Why won't my brakes hold on those steep downhills?

“How to deal with brake fade”

I’ve become a rear brake dragger it’s something I started doing a few years ago. I know there are a lot of fast trail riders do this as well, I’m not sure if MX guys also do this? I’m not quite sure why I’ve started doing it, I know I do use it as sort of a rudder, it’s a control and comfort thing knowing I don’t have to search for it. Maybe it just makes me feel faster in my old age? Whatever the reason it’s become a habit I no longer have control over, I just do it. I thought I’d share some of the things I’ve learned to help me cope with this issue.

A couple of years ago I was lucky enough to spend some time on the National Enduro and National Hare and Hound series trail with multiple time Dist. 36 Cross Country and Enduro champion Jordan Brandt. No I wasn’t riding; I was lending my meager talents in any way I could. It was a wonderful experience one I’ll cherish always. Rubbing elbows with the likes of a Mike Lafferty, Russell Bobbitt, Destry Abbott, etc. was great.

It’s interesting to see what kind of effort it takes to support that caliber of rider. The stuff you and I take for granted as being tight won’t hold up under the pounding these caliber of riders put a bike through. Jordan is like a lot of those riders (Lafferty is one) who drag their rear brake. In one of the national enduros Jordan used up a brand new set of rear brake pads by the first gas check which was about twenty five miles in. (I know that’s hard for us mere mortals to fathom) Fortunately the second set lasted the rest of the day. At the next enduro we had to scrounge around begging and borrowing more pads than we had brought. Hanging around the KTM factory pits (Jordan was riding a KTM) we began noticing that several of the riders were using solid rear disks, (And it wasn’t muddy) fortunately Lafferty’s mechanic was willing to share some of their secrets. Seems they use the solid rear disks to help dissipate some of the heat along with the solid rotor they use a set of calipers that were used on older KTM’s, (bigger pistons) Galpher brake lines (I believe they have a larger ID) and really hi-temp brake fluid. I watched Lafferty’s mechanic change pads and bleed the brakes at one of the gas stops once. At the next round that set up was on Jordan’s bike and virtually eliminated his brake problems.

As for me, I never intentionally attain anything near warp speed and if I ever do it’s purely accidental and while desperately trying to slow down, the short comings of my life usually passes before me.  I use hi-temp fluid, bleed the rear brake often and use a solid rear disk and that has solved my brake fading problems.

Doug

#21J

WORKS CONNECTION TIE DOWNS

Last month I was hurrying down the highway to get to Glen Helen for the World Vet race.

The road off the 15 into the track is not the smoothest and I hit a couple of bumps I should have avoided. My race prepped bike was sitting securely in the back of my toy hauler....or so I thought. When I opened the trailer there was my Yamaha laid over and of course the clutch lever was broke. My tie down had slipped and begged the question " Why do we wait so long to replace such an important accessary"? My tie downs were completely wore out months ago and I suspect I'm not the only one who keeps them way too long. Now I am the owner of a new set of Works Connection Tie Downs and I feel secure about hauling the bike again.

I always thought a tie down was just a tie down....boy was I wrong. These are heavy duty, high tech tie downs.

Double stitching, slick soft tie extension set up, heavy duty Cam-lock and a vinyl coated secure Latch Hook at the bottom. I now have complete confidence that there will be no more slipping tie downs in my truck. Had I bought these sooner i would have saved money. They are less than the cost of a new lever.

The next time you load up check those tie downs. A new pair maybe just the insurance you need to protect your bike. These Works Connection Tie Downs are the best I have ever used.

Works Connection’ TIE-DOWNS

Retail $24.95

• Premium design includes “Works Connection” hand screened logo
• 1½" wide U.S. made 6000 lb.test abrasion resistant nylon webbing
• Heavy-Duty Powertye Cam-lock
• Powertye Soft-Tye extension sewn in to protect your handlebars
• Vinyl coated S-Hook for Soft-Tye
• Vinyl coated secure Latch-Hook at bottom for added confidence
• Double security stitching
• 1,000 lb. rated assembly strength
• Black with Red Powertye Soft-Tye extension
• 6½ ft. length

           Sold in pairs

 Visit www.Worksconnection.com to learn more about these and other quality parts.

KTM Bling from Works Connection

Customizing your dirt bike is very popular these days. A lot of companies make bolt on products to make your bike look different. However, many of those companies only care about looks. Function and durability are not their concern. Moto cross is very demanding on both the rider and the machine. Good looks are important but function and durability are critical.

 Our test rider Eric rides hard and often. He is very particular about how every add on part works, looks and lasts. We recently added a few Works Connection parts to his new KTM. These parts fit perfectly.

 They are CNC machined from billet aluminum to exacting specs, polished to a mirror finish and anodized KTM Orange. They give Eric’s bike that factory look and he has confidence they won’t fail him. These parts have seen a lot of hard riding and they still look good. Function, Durability and Good Looks that's a winning combination.

 Visit www.Worksconnection.com to learn more about these and other quality parts.

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Specifications:

Oil Filler Plug

PN 24-040 - Retail $ 24.95

• CNC machined from 6061 T-6 aluminum
• Replaces the stock plastic plug 
• Sealing O-ring included
• Anodized Orange
• Made in the USA 

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Billet Brake Cap

PN 24-040 (Orange) 24-045 (Black) - Retail $ 27.50

• ·  CNC machined from billet aluminum to exacting specifications
• ·   Polished to a mirror finish prior to anodizing
• ·   Engraved logo
• ·   Available in Orange or Black anodized finish
• ·    Made in the USA

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Rotating Bar Clamp

PN 31-100 (Blue) 31-200 (Red) 31-400 (Orange) 31-500 (Silver) - Retail $ 27.50

• Replaces the stock clamp on the front brake master cylinder
• CNC’d from 6061 T-6 aluminum
• Incorporates a nylon sleeve to allow brake assembly to rotate upon impact
• Available in Blue, Red, Silver, or Orange anodized colors
• Made in the USA

Works Connection Tachometer/Hour Meter

What's a four stroke riders worst nightmare?

