kbrian
New Member
[Rant disguised as a disclaimer]
Allow me to begin by saying that this is intended to be a technical discussion of the feasibility of modifying the rear brake system. To the best of my knowledge and searching, this has not been covered. What has been covered is how much some people love the ABS on this bike, and I would agree that the front ABS is a godsend. I grew up riding dirt bikes and observed trials, and there are times that my S10 gets put into service as a very heavy version of one of those, and one thing I want it to do when engaged in those activities is lock the rear wheel.
I'm also comfortable with the rear wheel locking at other times. I don't really want the rear to start sliding in a hard stop, but it's happened on other bikes, I modulated or otherwise adjusted, and I'm still here.
That said, there has never been a time where I thought "Boy, I sure wish the front would have locked up" or "Yep, the front locking up really saved my butt back there." So I would like to keep the front ABS very much intact for all riding conditions.
[technical discussion]
To permanently disable the ABS, my thought is to take the brake hose that runs to the ABS unit under the seat and run that hose directly to the rear brake caliper, ditching the hose that goes from the ABS unit to the brake, and blocking the rear brake ports on the ABS unit.
My question is: What can/will/might go wrong? My concerns are as follows, listed in no particular order:
1. The ABS unit will exert pressure on the blocking screws that I put into the rear brake ports, causing some kind of catastrophic mechanical malfunction.
2. The ABS unit is smarter than I am, sees through my trickery, and turns itself off, eliminating the ABS for the front as well.
3. There is some kind of reduction, expansion, or other pressure-changing system in the ABS unit that makes the rear master cylinder not ideal to run directly to the rear caliper.
4. Other. I fully recognize that I could not have covered every possible issue that could arise.
So, any thoughts from those with ABS and brake system knowledge? I'm all for experimenting, but when it comes to possibly seeing a malfunction in the front brake at speed, I'm a bit more cautious.
Allow me to begin by saying that this is intended to be a technical discussion of the feasibility of modifying the rear brake system. To the best of my knowledge and searching, this has not been covered. What has been covered is how much some people love the ABS on this bike, and I would agree that the front ABS is a godsend. I grew up riding dirt bikes and observed trials, and there are times that my S10 gets put into service as a very heavy version of one of those, and one thing I want it to do when engaged in those activities is lock the rear wheel.
I'm also comfortable with the rear wheel locking at other times. I don't really want the rear to start sliding in a hard stop, but it's happened on other bikes, I modulated or otherwise adjusted, and I'm still here.
That said, there has never been a time where I thought "Boy, I sure wish the front would have locked up" or "Yep, the front locking up really saved my butt back there." So I would like to keep the front ABS very much intact for all riding conditions.
[technical discussion]
To permanently disable the ABS, my thought is to take the brake hose that runs to the ABS unit under the seat and run that hose directly to the rear brake caliper, ditching the hose that goes from the ABS unit to the brake, and blocking the rear brake ports on the ABS unit.
My question is: What can/will/might go wrong? My concerns are as follows, listed in no particular order:
1. The ABS unit will exert pressure on the blocking screws that I put into the rear brake ports, causing some kind of catastrophic mechanical malfunction.
2. The ABS unit is smarter than I am, sees through my trickery, and turns itself off, eliminating the ABS for the front as well.
3. There is some kind of reduction, expansion, or other pressure-changing system in the ABS unit that makes the rear master cylinder not ideal to run directly to the rear caliper.
4. Other. I fully recognize that I could not have covered every possible issue that could arise.
So, any thoughts from those with ABS and brake system knowledge? I'm all for experimenting, but when it comes to possibly seeing a malfunction in the front brake at speed, I'm a bit more cautious.
