How many fingers do you brake with?

**bugjuice** · 21st April 2005, 11:29

kawkas are easy, goes along the lines of

and it stops.. so one finger.. just the one..

sorry, couldn't resist

**Paul in NZ** · 21st April 2005, 11:48

Originally Posted by Ixion

heh heh. Sounds just like a BSA. Until I got wise and realised that all the levering and stomping wasn't going to do anything anyway. So I stopped bothering to brake. Just ride around whatever it is. And wave my arms and shriek "Ged oudda my way, you *&^^* " .Still use that philosophy actually.

I did actually bend a couple of the old steel levers. And twist the splined shaft on the rear brake actuating arm.

having owned a few old bikes and played with heaps of them I can say that in most cases, there is a logical reason why the brakes are not working.

Sure, really old stuff was pretty dire... But that was not just bikes. 8 litre cars weighing 2 plus ton with only rear wheel brakes? Yes at one stage the theory was it was dangerous to have brakes on the front of cars... Gleep!

Anyway.

There are MANY reasons why old pommie drum brakes don't work and often it comes down to wear and tear plus people swapping inappropriate components. Like Triumph and Norton levers look the same but the pivot distances are different and should not be swapped about. Lets not even discuss the horrid replacement cables we used to use... Bleugh....

I've owned 50's Triumphs that could lock up the front easily and the 2LS brake on my 1970 TR6C is one of the best drums ever made (but painfully heavy)...

**Sniper** · 21st April 2005, 11:53

Thats weird, I have always used my 2 outside fingers

**wkid_one** · 21st April 2005, 14:29

My two inside fingers only

**Sniper** · 21st April 2005, 14:33

Originally Posted by wkid_one

My two inside fingers only

Are we still talking about braking

**bugjuice** · 21st April 2005, 14:42

Originally Posted by Sniper_CBR

Are we still talking about braking

lamo

**Sniper** · 21st April 2005, 15:20

Originally Posted by bugjuice

lamo

What???? Hehehe

**MSTRS:Me** · 21st April 2005, 15:27

Originally Posted by Sniper_CBR

Are we still talking about braking

Oh dear...it'll be alcomahol next won't it?

**NordieBoy** · 21st April 2005, 15:41

Thank you, I'll have a double

I use finger 2 and in emergancies use either 1,2 or 2,3.
2 fingers is enough to stoppie.

**Sniper** · 21st April 2005, 15:49

Originally Posted by NordieBoy

2 fingers is enough to stoppie.

Ummmmm, see what I mean

**scroter** · 21st April 2005, 16:06

Originally Posted by gav

Well I could understand on a XJ900 but that R6 won't need 4 fingers Jimthesecond? Have you got an order in for some fairings?

on an R6 with braided lines you might get away with 2 fingers.
on the trackdays with normal lines on the sixxer i kept running out of lever travel cause i was only using 2 fingers and the other 2 got in the way, so i changed to all 4 and it worked sweet. now i got braided lines i cant get out of the habit of using all 4, but it feels sweet anyway so who cares.

**Zapf** · 21st April 2005, 16:27

Originally Posted by gav

And what ones do you use? I generally use either one or two (fore finger and long one next to it), but was interested to see the on bike shots of Shinya Nakano and he was using his 3 outside fingers and holding onto throttle with his fore finger and thumb. Go on, just try flexing them like that, feel weird to you? Or more natural? Looked abit ungainly I thought, almost like he had to stretch his fingers around the brake lever to get it in position to brake. So what do other people use?

3 outside fingers...