effective, but no more effective. If you are braking as hard as possible, the rear tire will have essentially no traction and any use of the brake would lock up the wheel and cause a skid. Therefore you can stop a bike just as fast with the front brake alone as with both brakes. Most of the time, we are not braking as hard as possible, so we use both brakes and get the impression that it is more effective to do so. And at less than maximum braking, it does mean less force is required for both brakes.

This is true - in the United States. In Australia, where the OP is from, the left lever 'normally' operates the rear brake.

tntyz

^^^^^^

You learn something new every day.

AEO

right hand drive, driving on the left side of the road: right front brake, left rear brake.
left hand drive, driving on the right side of the road: left front brake, right rear brake.

the idea behind the law is that you can both slow down with your rear brake and signal your intentions with the arm that sticks out into traffic. which may or may not be for the best, even though there are good intentions.

aidy

This always seemed silly to me because I'd rather brake with the front brake while signaling...

deepakvrao

Yes but I think that the rear brake being used with the other hand for signaling, was designed with the premise that the rear brakes were safer to use.

I too use only front brakes - after reading about it here.

cccorlew

I rarely use my rear brake. As in almost never. I'm very very right handed, and have my front on the right. That's where all the stopping power is.

Anyway, either your cable is binding, you have cheap brakes or pads, or your brake is too tight.

Hendley

I doubt it's anything mechanical--I think the OP is just experiencing the relative lack of stopping power of the rear brake vs front brake, and thinking that the rear brake isn't working properly, or she isn't pulling hard enough on it.

I'd second the suggestions to keep practicing, especially using the front brake to stop.

DaveSSS 

To improve your gripping force, adjust the brake cable tension so the brake lever comes very close to the handlebar when you grip it as hard as possible. There are shims made to move the brake lever closer to the bars. If your shop didn't suggest these, they are lame.

As for how to use the brakes, you should always use both brakes. The rear will naturally provide far less braking than the front, but both should be used, particularly if you are having trouble generating enough stopping power. I think that the suggestion to mostly use the front brake is WRONG.

One problem with most brakes it the rear has just as much power as the front. Under heavy braking, that makes it easy to lock up a rear wheel, which can result in a slide, unless you release the rear brake and get the tire rotating. Campy rear brakes intentionally have far less power, making it much more difficult to lock up a rear tire.

NO other modern vehicle has brakes with equal power on the front and rear. Whether it's a car or motorcycle, the front brakes are always far more powerful.

RacerOne

^^^ cool, I didn't know that. The campy brake bias that is.