Brakes for Safe Stopping

Raleigh with oem V-Brakes on decent fork

Recently a young woman was killed when her motorized bicycle's brakes failed at an intersection. She rode her unstoppable MB into oncoming traffic; a needless tragedy.

Any MB bike going 20 mph+ is in need of excellent brakes, like yesterday!
Think of the mass of rider and motor-bike that's involved.
200 lb. male rider + 50-60 lbs. of motorized bike travelling at 20 mph = 29.33 ft. per second.
That's 260 lbs+. Without super brakes, this combination can be lethal in traffic.
An unsecured 160 lb. rider decelerating from 30 mph and coming to an abrupt stop in
.2 feet (impacting a fixed object) weighs an astounding 12 tons at 150 g's.

As I've found, those easy to mount oem Caliper brakes just don't cut it in traffic.
They aren't nearly as effective as  ...
a) a Disc Brake    180mm minimum rotor size
b) pair of V-Brakes of excellent quality, Shimano or Origin8

Calipers have uneven pull, they drag and require frequent adjustment,
- before every ride. Your life is literally riding on those spongy calipers!

I cringe when I see a relatively powerful MB under full power going by, relying soley on a coaster brake. Coaster brakes will lock up, causing a criical slide and overheat quickly at anything much over 12-14 mph. After only a few weeks of daily use a coaster brake looks like it's been in the toaster; all burnt up.

Solutions: see the pics

M8 V Post Fork Adapters

 

Effective V-Brake set (with good pads)

Cheap caliper, better than no brakes, at low speeds

Looks are deceiving. Even with new pads and properly set-up this oem type caliper is a whimpy, minimally effective brake at 18-20 mph.
Needs constant maintenance and adjustment - especially when acting on a new rim.

V-Brakes do work - need care

 Above V-brake combo is a better solution. Sikk's answer to product liability suits?

Relatively inexpensive 180mm Disc +Adapter

V-Brake Post Adapter from split collar

New V-Brake for Rear Wheel

 

Front Disc:
Hey, it worked fairly well after the disc brake cable stretched. Any motorized bike's brake set-up needs careful inspection before every ride.