[JimInTN]

Hear me out.

Was looking at going to carbon fiber wheels, carbon discs, ferrado pads, magnesium hub, and all titanium hardware and axle nuts and light weight sprockets/carrier.

Got to thinking about the weight and rotational mass savings from leaving off the throttle side caliper and rotor all together. I'm wondering if it'll be enough to compensate for the complete lack of brake? Also wonder if losing that much weight and mass if it'll brake better than factory, or the same, with the single rotor?

It won't be tracked and the carbon rotor should help with the heat dissipation.

Thoughts? Dumb idea?!

 

[mlukason]

Welcome to the forum JinInTN

Please add your location information to your user profile and enjoy the site!
http://www.ducati.ms/forums/profile.php?do=editprofile
While you're at it...add your bike to your signature line. This will help out people trying to answer your questions. >

So...what bike are we talking about?

First off, lightening the rotational mass will have an effect on the handling. Most who make the switch to lighter wheels love it (actually I don't know of any who don't, but there must be one or two out there). Second: reducing unsprung mass is good for handling too. But...loosing a front rotor for the sake of weight savings...bad idea in my opinion. :surprise: I think you would definitely notice a difference in braking performance!

 

[redpato]

It's not just the weight of that front wheel and tire it's braking, it's also the rest of the bike. Unless you lighten the heck out of the rest of the bike, and you, it may not be a good idea.

 

[Gadgetech]

I know folks who have put on CF wheels have commented that braking performance feels better, not sure I've seen anything showing shorter braking distances with those types of wheels but I've not looked for that info either. That being said, I wouldn't remove a brake rotor for the sake of weight reduction. I would think that having two rotors not only reduces stopping distances but also reduces heat generated across both rotors rather than if there were only one rotor.

Also remember that rotational mass is where the big difference lies which is effective at the rim of the wheel rather than closer to the center.

 

[jahjah]

Minimal testing: Removing the Front Brake Rotor Doesn?t Affect Stopping Distance | Mythbusters | Super Streetbike

Presumedly you have a budget but not knowing what class you are targeting or your experience/skill level, further comments would be wild speculation.

 

[JimInTN]

No budget. Money is not an object. Figured between wheels and brakes I'd be 8-10k into it.

No class so to speak. I don't race. Just interested in making the bike handle as well as possible.

Bike is a monster 1200s. I know I could've bought a much better handling bike from the get go but that's not the point. I like the looks and this one is easy on my back.

I realize running a single rotor after the upgrades vs running dual rotors with the same upgrades that it won't brake as well. Really, I was just curious if running a single rotor after dropping all that weight from factory specs would be that far off from factory stopping distance?

The goal here wasn't the best braking in the world....just trying to improve handling best I could.

 

[forsythem]

Well, if money is no object... are there are ZTL-type aftermarket brake options around? Run only one side disc/caliper, bolt the disc to the rim instead of the hub, both to increase the braking power (more surface area, faster surface speed of the disc), and also enable making lighter spokes, as braking forces are applied directly to the rim and then the tyre, instead of to the hub, through the spokes, then to the rim and tyre...

Sometimes I miss my Buell.

 

[trussdude]

I would never reduce the stopping capability of a motorcycle on purpose

 

[blmcquig]

Well, if money is no object... are there are ZTL-type aftermarket brake options around? Run only one side disc/caliper, bolt the disc to the rim instead of the hub, both to increase the braking power (more surface area, faster surface speed of the disc), and also enable making lighter spokes, as braking forces are applied directly to the rim and then the tyre, instead of to the hub, through the spokes, then to the rim and tyre...

Sometimes I miss my Buell.

I was going to say something like this.
When I saw the thread title I though: "well, EBR already does this.... so..."
RIP Buell.
There are plenty of bikes with only one front disc. Going from two to one, I'm sure there is some math that could be worked out on surface area to say if you get rid of 1 rotor of X area, how much bigger should the other rotor now be to compensate? I'm sure the same goes with weight. If you remove X lbs, then at some point you really wouldn't need the other caliper/rotor. Idk, I'm not an engineer, but it's still always an interesting thought experiment.

 

[mlukason]

I would never reduce the stopping capability of a motorcycle on purpose

In fact, I'd argue that as handling improves you should work to improve your stopping abilities! What are you going to do with a better handling bike...go faster. It makes no sense at all to reduce brake function.

 

[trussdude]

The braking setup on the Buell have been proven to not be optimal.

On their WSBK bike from a couple of years ago the bike was considerably faster with a convetional dual rotor setup instead of the one huge rotor.

 

[Dolemite]

Fill the tires with helium and float around the corners!

 

[Slowdive]

Back in the day, when I did a bunch of mountain bike trials riding w/ Dolemite (^^ that guy), we knew people who would drill holes in their bike to save weight. I guess they liked effortless bunny hops more than they liked their teeth.

This feels like that.

 

[JimInTN]

Alright, fine....was a dumb idea I guess.

Two carbon rotors it is.

 

[ncgt1000]

Alright, fine....was a dumb idea I guess.

Two carbon rotors it is.

Did we win? :grin2:

 

[ZADSS]

....leaving off the throttle side caliper and rotor all together.

While on this subject can someone please explain why the throttle-side brake is usually dropped, or omitted when straight from the factory eg. Scrambler?

 

[redpato]

While on this subject can someone please explain why the throttle-side brake is usually dropped, or omitted when straight from the factory eg. Scrambler?

There is no hard rule that a single front disc brake is on the left. If you look around enough you'll find them on either side.

 

[trussdude]

It probably has more to do with which side is more visible sitting on the kickstand.

 

[ZADSS]

^^ Single discs on the right is a very very rare thing.

^ Hahaha, yes that sounds probable.

I always thought it had something to do with the routing of the brake line and the flex of said brake line under suspension movement.

 

[forsythem]

The braking setup on the Buell have been proven to not be optimal.

On their WSBK bike from a couple of years ago the bike was considerably faster with a convetional dual rotor setup instead of the one huge rotor.

That is true... the end result obviously wasn't better than a standard 2-rotor setup (obviously it would be in common use), but I like that he at least gave it a go. The Buell setup worked plenty good enough for me on the street.