ABS was first developed in 1929 for aircraft and entered into general use on automobiles in the 70’s. In 1981 BMW introduced ABS on a motorcycle. Early in the 21st century, ABS is now becoming more routinely available on motorcycles, either as standard equipment or as an option.
But what the heck is ABS? To begin with, an Anti-Lock Braking System incorporates computerized sensors to determine when a wheel is on the verge of locking-up. It then gives instant instructions to the brakes to release and re-apply braking pressure (pumping) a whole bunch of times per second, while you are steadily engaging the brakes.
What results is slowing and/or stopping without skidding. (A skidding tire has less traction than one that is not skidding).
And they are very easy to use. In an emergency situation on an ABS bike, just apply the brakes hard! Do not manually pump your brakes. Aggressive braking will initiate the ABS system automatically and the rider can concentrate on the immediate threat — and not the brakes.
That’s the good news.
On the other hand, many experienced riders can bring their non-ABS bike to a stop faster than an ABS equipped bike, by way of well-practiced, efficient, front and rear braking — particularly on clean, dry pavement. The question is can you do that under the stress of a life-threatening, panic-braking scenario? And even more to the point, how refined are your emergency braking skills on wet or dirty roads?
If you have attended a motorcycle event in which BMW was one of the participating vendors, you may have seen their demonstration and/or video where they compare the braking performance of ABS and non-ABS equipped bikes on flooded pavement. The demo-motorcycles are equipped with outriggers, to prevent the bikes from completely going down. The bikes are each ridden into several inches of water whereby they apply emergency braking. The non-ABS motorcycle loses control, falls over onto the outriggers and spins out. However, the bike with ABS makes a controlled, straight-line stop.
Is ABS or non-ABS best for you?
I have a FLSTFSE 2005 without ABS & a FLXHSE 2010 with ABS and so far I find the braking using the ABS awesome. Very responsive & a delight to use ( that’s in a straight line of course) I updated my FLSTFSE with Brembo and it made a lot of difference but still not as good as the ABS
I traded in my perfectly good 2005 Softail Deluxe for a 2008 Road King just so I could get ABS brakes. So far, I haven’t needed them for a dire emergency stop but I can vividly recall a couple of instances on the Softail when my brakes did lock up. As my southern wife always says :”It’s better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it.”
Frank
I have been riding for over thirty years and have a bmw1200 GS with out ABS and had to go to a lot of trouble to get a 1200GS without ABS and a 1150 RT with ABS. BMW hooks the front and rear brake together on the ABS models fine for the road worst thing for off road. Yes you can turn off the abs on the GS but the brakes are still linked together. Try a slick down hill on a 1200gs and hit the back brake and the front brakes come on too you will see what I mean. ABS great for street, but dirt and gravel, mud and snow they will get you hurt. I would love to have abs option with out the linked together. When I tour its the RT but when I Explore It’s1200GS NONABS.
Wow at all the comments! I too did not get any answer back from TCB. I have a chineese 49cc Verucci scooter that came with a little surge/expansion chamber thing installed in the front brake system. If the TCB thing helps then would not conventional brake likes with some expansion under hard braking be better than non-swelling metal braided lines??? I am going to start wearing out pads and rotors practicing — like somebody above just said — controlled hard braking on every ride to improve my braking skill and reaction time and panic management…which is a wild card when it happens for real. Also good cheap and effective is to stay 3 seconds behind the vehicle in front of you and pull over and let tailgaters pass…try to hold the finger wave. Keep imagining that you are invisible and …… GOOD LUCK!
What ever happened to paying attention and practicing your braking skills often (if not daily)
Comments like those below scare me. To their credit both are riding larger bikes. I do not and would not want it on anything other than a heavy Sport Touring bike. All others. NO. Hell NO!! Keep your laws of mandating ABS brakes off my bike. While it should be an option on more models than it is now it should not be mandatory. And yes, I have owned and ridden bikes with ABS. The ONLY time it helps to stop faster is on wet roads.
Nediesel: “I will not buy another bike with out Abs. They should make this standard on all motorcycles.”
JVFowler:“I believe in safety gear but instead of legislating for helmets they ought to loby for ABS on everything” (I assume you meant ‘lobby’)
I ride daily. I have ridden for 40+ years. I do not want ABS on my bikes.
