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Old 02-02-14 | 11:05 AM
  #18  
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cyccommute
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Originally Posted by Jax Rhapsody
Cars are biased to the front brakes, yes, but the rears do lock up first before the front if only for a split second. You're right, to completely different animals. There is a youtube video of a Smart4too with a gsxr engine swap that does endo's. Typically, like I said, with a car locking up the brakes causes the car to lose traction(kinetic energy to heat energy) and slide. Same with tandems and trikes because of weight. Regular bikes for there size have rather large wheels for a vehicle, high centered gravity, and even without suspension, still have weight transfer, giving the stopping tire grip, cause rear lift. ABS lets a car make a controllable stop push your cars brakes hard enough and abs shuts off, allowing wheel lock up. This is why you never slam on your brakes in a car, or a bike with properly setup brakes with good pads.
Automobiles aren't any more biased to the front brakes than any other vehicle. Bicycles, tandems, trucks, motorcycles and skateboards equipped with brakes (a really dumb idea) are all biased to the front brakes. Even bicycles equipped with a coaster brake only are biased towards the front. That's why they skid so well. It's the way that the physics works.

Based on a bit of Googling, I think you are talking about a motorcycle when you refer to a "Smart4too with gsxr engine". A motorcycle is very different from an automobile and more like a bicycle with a high center of gravity and a short wheel base.

ABS allows a car to make a controllable stop by pulsing the brakes so that the wheels don't skid. I think you are also confused about the way the ABS works. If they are working properly, you shouldn't be able to put enough force on the system so that it shuts off and the wheels lock up. The point of the ABS is to do exactly what mountain bike riders do, i.e. keep wheels from sliding to maintain control.

Originally Posted by Jax Rhapsody
Too much rear brake will induce a skid, but in a panic stop on a bike, it's best to use the rear to slow down enough that grabbing the front doesnt throw you over the bars. Like grab the rear at 80%, then the front at 50%- increasing to full lock. You are spot on, front brake usage is a necessity. Nothing stops any vehicle faster than a front brake- that's where the weight goes.
it's all momentum and physics.
Nope. You are requiring too much thought and analysis for a very short time frame. Generally speaking, you should grab both brakes in a panic situation and pull. If the rear wheel starts to skid and you have enough time to remember, you let up on the front brake. Every situation where I've had to panic stop, there is too little time to actually think about much of anything outside of trying not to crash. I tend to let up on both brakes then get back on both brakes which accomplishes the same thing as just easing pressure on the front brake.
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