Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

How bicycle coaster brakes work (2018)

dougbarnesauthor.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

41–50 of 95 posts

Re: How bicycle coaster brakes work (2018)

#41

Post by TacticalCoder »

Hobadee wrote: post #15

Where is all this love for coaster brakes coming from?! They are, IMHO, one of the worst brakes ever. They have caused me numerous spills and scraped knees (due to the rear wheel locking up and skidding out from under me) and have done the same to my kids. There is virtually no control over them, and they don't allow you to shift your weight around when standing on the pedals to go around sharp corners or off-road. (…

We used to call coaster brakes "torpedo" when I was a kid and, yup, they're totally horrible.

If you've got coaster brakes I don't even know if you can learn to trackstand (you need to both slightly pedal forward and brake, and adjust by slightly pedaling backward): trackstand looks like you're idle but micro-adjustments are constantly happening.

Then I take it probably could wheelie a bicycle with coaster brakes but I fear it'd be hard: same things, you do micro-adjustements and they're not only done with the rear brake. I'm pretty sure I do pedal backward a bit when I do wheelies.

And when I readjust the position of my feet on a bicycle: I do it while backpedalling.

Last time I used a bike with coaster brakes I realized how dependent I became on being able to pedal backwards.

Re: How bicycle coaster brakes work (2018)

#42

Post by TacticalCoder »

andrew_lettuce wrote: post #38
Hobadee wrote: post #15

Where is all this love for coaster brakes coming from?! They are, IMHO, one of the worst brakes ever. They have caused me numerous spills and scraped knees (due to the rear wheel locking up and skidding out from under me) and have done the same to my kids. There is virtually no control over them, and they don't allow you to shift your weight around when standing on the pedals to go around sharp corners or off-road. (…

I agree with you, coaster brakes suck. And losing your brakes if the chains drops is really serious, especially because it tends to happen when you need brakes the most. Cable disc brakes have come a very long way and there are some decent models that require very little maintenance and work great. Also for every skid you get on a coaster brake I'll raise you a nose Endo with the front disc brake!

> Also for every skid you get on a coaster brake I'll raise you a nose Endo with the front disc brake!

This guy fox!

Re: How bicycle coaster brakes work (2018)

#43

Post by switchbak »

andrewshadura wrote: post #31
Hobadee wrote: post #15

Where is all this love for coaster brakes coming from?! They are, IMHO, one of the worst brakes ever. They have caused me numerous spills and scraped knees (due to the rear wheel locking up and skidding out from under me) and have done the same to my kids. There is virtually no control over them, and they don't allow you to shift your weight around when standing on the pedals to go around sharp corners or off-road. (…

Incorrect. They're perfect for everyday utility cycling. You just need to learn to use them properly.

Personally, I wouldn't want to ride a bike with only rear brakes - or do you also have a front brake with these?

Re: How bicycle coaster brakes work (2018)

#44

Post by to11mtm »

Hobadee wrote: post #15

Where is all this love for coaster brakes coming from?! They are, IMHO, one of the worst brakes ever. They have caused me numerous spills and scraped knees (due to the rear wheel locking up and skidding out from under me) and have done the same to my kids. There is virtually no control over them, and they don't allow you to shift your weight around when standing on the pedals to go around sharp corners or off-road. (…

TBH I don't care for hydraulic disc brakes much.

My -favorite- setup for Discs, at least use to be, Avid BB7s with Avid Speed Dial levers, with Flak Jacket Housings.

That combination was super simple to 'dial in' (Hydraulic brakes tend to be a lot more inconsistent on 'feel' unless you are very persistent about bleeding and know how to use a disc tuning fork) and honestly had a lot less overall drag than I've experienced with most hydraulic discs. Replacing cables is way easier than re-doing hydraulic lines, also you don't have to worry as much about overheating janking up your fluid. Only drawback is, yes, make sure your cables are set up right and clamped down good.

