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How do you guys have your levers (brake & clutch) set up? Brake and throttle control question...

3K views 19 replies 6 participants last post by  36654 
#1 ·
Hello forum!

Back into riding with my new to me R1200R after a long pause, I find myself needing to re-adapt to a new bike, new techniques... One thing I'm trying to do is gain in ridding comfort but also in control and precision.

First hurtle : throttle control
I found it hard to have "fine" control of the throttle. My traditional full hand on throttle switching to 4 fingers braking just didn't work the way I was expecting it to.
My throttle control was just bad, not precise and jerky as soon as the road started to be rougher.

I found two solutions:
  • Keeping one or two fingers on the brake lever
    • Pro: keeping the lever in touch allows me to have a much more precise touch on the throttle. Acceleration exiting a curve becomes way more precise and a real joy. The other advantage is the fact I have two fingers ready to brake at all time and that can lead to much better reaction time for emergency braking, also a good habit to learn in prep for more advances trail braking techniques...
    • Con: I found the position a bit tiring (hence the change in lever's position)
  • Sliding the right hand to the outside of the throttle control on the handlebar.
    • See picture below, the pinky sits on the handlebar and outside of the throttle area
    • Pro: I use the pinky on the non-rotating part of the handlebar and again feel like gaining a lot of precision in throttle control.
    • Pro: more comfortable than keeping fingers on the brake, less risk of accidentally "jumping on the brakes"
    • Con: not yet ideal in term of comfort
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Second objective: brake control

Two vs. four fingers on the brakes:
I find the braking power of this beast to be remarkable. I can definitely stop this thing hard with two fingers. It is almost like I actually prefer the lighter two-fingers touch compared to my more traditional four-fingers position.

On the flip side, I hate "leaving" those two other fingers on the throttle and can see myself wanting to squeeze the brake handle to the point where I crush my own fingers... :unsure:

My early conclusions
  • I need a LOT more practice (this is the obvious part of the conclusion).
  • There is no one-fits-all (or everyone) solution.
But I rather build a better habit as opposed to needing to change things later down the road and reprogram the muscle memory.


The beginning a solution

Beside the obvious "the more relaxed, the better", I also started researching the web regarding the ideal lever position and found this interesting video:

Again the obvious next step is to set the controls in the best possible way in order to maximize precision and comfort:
I found myself tilting the levers slightly forward.

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Curious to read your reactions and learn from this forum's experience!

All comments are welcome!!!
 
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#2 ·
If you want a less sensitive throttle, simply select Rain mode, either as is, or program User mode with Rain throttle response and DTC to your choice of Road or Dynamic.

Rain mode is much softer off zero throttle and hence less sensitive to inputs from your hand, but still gives 100% butterfly opening and power at 100% twist grip.

I’m not a fan of two finger braking on the road - I have my lever adjusted so that I use the outer part of my hand for the braking effort, rather than index-middle fingers. Being at the long part of the lever, I find there’s more control, and the index-middle fingers are always at hand (see what I did there … ) for extra lever pressure when required.
 
#3 ·
BTW, don’t try to adjust your brake pedal as described in the video. You risk cooking the rear brake if you get it wrong trying to make the pedal respond quicker.
BMW uses a lever stop rather than the master cylinder to control the lever’s rest position.
 
#4 · (Edited)
If you're able to 'panic brake' with just 2 fingers, that's absolutely the way to go IMO. I easily can, but do a lot of hand grip exercises for that :). I always have the brake and clutch covered with 2 fingers, as well as the balls of my feet on the pegs (even on a straight highway), so I'm always ready for anything. You get used to it quickly. And that's not only good for throttle control, and immediate reaction (plus never hitting your boots on the ground), but also for aggressive swerving, and for U-turns, since you have full control of the handlebars, so much safer IMO. Get used to riding that way, if you can.

By the way, you don't need to use the rear brake on our bikes at all; with 'partial integral' brakes, the ECU always applies the rear brake the optimal amount with just the front lever. But you still have independent use of it if you want. On full integral bikes, they're linked both ways. And using only the rear brake for trail-braking, is just a myth. If you've ever done track school, you'd know that's not the case. At least for those of us not at MotoGP level;). Hope one more point of view helps you :). Good luck.
 
#5 ·
I find that using the rear brake is advantageous in city/traffic condition, or when I'm riding two-up and need to come to a gentle stop, without my passenger sliding forward. There is too much nose dive when riding two up, and passenger has to either hold on to grab-handles or rider all the time.
 
