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View Full Version : Remove hand brake lever.. why?



Mike Eyre
12-22-2016, 08:30 AM
Been noticing recently and pictures and such as a research how to put mine back together that a lot of people seem to be removing the hand brake lever… Why is that?

wonderboy
12-22-2016, 09:10 AM
I think in a lot of cases, the brakes don't work and the owner is either too lazy, ignorant, or just doesn't care enough to fix them. I've seen many posts over the years where people comment about riding with no brakes as if it was no big deal. So I think when the brake lever is removed it is because they don't have functioning brakes anyway. That's all I can think of...

By the way, don't be one of those guys especially if you like to ride with others. There is nothing worse than being rear-ended by a guy because his brakes don't work.

Mike Eyre
12-22-2016, 10:45 AM
My machine has both the handle and foot brake installed and functional, but the hand brake really is a pain to use. I'm sure it's the cable all bent up and whatnot, but it's just not as effective as the foot pedal. I was just thinking maybe they removed the hand brake to somehow take out some of that weird ratcheting mechanism that is built in back there to get a more positive feel on the foot pedal brake? They're both kind of mushy.. I think I'd rather have one good feeling handle/pedal than two ways to access a poor feeling/feedback lever?

HairyJR
12-22-2016, 05:36 PM
I'm no expert by any means, believe the left hand brake handle had a loop built in to use as a parking brake. As seeing your frame in another post you have an aftermarket replacement frame. Most of the manufactures added an inch or two to them to stretch for better handling for racing. That being said longer cables where needed. Another reason for removing them came about because many people thought it was a clutch lever and if squeezed during speed would give the rider a great surprise similar to the one people got when putting their foot down while turning.

"HJ" 237958 :beer

EPOCH6
01-10-2017, 12:29 PM
I've temporarily removed the left hand brake lever for the rear brakes on my '82 200E because the cable is seizing and I don't want others to mistake the non-functioning rear brakes for the fully functioning front brakes while riding. This way it's impossible to confuse the two while somebody less familiar with the machine is using it.

83ATC185
01-10-2017, 01:53 PM
...This way it's impossible to confuse the two while somebody less familiar with the machine is using it.

I recommend this 100% I almost got a good friend killed that way.

It was his second time his second time riding a trike, period, and while the rear brakes worked (ok, they functioned somewhat, in hindsight...) with the pedal, the cable was shot for the handbrake and he didn't know/forgot about using the pedal and went barrelling blindly across a 4 lane highway thinking he had no brakes. After that, i took off the left handbrake and went through the brakes entirely from the shoes to the pedal, new oem cables, new springs, new everything and adjusted the pedal for maybe 3/4" of travel, now it stops on a dime and they are trustworthy. Well worth the money imo.