Motorcycle braking systems

This however can vary for individual motorcycles; longer-wheelbase types having more weight biased rearward, such as cruisers and tourers, can have a`greater effort applied by the rear brake.

In contrast, sports bikes with a shorter wheelbase and more vertical fork geometry can tolerate higher front braking loads.

[1] For these reasons, motorcycles tend to have a vastly more powerful front brake compared to the rear.

[4]: 16 Douglas motorcycles were available with Research Association disc brakes front and rear on their 1923 RA model, sometimes called TT model, with Freddie Dixon's 1923 sidecar TT-winning machine of that type also having a passenger-operated disc brake for the sidecar wheel.

[4]: 17 The Lambretta TV125 Series 3 was the first modern[clarification needed] production motorcycle with a disc brake.

[2] MV Agusta followed with their limited production 600 cc touring motorcycle announced in 1965 which had a pair of cable-actuated Campagnolo front disc brakes.

[2] The front suspension on the Yamaha GTS1000 released in 1993 was a single sided swingarm that among other characteristics aimed to reduce diving under braking.

Wavy discs place the mass closer to the axle for reduced inertia,[12] better heat dissipation and lower weight.

This reduces the angular momentum of the fork assembly and improves low speed handling.

[19] The system would prove to be short lived with all successive models reverting to the standard uncovered layout thereafter.

[20] Monobloc calipers machined from a single piece of metal are stronger, but much more expensive to make so some manufacturers such as Sumitomo cast the caliper body as one piece and then machine the piston bores externally with the holes created plugged after assembly.

[21] Buell Motorcycle Company adopted a rim-mounted disc brake that was said to reduce unsprung weight in the wheel-brake system, allowing lighter wheel spokes.

[disputed – discuss][22] This style is generically termed a "perimeter brake" for its point of attachment to the wheel, and had been used in smaller numbers by other manufacturers before Buell.

[25] Aluminium lithium alloy, banned for 2015 season[26] Drag-racing motorcycles can reach speeds up to 256 mph (412 km/h) over the course of the 1⁄4 mile (400 m) race[27] and can use disc brakes in conjunction with parachutes to slow them after the timed run.

KTM secretly raced a machine with a KERS style regenerative braking system during the 2008 Valenican 125 cc Grand Prix.