#6 ·
Use of the rear brake only is essential for best control in any slow speed manoeuvres. As you say, @fireman, steering geometry is unaffected, so balance and control are optimised. Balance rear brake application against throttle and clutch, with the engine above idle to avoid any risk of stalling and to control drive with the rear brake.
 
#7 ·
I rely on rear brake almost exclusively at lower parking lot speeds and use it all the time in order to not loose the muscle memory. I also like to hit the rear brakes a fraction of a second before the front brakes in order to stabilize the bike.

Thanks @ElpTXjc for the comments, a second opinion is always helpful. I find the front brakes particularly powerful on this bike. 2 fingers braking also give me a much better feel and control over the brakes. This bike brakes so hard it feels like it is going to burry itself in the asphalt. I think it is also the longer wheelbase and lower CoG that strengthens further that feeling.

Needless to say that I'm beyond impressed by how this thing rides. It's a beast.
 
#8 ·
My experience is with R1250R, however, it probably has just a slight improvement over your r1200r.

I do find the front brake lever is not perfectly sized for me, and it is more of a problem with geometry, rather than physical size (I wear large gloves). The ball of my right palm starts hurting after prolonged rides, especially in traffic, and I do find myself reaching for the brake and it just slightly messes with throttle. It is mostly due to having right palm slightly twisted up to give it throttle, and having more weight on my palms compared to my previous bike. It is more of a perfectionist kind of issue. I was thinking about buying aftermarket levers, primarily to allow for shorter throw, but haven't really decided on even researching this subject.

I had a few panic stops from highway speeds to essentially zero MPH using just the front brake lever with this bike, I think it was two or three fingers, and I found the electronic assist system did a very good job modulating ABS and applying just the right amount of power to the rear brake. This motorcycle has totally too much brake for everyday riding needs, however, these brakes are gradual and predictive and easy to use, and when needed (emergency or spirited riding) can save your bacon.
It is a good idea to do this on any bike, but brakes are so good or r1250r, that I'm constantly checking my mirrors for cars following too close, because I can most probably stop on the dime if I need to, and it is not a fact that whoever is behind me, can also do it.
 
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#14 ·
No argument there, but it's not always needed. Depends on your method/speed/etc. With full control of the handlebar with the 2 outer fingers of both hands, and precise control of the throttle and clutch, I personally don't need it. But always cover the pedal just in case. And yes, that's the only instance where my right foot is over the brake pedal :).
 
#15 ·
Arguably, riders on these bikes don’t necessarily need to use the the rear brake due to excellent linked brakes in leisurely/spirited ride through twistiest.
After going through multiple levels of MSF training (most recent on my 2020 R1250r exclusive) and riding a few different motorcycles, I can tell you that front brake alone won’t help you do a very slow figure eight, or a slow speed parking lot style u-turn. Forget about doing it when fully loaded with a passenger and full cases and top case, even with excellent brakes on R1250R. Normal street riding, I still find it beneficial to use rear brake, even though it is partially linked, because it gives me a different (!) level of slow speed control: it is less sensitive then the front, you can push through when adding a bit of throttle w/ clutch action and still keeping slight pressure on the rear brake, and benefit from added stability, while concentrating on steering and leaning your bike.

Going back to original topic: when I met one of the forum members, his bike had aftermarket levers, which allowed for a shorter brake/clutch throw while maintaining the same granularity of the original levers. I think there was a clever double hinge design that allowed for more direct application of force via less movement. I’ll do some digging online when I have a few moments, and post it here.
These aftermarket controls were much closer to the handlebar, and shorter, with fairly fine position adjustment, where you could bring the levers much closer to handlebar than stock.
 
#16 ·
Just to be clear to newbies out there: While you have the handlebars cranked, you DO NOT want to ever touch the front brakes at all. What I meant is when I do a U-turn, I typically don't need to use the brakes at all... BUT if I did, then I'd absolutely use the rear one, and that's why I always cover it, just in case. And in the case of fully-linked BMWs, I'm sure the rear brake becomes un-linked at super slow speeds, for that reason. I never had to try it on my ex-RT, probably because I never ride 2-up. With the bike fully loaded, then you're much more likely to need to use the rear brake on such tight maneuvers.
 
#18 ·
To the OP, regarding crushing fingers with the brake lever - just try (at a stop) to actually pull the lever far back enough to crush your ring/pinky fingers. If you have kept up with bleeding and fresh fluid, it should be basically impossible...
 
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