I don't mean this to sound like a joke,
but if you were fixing up a bike for a left handed rider,
would you swap brake levers so that the dominate, or left hand
is working the rear brake?

I am right handed and do this on every one of my bikes because that is the way they were when I was riding in my 20's. Dave Moulton does that on all his bikes too.Dave Moulton's Blog - Archive by Subject

I would first ask the left-handed rider if they have a preference. For instance, people with a background in motorcycling sometimes prefer front brake on the right.

There is a contingent which argues that the front brake should be set up with the dominant hand, since it is the front brake which provides most of the stopping power. Personally, both my hands are adequately strong to pull a brake lever, so I stick with the conventional set-up of left=front since it's what I'm used to. I wouldn't want your buddy to go over the bars because he thought he was squeezing the rear by mistake.

But you asked about setting up the rear with the dominant left hand, so my answer would be no.

Normally I don't think left vs. right-handed would make a difference since either hand should be capable of operating the brake with sufficient strength. But if someone had limited hand strength in one hand then I'd want that one operating the rear brake so that full strength could be used on the front brake which has much more stopping power.

Yes, for me it isn't about strength, its about what is familiar. I use to ride Motorcycles too.

I always assumed that the dominate (right) hand is always the rear brake,
so that there is less of a chance of applying to much brake in the front
and doing an endow.

I am right handed and all of my bikes have the front brake set up to the right hand (drive side) lever. It just feels right.

It's simply a matter of preference and habit. Though I'm right handed, my left hand is stronger, and I've set bikes up left/front for almost 50 years, dating back to when everybody told me I had it backward.

Since I'm used to it this way, I automatically get correct modulation of both brakes purely by habit.

I don't think there's a right or wrong way, except that each rider should be consistent, so that he'll use brakes correctly in a panic stop without needing to think.

Same here. I've never ridden motorcycles, nor lived in England. But when I set up a bike with side pull brakes, I let the front brake dictate how I route the cable. If I get a better line with the front brake cable going to the left side, I'll do it.

It's only an issue, I think, if you habitually brake with only one hand(which is good practice; the rear does nothing but wear out the rim). I habitually brake with both hands (a habit I have not been able to break).

Just an alternate view. Braking both wheels is the better practice because the action of the rear wheel, ie. locking, is the best indicator of reduced load, meaning that you're approaching the tipping point. Without the rear wheel to tell you, the only way to know the tipping point is when you actually begin to tip, which can be late for someone not dialed into his bike.

It's probably a matter of personal preference. I'm left-handed and I don't feel the need for that switch. I grew up before left-handed scissors and notebooks were available and I don't find those very comfortable to use now, and I shoot bows and guns with a right-hand dominance. We learn how to adapt .

Set it up for familiarity and consistency, according to what the user wants. I'm right-handed and have always used the right lever for the rear brake, but I also ride motorcycles and have never had a problem adjusting back and forth from one vehicle to the other.

I have set up left/rear bikes for users on request, and I have also rigged bikes with a single dual-brake lever for the dominant hand of the rider in question. Do what works for you.

I am left handed and it never occurred to me that the dominant hand should brake the front wheel.
The left shifter handles the front of the bike and the right shifter handles the back of the bike.That’s how it was on downtube, barend, and stem shifting due to cable guide routing.So it only makes sense to apply the same thing to brakes.The left side of the bike therefore controls what happens at the rear and the right side controls what happens at the front.


With that said, I typically use both brakes when riding.Just makes sense to me- I have 2 levers, so use them.I may use just 1 to slow while in motion, but if I am coming to a stop either fast or slow, I will use both brakes typically.So it wouldn’t really matter which is set up for the front or rear caliper.


If you are setting up a bike for someone with difficulty squeezing a brake lever with 1 of their hands, it makes sense for the strong hand to use the strongest brake caliper.

No. Brakes should be setup according to the norm for that country, or what the rider prefers if they are the only one who rides the bike. In the US, front brake is always left.

There's really no "danger" with setting it up backwards. When I went to the UK I forgot about the switched brakes and the first bike I rode I commented "man the front brake on this bike is terrible." Then I realized my mistake that I was actually squeezing the rear brake. Well, I guess if someone is used to squeezing the rear brake as the main stopping mechanism then that may be a bit dangerous.

