disk or drum?

[50scoot]

ok, so I know from on my 50cc that the rear drum does almost nothing, like I mine as well not have it lol. But on a 150cc that is built for higher speeds are people finding that the ones with drum brakes have sufficient stopping power? I ask just because I know that on cars its night and day having one with rear drums vs 4 wheel discs. I was interested in this model not for the speakers but because it has disc brakes all the way around. www.superiorpowersports.com/150cc_Gas_Scooter_p/sp150sc-46y.htm

but it seems that this is hard to find on these chinese scooters. If there isn't really any difference between the two then that opens up my options a lot. It seems that drums at least on my 50cc tend to fade really fast and go out of round easily.

[inuyasha]

Hi
For me its disc brakes all the way if i can get them on a motorbike i do, that was one of the deciding factors when i chose my aprilia sr 50 r factory
Take care and ride safely
Yours Hank

[skuttadawg]

Disc is superior in every way . Drums on scooters are cabled not hydraulic like discs or drums on a car . My Jonway Magnum has F&R disc with the rear has opposed pistons in the caliper instead of side by side . Brakes are so good it can throw me off the seat .

I would only buy a scooter with F&R disc as drums suck

[50scoot]

ok and thats what i was thinking too. less maintenance, less squeaking, better power.

do you guys think that that scooter is decent? aside from the cheesy speakers.

[snugglebunny]

mine came with both f & r discs.
so idk how id like a drum
prob wouldn't

[prodigit]

Perhaps your drum brake needs a look at.
Drums or discs are about the same. You can lock up a wheel with a disc as well as with a drum; and there's no more stopping power than locking up a wheel (except ABS, which generally only can be had on hydraulic brakes, which a drum brake more than likely is not.

On my 50cc I can lock up the wheel at full speed, if I just pull hard enough. The braking power is just as good as on a disc; only I need to pull a little harder than on a disc.

[50scoot]

on my drum brake on the 50 it seems like no matter how hard i pull the handle it stretches the cable so then i have to adjust the cable somemore. i've never been able to lock up the rear tire, ever.

[bobshaw]

The rear drum on my 50cc TaoTao seems to work fine. Remember, from what I'm told, the majority of your braking should be with the front wheel anyway.

[50scoot]

yes I know that around 80% or more is with the front brakes. And discs are more effective then drums because you have much more contact area and they shed heat so much better. on most automotive brake systems the shoes are self engergizing and pushes the opposing shoe into the drum harder helping you out. but i don't see how these could be self energizing, because they only come out at the bottoms and there isn't any pivot point because the are firmly mounted to the top. anyways these aren't high performance machines and i know that lol, but at the same time i'd like to be as safe as i can while driving with everyone else that god knows aren't paying attention. (the other day i had a semi pull out in front of me, he must have looked right over me because i had to swerve into the bike lane so I wouldn't become one with his grill!!) Its times like that that i'd like to have better brakes lol

[skuttadawg]

Odd it says dependable rear drum but shows a disc . Good looking scooter

[rockynv]

The effectiveness of a rear drum depends a lot on the make and model.

On my Lance Vintage it was not capable of locking up the rear wheel which could have been considered a good thing. Once you lock up the rear wheel and get off track at higher speeds you can end up doing a high side fall as the bike flips over and cartwheels sideways if you panic and let go of the brake lever instead of riding the skid out to almost a full stop.

With a rear disk a inexperienced rider is more likely to lock up and drift the rear end of the bike too far off track flipping the bike in the process. Good braking technique becomes more critial with the rear disk brake.

[skuttadawg]

Being able to lock up is not a good point . My Echarm the brakes are perfect and only have slid a lil 3 times to avoid a dipchit cager . My Magnum can stress the tires like its almost doing a burnout . Both do not have ABS nor do I need it since I know how to ride

[prodigit]

I seriously doubt that on 50cc a wheel lock up will result in serious trauma.
However since this thread is posted in the 125+cc topic, and those bikes can go 50+MPH, I'd say yes, a lock up could be nasty.
But in order to get a lock up, on a drum, your weight is already shifted to the front a bit, and you'd have to squeeze quite hard.
On a 50cc as soon as you start sliding, the bike won't be far enough off balance to cause a high slide when you release the brake.
At 45+ MPH perhaps, or when your reflexes are quite slow (or you wait until the bike's rear wheel is almost on the same level with your front wheel (90 degree sliding )).

[skuttadawg]

NEVER pull in the levers very fast as that can cause a lockup . Always pull in the rear brake lever then front just after as they work great together where only the rear will not stop as good as most of the braking is done with front and its easier to R&R pads than it is for shoes .

I use the engines compression and tranny drag to slow me down and only use brakes when I need to stop or avoid a dipchit on the road . I only hold down the brakes for a second and release to come to a smooth stop . Long time braking or riding the brakes can wear them out faster and cause glaze up . My Echarm has 13,500 miles with stock front pads and I replaced the rear even though they had 25% of pad to go

I would only get a scooter with disc brakes F&R . Motorcycles that have rear drum use a rod instead of a cable that stretches and will break over time

[rockynv]

It does not take a 90 degree slide or speeds over 45 mph to flip a bike. Bikes get flipped from improper brake application even at walking speeds. Look at how many people flip their bikes pulling into or backing out of parking spaces by tapping the brakes with the front wheel just slightly turned. It takes less than many think to throw a bike out of balance and over. That is one reason why the most common bike accident is a single vehicle crash and does not involve cars/trucks etc.

[Blueboy5000]

Locking up is not an advantage, in fact ABS systems in cars are designed so lock up is impossible.

No properly functioning drum rear brake should lock up. A locked rear brake= dumping. Yes it is possible to lock a rear disc brake easily, but this is not for the best, you should NEVER use the rear brake as a means of stopping, but rather as a means of decelerating the rear wheel revolutions to a point where they are not overtaking the revolutions of the front wheel. If for some reason your front wheel is spinning slower than your rear wheel, you will loose stability and dump, really HARD!!!

Braking is an art, and requires much practice. Remember that 85% of stopping is ideally done with the front brake, but at the same time, no braking should EVER be done with just the front or the rear, but rather both brakes in conjunction, with the rear applied FIRST.