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disabling linked brakes

L

lawfuls

Guest
Hi

I am a VERY new member. I have a 2004 R1150RT, that I really like with the exception of the linked brakes. I also have an 04 R1150RTP without the linked brakes. Is is possible to retrofit the linked brakes with those of an RTP. I hate not being able to trail brake. I hope someone out there has been through this.

Thanks

Jay
 
Howdy, and welcome to the forum! There's a world of info here, and also very good folks.

Your question has been asked before, and the quick answer is "no".
It is, I believe, possible to retro-fit a system from an RTP but would be a task I surely wouldn't want to try.

The linked rear to front brakes are the only significant thing I don't like about my bike, but have learned to work around the issue. The front to rear link is, IMO, a very good thing. It leaves one less control the rider has to operate/modulate in a hard stop.
Shortly after I got m '04 RT, I had to stop for someone who pulled out in front of me and I learned just how fast they'll stop. Very
impressive.
Slow u-turns and maneuvering in a gravel parking lot are where the problem lies. The cure is to re-learn how it's done. I just don't use the brakes until I'm upright. Clutch and throttle up till then. Works for me so far. ;)
 
Jeff488 said:
Howdy, and welcome to the forum! There's a world of info here, and also very good folks.

Your question has been asked before, and the quick answer is "no".
It is, I believe, possible to retro-fit a system from an RTP but would be a task I surely wouldn't want to try.

The linked rear to front brakes are the only significant thing I don't like about my bike, but have learned to work around the issue. The front to rear link is, IMO, a very good thing. It leaves one less control the rider has to operate/modulate in a hard stop.
Shortly after I got m '04 RT, I had to stop for someone who pulled out in front of me and I learned just how fast they'll stop. Very
impressive.
Slow u-turns and maneuvering in a gravel parking lot are where the problem lies. The cure is to re-learn how it's done. I just don't use the brakes until I'm upright. Clutch and throttle up till then. Works for me so far. ;)
Click to expand...

Thanks for your response, I am a motorcycle safety instructor and teach my students to avoid front wheel braking in very slow manuevers unless you like dropping your bike. The linked brakes makes slow speed manuevers dangerous. Some of the patterns I teach mandate the "dragging" of the rear brake while moving slowly even in a full locked turn. This is almost impossible with linked brakes and causes the bike to want to "tip over" if using even the slightest braking while in a very slow speed turn.

For the average rider the linked brakes are probably a good thing, but when riding advanced manuevers between closley spaced obstacles at slow this is a receipe for disaster.

If anyone knows of a fix for this please let me know.

Thanks
 
The brakes on my 05 RT are linked. I don't believe relatively light pressure on the rear brake, such as in low speed maneuvering, activates the front brake. The linked action only occurs when more substantial brake pressure is applied. I've had no problems (other than my normal clutziness) using the rear brake at slow speed.
Is there a substantial difference between the 04 and the 05?
 
Thanks Dan for the quick response.

I have two 04's so I am not sure about the differences bewtween the 04 and 05's. But even the slightest pressure on my foot brake does bring on some front brake. I have had to modify my riding techniques that I have been using for years in order to compensate for the linked brakes. This is not a great work around. Unless someone has been able to convert the RT to RTP brakes, I may just have no choice other than "live with it".

Thanks again for everyones input.

Jay
 
Hi Jay, I think you can purchase an ABS modulator unit that supports un-linked brakes for your '04RT and I think is is a direct replacement with no mods, I think. Only problem with this is the $2700. By the way, I just love my 04RT after the absectomy. I have absolutely no issues with my machine. I wound up using an NPN Darlington transistor switch to control my brake light which I replaced with an LED bulb. Much improved over the incandescent.:clap
 
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