But yes, Coaster brakes suck, especially since 'failure' means either rebuilding the wheel or outright replacing, because nope, not gonna do that sort of hub job.

Re: How bicycle coaster brakes work (2018)

#45

Post by to11mtm »

TacticalCoder wrote: post #41
Hobadee wrote: post #15

Where is all this love for coaster brakes coming from?! They are, IMHO, one of the worst brakes ever. They have caused me numerous spills and scraped knees (due to the rear wheel locking up and skidding out from under me) and have done the same to my kids. There is virtually no control over them, and they don't allow you to shift your weight around when standing on the pedals to go around sharp corners or off-road. (…

We used to call coaster brakes "torpedo" when I was a kid and, yup, they're totally horrible. If you've got coaster brakes I don't even know if you can learn to trackstand (you need to both slightly pedal forward and brake, and adjust by slightly pedaling backward): trackstand looks like you're idle but micro-adjustments are constantly happening. Then I take it probably could wheelie a bicycle with coaster brakes but…

One of the earliest 'mountain biking' trails, before real mountain bikes existed, is called Repack because they were using Coaster brakes and you'd basically have to rebiuld/repack the coaster brake hub with grease after a run due to all the heat forcing the hubs to expel.

Re: How bicycle coaster brakes work (2018)

#46

Post by zoom6628 »

Brilliant for folks in flat cities riding to and from work. That's the environment in which they got popular 100y ago. For hills def need rim brakes or discs for flexibility of use. BMX racing in early 80s we used the lightest rim brakes and levers we could find. I had couple of times snapping the levers and even the brake arms before fitting with really strong machined aluminium ones which lasted me 3 years before I stopped riding.

Re: How bicycle coaster brakes work (2018)

#48

Post by VBprogrammer »

Gualdrapo wrote: post #18
Hobadee wrote: post #15

Where is all this love for coaster brakes coming from?! They are, IMHO, one of the worst brakes ever. They have caused me numerous spills and scraped knees (due to the rear wheel locking up and skidding out from under me) and have done the same to my kids. There is virtually no control over them, and they don't allow you to shift your weight around when standing on the pedals to go around sharp corners or off-road. (…

In my experience hydraulic disc brakes require less maintenance than rim brakes. Living on a hill (like I had to go up a ~150m 23% wall to get home, and go braking down it to go places) meant I had to spend frequently on rim brake shoes and, eventually, rims. The frequent rain and mud makes it to the rim brake shoes and diminish braking power if you don't keep them clean. That doesn't happen with hydraulics - clean t…

> In my experience hydraulic disc brakes require less maintenance than rim brakes.

Cable operated disc brakes seem to be a sweet spot IMHO.

Re: How bicycle coaster brakes work (2018)

#49

Post by japanuspus »

Hobadee wrote: post #15

Where is all this love for coaster brakes coming from?! They are, IMHO, one of the worst brakes ever. They have caused me numerous spills and scraped knees (due to the rear wheel locking up and skidding out from under me) and have done the same to my kids. There is virtually no control over them, and they don't allow you to shift your weight around when standing on the pedals to go around sharp corners or off-road. (…

As the family bike maintainer in Scandinavia, hub gears and coaster brakes are a godsend: Simple, cheap, and the only wear item to replace after a winter driving in salty sludge is a cheap chain -- and this takes half the time if there are no brake cables to detach.

This might be a Nordic thing, but being able to handle rear wheel lockups is a necessary skill when driving on winter roads. Once you overlook a section of black ice, not even the nicest hydraulic disc brakes will be gentle enough.

Re: How bicycle coaster brakes work (2018)

#50

Post by c0balt »

Coaster brakes are ime one of the best brakes for beginners/intermediates because they can be a reliable backup in addition to rim/disc brakes.

Had my rim brakes at least once lose a lot of efficacy during a large downpour and coaster brakes make a great backup for extra breaking power. They sure do like to lockup your rear wheel but that is still better than the alternative of only having very weak rear/front breaks.

Post reply on HN