Handbrake on RT - Opinion

[Easy Rider]

Just got mine installed and have two "issues" with it:

I need a different lever, due to short fingers.

I want a softer return spring for the kit itself. The combination of the return spring on the stock brake mechanism PLUS the extra return spring
on the lever mechanism makes the pull too stiff......making it feel like the brakes are "soft" when using the lever.

I think both of these things have been addressed on here before. I am searching for those posts right now.

 

[blitzkreig]

Well ...

I NEEDED the hand brake NOT because of my knees (although after having bought the RTL in 2014 I have had BOTH knees replaced last year ... LOL)

I needed the brake to grab just SOMETHING with that hand!

After having ridden motorcycles with a hand brake for over 50 years I was reaching for AIR, time and again. It was rather bothersome to fumble at almost every stop.

As a matter of fact, the hand brake on my 2 wheeled motorcycles does about 99% of the braking. I rarely use my foot brake. Rarely. And I still ride all of my other BMW motorcycles.

The foot brake alone on my RT requires a fair amount of force to stop all three wheels and a heavy bike. I augment my foot braking with my hand brake when I must stop short. Even then I am not able to get the ABS braking to fire up unless I really brake hard with both my hand and foot at work ... and I am on sand or gravel!!! I have never gotten the tires to break loose on dry pavement ever with foot AND hand working the brakes.

I use the hand brake alone when coming to a normal stop on the RT and I do it without thinking about it.

 

[Easy Rider]

Sometimes why people want something for their Spyder it is just none of our business.

Make that MOST of the time.

But then there is a BIG difference between politely asking the reason and ASSuming something and throwing around insults. :lecturef_smilie:

Like several others who have posted about this........I keep grabbing for the front brake that isn't there.
After 50 years of "training" to do that, it isn't likely that I can "untrain" the response.
I feel that I "need" it for safety reasons.

 

[Easy Rider]

I use the hand brake alone when coming to a normal stop on the RT and I do it without thinking about it.

My lever needs a LOT of force to get a good grab from the brakes.
The return spring on the kit itself is really stiff; added to the return force from the stock system, it is WAY more than I'm willing to live with.

Just spoke to ISCI and all they said was: "We're sorry that you don't like it but there is nothing we can do. It needs to be that stiff."

Am I the only one with this problem ?
I could swear that I saw another owner who had that problem and "fixed" or replaced the return spring to fix it.....at least partially.
I have started a search but the search engine here won't let you be very specific and there are over 200 threads to slog through.