I'm left handed and have always gone with left/front. It's not so much dominance as it is habit (my right-hand grip is stronger, fwiw). Last year, I broke my left hand and couldn't use it to operate the brake lever for several weeks, and it took longer than I thought it would to get used to going with the right hand/rear brake first.

Naw, it keeps my forearms the same size.

I started cycling to train for motocross, so i always set up front brake on the right --- i almost cannot ride one set up conventional American style now , as i rely on the front brake for 80% of stopping activities and the rear just to keep the bike stable , (or if braking in a corner while leaned over ) --- Others can seemingly go back and forth with ease.

A friend took a spin on my mountain bike and stated he didnt even notice the brakes were different , -- signifiying he likely uses both hands and roughly equal pressure

Me too. Just ask what they want / are used to.

I learned to ride on a vintage BMX. Back then (early 80s) a lot of bikes only came with a rear brake on the right. The rear brake is good for controlled slides.

I do most things on a bike with my right hand (shift both DT levers, drink from water bottle, eat, grab things from jersey pockets, adjust glasses, etc.), so it's good to have my left hand available to use the front brake if something happens while my right hand is busy.

^ I'm left handed too. We live in a right handed world. As a kid we all rode each other's bikes so + 1 for consistency esp in emergency braking

When there's any traffic around, I signal my turns with my left hand. When I'm initiating a turn, that means I'm riding one handed while simultaneously braking (usually, as I live and ride on hills and I'm so gosh-darned fast ). I want the hand on the brake to be operating the rear brake. Less chance of the front wheel going out from under me while I'm making the turn.

I'm left handed, but that doesn't really factor in, here.

I'm with the group that says it should be what the rider is expecting. Having said that I'll throw in more comments.

You might first ask how right-handed riders prefer them before determining whether to deviate.

All my bikes, tandem excepted because it is totally different, have the front on the left hand. It's how my first bikes were set up and AFAIK how those Europeans set them up all the time and they must know what they are doing.

Since I play acoustic guitar or maybe just because it is a genetically-inherited feature, my left hand is larger and stronger than my right even though I am right-handed. I don't think it matters much though.

I'll rig sidepull brakes with the lever and caliper ends on opposite sides so that the cable bend will be more open. Fortunately all my sidepull brakes have the cable on the right side for the front.

Finally, do not think in terms of dominant-hand or over-braking or preferring-rear-braking as pertinent. If you need to stop fast and you can't then you are cooked anyway, header or not. The fastest way to stop is with the front brake only because once you have reduced the loading on the rear it is more likely to skid. Well, you can use the rear but it will eventually skid as you brake harder, and some people have more trouble with balance when that happens. You won't take a header from rear-wheel braking but you can't stop as fast either. I have occasionally had to brake hard enough to lift the rear momentarily, and believe me when I say (1) I was happy, no make that delighted to be able to stop that fast, and (2) one's reaction time when the rear lifts is fast enough and the required braking time itself is short enough that a full header is extremely unlikely unless you are total klutz with the brake lever.

The tandem is different because it has both calipers on the right-hand lever, and a drum brake on the left-hand lever. But I generally use both anyway. It's a tandem so lifting the rear ain't gonna' happen and I need all the braking I can get.

My first road bike was a 1962 Bianchi with the rear cable guide along the lower left side of the top tube and universal sidepulls wired with a short (non-crossover) reach -- hence, right front/left rear. When I bought the Nishiki Competition, which came with centerpull brakes and the rear brake cable guide along the lower right side of the top tube, I rewired it to match the Bianchi. All of this was consistent with the erroneous, but widely held, view that one's dominant hand, left in my case, should control the rear brake.

I eventually came to realize that left front would be marginally better for me, since the front should be the dominant brake, and since everyone else's bike seemed to be wired left-front. I made the switch about 40 years ago and never second-guessed my decision, although I might have made a different choice if I were a motorcyclist.

Opinions, and reasons for them, abound. I set it up with the front on the right because of much time spent on motorbikes. I wouldn't presume to tell anyone else what to prefer, but would set it up normally with the front on the left unless asked to do otherwise, and when I do sell a bike I change it back.

I have swapped brakes on every bike I've owned since the 1960s so they are the same as my motorcycles. It is instinctive for me to use the right hand for the front brake.