Motorbike ABS.

[SoulKiss]

Originally Posted by Demonz

2 dont you mean?

Actually to think about that one on the SV - if you had ABS at that time it may have saved you in that situation. P*ssing with rain, sharp corner ahead, big horse poo in the middle of the road... hand full of brake and it probably would have stayed up right still with you taking the corner. It's not hard to see the benefits.

I think everyday riding they have some good applications but I would really want to see how it feels when it comes on a few times before making any decisions on it. I know on the car it can be quite unerving when you are in a hurry to stop (especially in the wet) and all of a sudden it starts juddering away. Put that on a bike and there is even more to think about (in terms of consequences) so I can imagine it would be quite a suprise if you are not used to the feeling of the ABS kicking in.

I was counting times on the Zed WITH ABS.

But you are right about the SV one, I didn't even realise anything was going particularly wrong until I was coming to, lying at the side of the road - didn't even realise the rear had slipped.

Next time we get a chance you can have a play on the Zed to see how it feels, its easy to get the rear to play up - just stomp hard on the pedal - the front, well the brakes are pretty good to begin with, but you CAN get it to show you its tricks if you are ham-fisted enough

[flymo]

Originally Posted by merlin427

You have half a chance if you keep one wheel turning.

Not with a locked wheel you dont. By the time you've been able to spell 'gyro' in your mind you'll be on your ass.

I crested the brow of a hill at 60mph on Tuesday, to find a BMW 5 series turning right out of a farm entrance in front of me, I braked momentarily then luckily the cage driver saw me and stopped half way across the road, so I released the brakes and went round her instead.

It was far enough ahead that I wouldn't have had a high speed impact, but if I did indeed have enough space to stop, I'd have had to pull one hell of a stoppie.

Immediately I touched the brakes my thoughts were racing, firstly "oh sh*t", then as I added pressure to the lever I'm thinking "how hard can I pull this son of a b***?". Being able to release the brakes and revert to directional avoidance was a massive relief because I was back into familiar territory. The first moments of braking I'm not braking at anything like full power because of that uncertainty. Then if the front does lock up, because you already have so much running through your brain, and adreniline running though your body, as flymo says, are you washed out and on the deck before you can spell "gyro" ie: you don't react in time to release the pressure on the lever?

Thats why I would like ABS. In that situation with adrenaline pumping and heart racing, I don't care if you are called Valentino, if you are human, then you are not best placed at that point in time to feel what your front wheel is doing, react promptly and make judgements and take decisions about the tiny movements in your fingers.

Yes, lots of people will tell me how you can find an empty car park and practice your braking, but thats on a different surface, in different weather conditions and with a calm rider. When you actually need your brakes in an emergency situation, you don't know how much lever pressure you can apply until either the front locks, or you stoppie so hard you go over the bars.

I have ABS both bike and truck (rear only on truck). ABS does not tell me to back off on my braking, it tells me I am getting all the braking possible.
I read the articles on expert braking vs ABS. There were some experts that could bring the brakes close to lock up and stop faster than ABS, though not by much, but for the vast majority of users, ABS stopped you much faster than you could without it.
ABS feels much the same truck and bike. You feel the pulsing as feedback in the pedal or lever. My SV has ABS front and rear, but the brakes are independant as is traditional. The new Hondas link front and rear brakes so you get both ABS and front/rear together regardless of which you applied.
The first rainy day after I got the new bike, I took it out to a parking lot and braked hard. The bike stopped fast, the wheels did not lock up, and the pulsing felt lie spinning a ratchet wrench.
Since then, I have only felt the ABS kick in for some painted lines or metal sewer plates on wet days (while braking of course).
Barry

Originally Posted by Barrypz

My SV has ABS front and rear

Is there an aftermarket system available for the SV?

Originally Posted by -Ralph-

Is there an aftermarket system available for the SV?

I don't think so. The specs on my bike are surprisingly different, the ABS master unit is built in below the pillion and I have a slightly different swingarm length. Getting the ABS added months to my search for the bike. I wanted a naked SV, but had to take the sport model to get the ABS.
Of course, now I am in love with the S, but to get there I had to put on a more comfortable seat and drop the pegs just a bit.
Barry

[TSM]

Originally Posted by -Ralph-

Is there an aftermarket system available for the SV?

no, its lots of work to get it fitted

the new honda fireblade ABS system has no feedback pulses as most other ABS systems

if anyone just slams on their brakes as they think because there is abs it will brake perfectly is going to come into a shock, ultimatly you are still stuffed by one rule, without any loading on the front tyre usualy given by progressive braking it will lock up early and the system will start trying to compensate at that time

ofcourse abs systems have come on a long way now, no longer are they a 100% anti lock but some introduce a time delay from lockup to reacting, this is to help the system load the front tyre and also to give some slip on the front tyre

[yorkie_chris]

So if ABS loses traction and cuts braking force, you are still upright, but not slowing down (like on ice).
Leaving you still rolling towards whatever caused you to brake...

Whereas if you'd locked the front, falling off and were happily tarmac surfing along, at least you are slowing down

Originally Posted by yorkie_chris

So if ABS loses traction and cuts braking force, you are still upright, but not slowing down (like on ice).
Leaving you still rolling towards whatever caused you to brake...

Wrong, you are still slowing down at a rate that is below that which the wheels lock up at. The brakes pulse on and off, so they are working as best they can, but you're saved the chances of locking up and losing control.

Originally Posted by yorkie_chris

So if ABS loses traction and cuts braking force, you are still upright, but not slowing down (like on ice).
Leaving you still rolling towards whatever caused you to brake...

Whereas if you'd locked the front, falling off and were happily tarmac surfing along, at least you are slowing down

========================
If your wheels do not have traction, neither will you. My truck ABS have done a good job on ice getting me to a stop in a straight line where without I would have skidded. I ride the bike below freezing, but do try to stay out of the big snowstorms.
Bottom line- for 99% of us, the ABS will stop us better than we can stop ourselves.
Barry