Coaster hub brake only??

[bobg]

Anybody riding on an SRC 3 speed hub with coaster brake only. Opinions welcome. Been trying it on my old Pashley rebuild, It's flat round here and still a little scary but I like the simplicity. I wouldn't dream of using it at speed or own steep hills but its great for pottering...
Sorry, the title is misleading, I mean a back pedal brake only.

 

[Chris S]

It's not unusual for Dutch bikes to only have a rear coaster brake, even modern ones like the Batavus BUB
http://bicycledesign.net/2010/01/batavus-bub-review/

They seem to work OK there but in the UK it's a legal requirement to have a braking mechanism on both wheels.

 

[mickle]

Three of my bikes have coasters and two of them have no other brake. I ride in traffic, up and down hills with no probs.

 

[TheDoctor]

While I would normally defer to the expertise of Mickle, I'll just point out that the front brake does most of the work. It's a legal requirement to have two brakes as well. I wouldn't go with just a coaster brake myself.

 

[bobg]

Thanks chaps, I've given it a fair chance and decided on a hub brake for the front. Maybe the new coaster hub needs to bed in a bit more but I'd like a teeny bit more braking ability. It's on an old Pashley frame which it pretty heavy plus I have plans to add a wood grained lloyd loom chair to the trailer and no sure if my grandchildren would be allowed on it without me confimng that I can stop

 

[tyred]

I have an old Batavus with a Sachs Torpedo and find it at least as powerful as any other rear brake I've tried. It will stop the bike on a hill no problem.

There is a knack to using one I find which comes with practice. You need to position your feet in the correct position and with a little practice, you will be able to stop with the pedals in the correct position for starting again.

The biggest downside to using a coaster brake in my experience is if you ride it a lot and then get on a bike with rim brakes, you instinctively back pedal on the approach to a junction and wonder why you're not slowing down

 

[mickle]

While I would normally defer to the expertise of Mickle, I'll just point out that the front brake does most of the work. It's a legal requirement to have two brakes as well. I wouldn't go with just a coaster brake myself.

If coaster brakes are good enough for most of North Americal, South Americal and Northern Europe it's good enough for me! But it is low performance, it does have a steep learning curve, and you do have to look further up the road. There's also the royal pain in the ass that is stopping and re-starting on a hill. But these are all part of the charm!

Would I tow a trailer with just a coaster though? Probably not.

I would be interested to find out more about the legal position. It could be argued (and has on other matters, including bicycle lighting if my memory serves) that what's legal in one member state of the European Economic Communiy is legal in all.

This bad boy ain't never gittin'n no front brake! No Sirree!

 

[TheDoctor]

If something's accepted by the septics I'd automatically be suspicious of it!!

 

[mickle]

Septics?

 

[andrew_s]

Tank --> Yank