Thumb operated rear brake

laughing gas

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I'm due to have my right ankle joint fused in the near future, which will result in me having no movement of my right foot at all. I was wondering if anyone knows about having the rear brake on an 1100GS converted to thumb operation? Is there anywhere in the U.K. that will do it and roughly how much will it cost?
Has anyone had this conversion done? Any advice much apreciated :thumb
 
Don't know how much but I do know it doesn't effect your performance too much - ask this guy

:D
 

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I looked into doing this to my SM when I used to race, it was around the time that they first came out and it worked out to be prohivitibly expensive but I believe prices for the hardware have come down somewhat now :nenau

FWIW I've got an artificial right leg and have been riding bikes using only the front brake over 20 years now. I have never found this to be a problem, even off road where I find clutch control and engine breaking to work fine for slow speed control (although off road to me is gentle green laning, not climbing up the sides of cliffs as you seem to do :eek: ;) ).

Why not give it a go and see how you get on to start with before modifyin the brakes............

Andres
 
Fused ankle

Laughing gas, i too have a fused R ankle and like you thought it was going to be a real problem when braking. Thankfully it hasn't been, you will be surprised at how much you can push your toes down and still use the rear brake. Having said all that i was never one to use r brake a great deal. I wouldn't go the expensive mod route yet , suck it and see.
Good luck with the op, if you want any advice PM me.
 
If you have the cash (£750 :eek: ) this would be just the job from Venhill.

Andres
 

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I might be talking utter ballcocks here but it is necessary to articulate the ankle to operate the brake? What if you put a 90 degree (ish) upstand from the existing pedal (so that the pressure point was in front of rather than below the foot) and then you pushed forward the whole foot by straightening out the knee. What I'm thinking would require a new, longer, brake arm with the 90 degree mod so that you are operating in an almost 'harley' foot forward motion.
It works in theory when I push my desk footbar!! :nenau
 
WackyBaccy said:
I might be talking utter ballcocks here but it is necessary to articulate the ankle to operate the brake? What if you put a 90 degree (ish) upstand from the existing pedal (so that the pressure point was in front of rather than below the foot) and then you pushed forward the whole foot by straightening out the knee. What I'm thinking would require a new, longer, brake arm with the 90 degree mod so that you are operating in an almost 'harley' foot forward motion.
It works in theory when I push my desk footbar!! :nenau


Why go to such complicated lengths :nenau

If you attach a block of some kind onto or even bend the normal pedal so that it's leval or just raised above the foot rest then all you have to do is lift your foot on to the pedle in the same way as you do in a car.

I have a slightly bent arm (only half the muscles in the upper arm, can't reach full extention) when I first did it I could only reach about half extention.
I seriously considered fitting specialy bent handle bars.
When I finaly got to sit on the bike (after about 6 months) I realised that if I just leant forward a bit I could reach just about enough to give me satisfactory control. I was riding a V-Max with flat bars and eventualy fitted a pair of Renthals, which made it easier. Still can't do leany forward bikes though, not that I ever liked them anyway.

Also had a boss once who had a fused ankle and a pind knee (same leg) He drove a manual car in the normal way.

I'd do as Andres does, just give it a go and see how you get on, if it don't work for you then have a look see at what can be done (get a 12gs ABS modle? the front break leaver brings on the rear break as well).

I think I saw thumb breaks on the Busters or m & p web sites though I can't find them in the catalog I have here :nenau Sorry I cant be of any more help than that.

Good luck with the op, hope it all goes well, it'll be a pain in the leg for a while but you'll get over it soon enough.

Val.
 
schiannini said:
Ask the NABD (National Association for Bikers with a Disability) - they will offer good advise. Rick Hulse :thumb we need more like you in the biking world...

Good answer! They have an excellent website and they helped me. It's also possible to get a grant for any modifications that you need make to your bike as a result of your disability. :thumb
 


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