whoops ya

my bad

single lever blows, dual brakes FTW!

 

If you notice it is the sled manufactures with this retarded single brake thing since that is what sleds have (can oly stop the track) so they assume that is the best for ATVs too. They claim it is better because it dumbs down the riding process. All the jap stuff is dual lever dual brake as it should be. Why should my left hand control the clutch on everything else I have then I have to retune my instincs to do ALL my BRAKING with my clutch hand? Dumb. If the left hand brake was not also the parking brake I would just take the whole thing off on my KQ.

I will add this to the mix, Polaris adds a crappy foot brake to some of their models that I have never had work. The pedal is about 3 inches above your foot then it takes another 7 inches of downward travel to activate the brake. Even my KQ (or any other big bore's )foot brake is not good in my mind. There is just no feel with the cable actuated inboard brake. My father's Grizz's hydro inboard brake tanks too. I like the brakes on the final drive so you can feel what is going on. With the inboard brakes you are either locked up or doing nothing and at all....and you can't even tell which it is! Rant off. If only I could make my own quad[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-sad.gif[/img]

 

The single brake is one of the things that gives me serious reservations about the outlander 800. I've only had ATVs and bikes with two brakes. I liked the versatility especially when on steep hills. I'm really not sure how I would get along with one brake lever. I know I hated it on the Polaris I rode. The Polaris was a nightmare going down hills but I don't know if that was the brakes, the 4x4 system, the engine braking or what. Guess I won't know about the Bomber until I get some seat time.

 

That reminds me of my ride yesterday at the inlaws, my bro-in law and myself were descending a steep hill full of leaves, mud, some rocks and such. He went first and his rearend was outta control he bashed into a couple of sapplings on the way down. My way down was much smoother. He has a 2005 polaris 700 sportsman, does that thing only have rear wheel engine braking? If so, I wonder if that was the main contributor to the loss of control.

 

Nutsy,
When I had an 05 Polaris 700 Sportsman, I experienced the woes of just rear wheel braking desending steep hills. The bike was great otherwise, however Polaris is a perfect candidate for seperate brakes since only the rear wheels are effected by the EBS system. I bought a split breaking system from HPD and installed it on my Sportsman. This system made all the difference in the world and totaly cured all braking issues. When desending steep inclines with the split system, you let the EBS work the rears and you control the front. Another advantage of having split brakes on a Polaris is that it frees up your left hand to take a swig of "soda" while on the trail without stopping. I now have a Brute 750 and love that the brakes are split from the factory, in my opinion seperate front and rears brakes are the way to go.

 

Nutsy, I'm storing a Polaris 800 EFI in my garage over winter. It's not mine but I've got quite a bit of time on it as well as a 500 Sportsman. I own an AC 650V2 and will pick up a BRP 800 in June. I am fine with the single brake lever system on the machines I have, but agree with Sep1 that the Polaris is a perfect candidate for a twin lever system.

The problems you witnessed on your friend's Polaris are normal - for a Polaris. Their front drive will not engage unless the rears slip. You can somewhat overcome this by blipping the throttle on the way down the hill or briefly locking the rear brake, both of which go against normal driving. And yes, trailing throttle only works on the rear axle. On a hill decent, even with the AWD engaged, you must use BOTH the hand lever AND the foot brake for four wheel braking. The first time someone drives a Polaris down a hill they will invariably comment they are sure something is wrong. It clunks like crazy like something is about break or fall off. This is because the rear wheels slip, he front axle is engaged, the rear wheels then no longer slip, the AWD disengages, and the process repeats - all the way down the hill. It's all-normal and is the way their system is designed to operate. I don't like it, and don't like it enough I consider it to be a delimiter for a Polaris purchase.

I believe mfgr's have a single brake lever system because most machines have a direct and positive link between front and rear axles while in 4x4. So, when you have 4x4 engaged, it doesn't matter if you have a single or dual lever brake system or use the foot brake, in effect each does the same thing - "brakes" all four wheels. With a system like Polaris' AWD, a twin lever would work fine.

I like a single lever system. It works fine for the riding I do, but I also like choice, and if people want a two lever system and it can be added easily...well, why not. It's all about selling your product and meeting customer requirements, right?

 

My buddy just rolled his bomb 800 backward down a hill because of the brakes. He got in trouble and hit the brakes a little and it came up on him. Our other friend made it just fine on his 500 with dual lever brakes. Luckily, it wasn't a major hill and he did very little damage; if any, but i really don't like the brakes being tied together at all, this is why.

 

The root cause is their 4x4 system. Two brake levers won't cure the Polaris downhill nightmare problem, because brakes aren't the (unless you nail the foot brake on a downhill then you will start a skid) usual cause of the rear wheels breaking loose and skidding on a downhill. Their 4x4 system is great for going uphill, but I agree, downhill (I've owned three Sportsmans) is a nightmare.

 

I have a single brake lever and I like it then I want to stop I want to stop not just slide the back tires. to each his own
Maybe someone should sent Ford, Chevy and other car and truck Company an e-mail to come out with a two pedal system.

 

I agree I LOVE the single lever..

I Absolutly hate having dual brakes.

It was hard going from the balance of my outlander to the unbalanced braking of my Z400..

Do you guys see rock crawlers with dual braking systems? Didnt think so...

If im only allowed to use my front brakes to keep from flipping over backwards on a hill and i start to slide backwards because i cant reach my rear brake petal causing my bike to eventually flip someones gonna be pissed.