After years of cursing rear tyres for not having enough grip under braking, overcooking rear pads and disks in the Alps, and front tyres that never seem to wear while rears last no time at all, I have finally come to the realisation that I am simply relying far to heavily on the rear brake and not using the front hard enough. It came to a head last night when I struggled to get around half the corners (running wide) in our local woods (pressing on over wet roots and pine needles) when it clicked that the front wasn’t turning in simply because the rear wheel was locking up and acting like an anchor! Whether it is a fear of locking the front and dropping the bike or not I don’t know, but I cannot get away from the fact I need to use the front more.

So does anyone have any idea how to learn to use/force myself to use it more? I have tried fitting a smaller rear disk/less powerful caliper but it still locks up too easy and just overheats even quicker on long descents!

For info the brakes are Zees, but I can also see the same effect while on the hardtail and the gravel bile to a lesser extent so am pretty sure it is me and not the brakes.

Try not to use the brakes in corners is the advice I’ve been given. Slow down beforehand.

Inject a load of air into the rear level so that it doesnt work. Then you’ll be forced to brake with the front… or crash. You won’t crash too many time before you start to switch it up 😉

Also, stop braking in corners. You only have so much grip, so use it for turning or braking, not both. Braking in the corner also stands the bike up and makes things more difficult to navigate.

Phone put up topic as this

Any way to learn to use front bra

my phone often seems to shorten topic titles to something less innocent than they are.
And yes you should be going into corners slower then you think, it seems counter intuitive but it is faster once you get used to it.

Yeah i think the second comment has it really. Question should really be any way to learn to use both the brakes at the right time/ less. Just pratice i guess.

remove the rear brake? Or maybe just don’t have your finger on it to remind you Practice just using the front. Practice some more. Try stopping hard on gravel using only the front – the key is a smooth squeeze so weight transfer builds and increases front end grip – a sudden grab can lock it, a smooth squeeze gives you loads of warning its about to lock

I hardly use the rear – perhaps a little drag if I am overcooking a corner. 75% of braking should be done with the front at least.

Braking seems to be a skill that MTBers do not practice – I have had folk run into the back of me because they rely on the rear only and I have had people advise me not to use the front on loose surfaces

Try to only brake in straight lines and really haul on the front (I prefer matched discs so I’m less scared of being aggressive with the front brake). Once you’re in the turn you can use the back for control if need be but if you get it right you won’t need to.

Practice braking with the front only somewhere flat and open. Sounds like you’re worried about crashing but straight line front braking should be more stable and effective than using the rear.

Get the braking before corners but it is the scrubbing speed bit that is getting me out of shape as the rear is locking and hence not really causing any retardation at all, just instability. I am pretty handy on slow speed tight twisty stuff where the rear can be used as an aid to cornering, just the faster stuff, particularly on loose underground, where I am coming unstuck.

Maybe need a bias valve like on our old rally cars 🙂

Sounds like you’re trying too hard to go fast and then having to panic brake with the rear.

Slow down a bit, go a bit smoother and a practice braking earlier with both brakes would be my suggestion.

Or fit some contaminated pads to the rear brake which’ll keep them from working effectively.

go and practice endos and stoppies!

They’re fun to do, and endo pivots are very, very handy.

Not that hard to get the hang of, and you’ll learn a lot about your front brake while you’re at it!

Swap the brakes to US/continental style?

I would take the rear brake off and go and ride some easyish stuff.

Good points in this vid about not braking in corners :

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DtmjT9mMeM[/video]

If you’re not familiar with the “friction circle” concept from cars & motorbikes then google it and have a read. Essentially though it’s understanding that you can either brake (or accelerate) to the limit of grip, or corner to the limit of grip, but if you need to do both at the same time you need to do less of each to stay within the “circle”.

Agree with just practicing nice progressive braking (in a straight line) on different surfaces. Modern brakes let you haul up with a single finger but there should be enough feel that you can tell what’s going on.

Simples……

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0wtDMGF0u0[/video]

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1RexDMdbK4[/video]

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dv0B_0Dtjj4[/video]

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PNsAm-XSPD8[/video]

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUUKrGQIAo0[/video]

It might not be just a case of using the front brake more. You might need to re-evaluate your riding position – part of your problem is you might have your weight too far back, therefore when you do use your front brake it locks up more easily. If you re-adjust your body weight and re-distribute it more evenly between the front and rear wheels then your front braking will be more effective and wont lock up/break free so easily.

Front wheel braking is so, so much more effective than rear braking and inspires more confidence, not less. I probably go through two sets of front pads for every set of rears.

So does anyone have any idea how to learn to use/force myself to use it more?

Why can’t you just do it? Have your brain instruct your fingers to grab that lever and squeeze it.

I think step 1 is making sure you don’t brake when turning, otherwise attempting to use the front brake harder will be disastrous. So, slow down earlier and harder and go into corners at a speed that you know will be more than slow enough. Once you’re doing no more than lightly feathering the rear in the turn, then force yourself just to use the front to do the slowing down.

Give it some time – the old habits have been well practised, they’ll take a fair while to unlearn.

Disconnect your rear. 👿

I sometimes lock the front in order to get a feel for how much grip I’ve got. You probably have more grip than you think, keep the bars straight, your bike upright and release straight away and you’ll be fine.

If your braking in a straight line then (angled wet roots aside) a bit of front locking isn’t anything to worry about. I can normally feel the squirm from mine prior to lock up.

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C90Mt9d-wT0[/video]

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/settle-a-debate-about-braking-please

Run a SS out back 😉

Run into a corner with rear brake, skid and wipe out. Repeat with front brake, no problem. That did it for me 😉

And yes, braking done before the corner.

I know crap all about racing but my first beginner “Enduro!” other week got me realising with sprints up to a corner, don’t go hammering through the corner skidding about struggling to get a line as too fast and having to dab brakes, sprint like crazy, slow up just before and let the corner flow. Times improved.

I always use both brakes evenly really….keeping nice and loose on the bike to avoid the front wandering too much….