How about that jewel of a engine suddenly starts making horrible grinding noises. You know the kind of noises that mean you're going to need a second mortgage to pay for an engine rebuild. We all love our 450F's until it's time to get that $1,200 top end. What's a guy do to keep that engine running smoothly for as long as possible? Change oil....of course just like your car. Change the oil at regular intervals if you want it to last. The best way to know when is to use an hour meter on your bike. If you ride a four stroke an hour meter is a must have accessary. They are inexpensive and simple to install.

I recently had the opportunity to use the new Works Connection Hour Meter. Not only did it count the hours ridden but one of it's extra features was the ability to record max RPM reached. An interesting feature especially if you ride a 250F. The Works Connection unit also acts as a tach so you can accurately set your bike's idle. This unit has the slickest mounting bracket I have seen. You get the factory look along with the information needed to keep track of running time. The Works Connection unit is the best I have used.

Product Information:

 Tachometer/Hour Meter - Retail $34.95                    

 Optional Mount Bracket -  Retail $14.95  

•     Large, easy to read LCD screen
•     Ultra-compact  1” x 2” design
•     Tach displays current RPM anytime engine is active
•     Records max RPM reached every ride
•     Measures up to 20,000 RPM
•     Hour meter tracks total hours up to 99,999
•     Spinning arrow icon displays while engine is active
•     Adjustable settings for Fast/Slow updates and High/Low spark sensitivity (for electrical noise suppression)
•     Mounts anywhere with heavy duty, die-cut Peel-n-Stick (included)
•     Optional Mount Bracket available for bolt on (sold separately)
•      Easy installation (single wire lead wraps around spark plug wire)
•      FITS 2-STROKES, 4-STROKES, 1 to 8 CYLINDER  
  
  Visit www.Worksconnection.com to learn more about these and other quality parts.

An Old Man and His Rekulse Clutch!

Tired of stalling? You might be a candidate for a new clutch.

No matter how, when or what we started riding on most of us older riders end up trail riding, some more serious about it than others. I started out riding on a gold tank Yamaha DT1250 that I paid about $800 for brand new and here I am forty years and probably a hundred bikes later. The last new bike I bought earlier this year cost over $8000, that’s mind boggling but on the other hand there’s no comparison between what a DT1 and what one of today’s bikes can do off road. Most of us started out on two strokes; at some point most of us switched to four strokes and now more and more of us are switching back to two strokes.

I mostly trail ride now but I still ride a few enduro and cross country events a year. A year or so ago I wanted to see if I could turn a Suzuki RMZ 450 into an off road bike. (The product of an idle mind and desire to spend my retirement money) Suzuki’s are noted for their handling and turning ability, but I found low gear to be really too high to chug around tight trails with. Besides stalling and trying to kick start a hot four stroke on a tight trail is no fun at all. So I thought an auto clutch could be the hot set up.

 After studying what was available I ended up choosing the Rekluse Z-Pro Start for one main reason, flexibility. You have adjustability in at what RPM you want the clutch to engage you can also adjust the rate of engagement to be soft, medium or a hard and perhaps best of all you can either allow the clutch to slip coming out of a corner until it’s fully engaged or fan the clutch lever and the clutch will fully engage.

The advantage of allowing the clutch to slip as you exit a corner is traction with virtually no wheel spin you simply move forward. (One of the added benefits of the Rekluse is tire wear; rear tires last at least twice as long) I find myself riding into and out of corners in higher gears and with the power of a 450 you don’t get that flopping around wheel spinning arm pulling power that wears you out in five minutes. Or you can down shift make the corner or hit that berm fan the clutch and rocket way.

Since I’ve been using the Rekluse on my bikes (I’ve used them on a 250XCF, 450 RMZ, and currently a 300XC-W) I’ve come to enjoy riding really tight trails. (Like Chalk Bluff) not having to worry about the clutch allows me to concentrate on making those tight turns, or bouncing up over and around rocks, and of course stalling only once in a great while is a huge benefit. I know I wouldn’t want anything to do with those kinds of trails otherwise.  I’ve heard a few riders say using a Rekluse is like cheating, well so what?

Now, using a Rekluse is not going to be for everyone, there are some disadvantages.  If you’re riding style is to bounce off things fan the clutch and rocket off into the next corner it would take some adjustment.

You can’t bump start your bike, the engine basically free wheels until the RMP reaches the engagement point (approx 1800 RPM) if you lock the rear wheel going downhill the engine can (not always) free wheel when you let off the brake, usually the clutch will reengage immediately, but if not blipping the throttle will engage the clutch again, giving you back engine braking. It honestly took me about a half a ride to get used to doing that, I found it to be no big deal.

At an average cost of $600 to $700 the Z-Pro Start is not cheap, eventually though the savings gained by not having to purchase rear tires as often will go a long way toward paying for it. For me it’s been well worth it, anything I can do to make riding easier the older I get, I’m all for.

 Doug

21J*

* Doug is a little modest, he has been one of the top District 36 Enduro riders for many years. He still go goes very fast in the woods auto clutch or not.