How hard to brake to activate ABS

[Ulvetanna_imp]

I certainly feel the rear brake on my 14 could be better, but it's nowhere near the useless lump that was on my 13. If you've ever ridden a bike with a strong rear brake you know instantly when you ride a bike for the first time whether it's brakes are good or weak.

Btw I rode my sons FJ-09 last Sunday. Worst rear brake I have ever felt on a motorcycle. Not only was it weak, but pedal travel was insanely long, like point your toes at the ground long travel, with little effect.

Funny the two strongest rear brakes I have felt were the tiny rear brakes on our Majesty scooters and the rear brake on a T rex scooter I was given as a loaner while they worked on my ST 1300 a few weeks ago. Both operated by left hand. STellar brakes that really comtributed to stopping the vehicle.

I know, I know, you dont have to tell me again, percentage wise the front brakes do most of the braking, but whether the rear brakes supply 20%, or 10% or 1 % why give up any percentage of total braking ability. For me a good strong, solid feeling rear brake is a joy to have and makes riding fast and controlled so much easier.

I've read from internet experts, that racers don't use rear brakes, that's not true. I have been within arms distance of Valention Rossi's bike and it had a very nice rear disc set up. I'm betting it was plenty strong. I have also saved quotes from interviews I have read with MotoGP racers, about them using their rear brakes to set up certain corners or back their way into turns. If the pros use rear brakes it's probably ok for us mortals to as well.

I certainly never recommended never using the rear brake; I use the rear brake constantly. I probably apply it just as often as the front brake, but of course in proportion as you mentioned. I have 2013 and never experienced any issues with the rear brake; I've always held the CB1100's brakes to be exceptional.

And you bet racers use the rear, all the time.

Some have the thumb brake setup (Mick Doohan, for example) to make it possible to trail the rear brake using the left thumb as it can be quite awkward to activate the rear brake while cornering and clambering around on the bike. If I remember, Doohan had some issues with his foot, but some riders just have it installed for ease of operation.

What you don't see on racebikes is any form of ABS. Lots of traction control, though.

Regarding the FJ-09, I don't know about the whole -09 series, except that many of the components were low-spec. I understand they are decent bikes if one doesn't expect world-class performance.