I never owned a bike with ABS until my 09 K1200LT came along. I had this bike for 6 months. Here in Pa we have lots of deer,well one decided it did not want to stay with the others. I was going about 60 Mph when i noticed it coming my way. When i hit the deer the bike really just shook a little, it stayed stright and upright. After I came to a stop I noticed both mirrors had popped off, the right side turn signal and high beam headlight assembly were no longer part of the bike. I think with out the ABS The damage to me and the bike would have been extensive. I will not buy another bike with out Abs. They should make this standard on all motorcycles.
Two years ago I hit a deer. I admit it was a small deer but I hit hard enough to dent one of my radiators on a K1200lt. If I had been on anything else without ABS there is no way I would have not locked up the brakes. As it turned out my wife was looking the other way and did not even know what happened. I believe in safety gear but instead of legislating for helmets they ought to loby for ABS on everything. That would bring the cost down and reliability up.
Mark Lipski says:
February 22, 2009 at 3:37 pm
MC-G,
Yes you are correct, with any ABS system there are sensors pumps and regulators that pulsate the brake fluid. This creates a lock-unlock situation to crate the Anti-Lock (ABS) function.
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I have been using this on my softail for a few months now and I can tell you they work very well, you can still lock-up your tires buy not as fast..
I’ve seen Mark Lipski of TCB Brake Systems leave comments on several sites now, advertising his invention. When I checked his website and read the testimonials some of them were laughable. I wrote to him asking if he had any actual test results to show his idea was effective and never heard back, so I’m assuming he has no real evidence.
When I hear riders comment (such as Eric) about the “more gimmicks more problems” I have to laugh. I’ve been riding for some 35 years and now own the ‘06 ST1300 with ABS. In the 53,000 miles i’ve put on her, I’ve had to stuff the brakes twice in emerg. situations and now I wouldn’t own a bike without it. I think the ones that don’t believe in the ABS should try it before they knock it!
MC-G,
Yes you are correct, with any ABS system there are sensors pumps and regulators that pulsate the brake fluid. This creates a lock-unlock situation to crate the Anti-Lock (ABS) function.
The big problem is no matter how well it works you can’t fit it on your bike if it was not a stock purchase. Buying a new bike or trying to outfit a vehicle not stock equipped costs major bucks!
The TCB creates a similar function with a mere replacement of the banjo-bolt. This is done by adding a CONTROLLED compressibility factor to the brake system without introducing air into the line.
The better brake systems get on all bikes with stainless lines, Kevlar pads, and dual piston calipers. For that mater any other improvements you could name not limited to floating rotors or calipers or DOT 5 brake fluid. The answer is all the same, better braking that will lock the wheels the best to show off.
Brake fluid is non-compressible just like hydraulic fluid in a floor jack that lifts tons of weight. The TCB allows a little “give” in the equation. This allows the brake pads to float while dragging instead of lock and sticking.
The TCB works and it is physically impossible for it not to. The bottom line is control during hard braking can save your life no matter how you do it!
As always,
Mark Lipski / Inventor
TCB Brake Systems LLC
903 569 2998
Have been a rider for 50 years and own 8 cycles. The ABS system on my only new bike, the R1150GSA is the most superior braking system I have ever used on a bike…and I have ridden everything from AJS to Vincents. And, if I am riding on grass fields, gravel or fire roads, I can turn the ABS off…the best of both worlds. I would also recommend ABS on any car you are thinking of getting. The second best safety item…the first being shutting off your gxddxmn cell phone!
Don’t kid yourself; your skill cannot modulate brakes better or faster than the computer/abs. You cannot type/spell faster than a computer, nor can you add/subtract/multi/divide faster than a computer.
There will be people who say it’s not better and that they are more skilled than the average biker. These may very well be the same folks who don’t wear helmets or proper gear…too much stuff and they don’t work.
I have ridden both ABS and non for 20 years. ABS is very simply better. Recently experienced front wheel lock on a non-ABS VFR in a straight-line emergency on a new front tire. Crashed bike, broke ribs. My BMW’s have handled many similar situations routinely. NHTSA study proves 5-15% advantages in emergency stopping distance, plus ability to stay upright. There is simply no valid argument against putting it in every street bike. But you can only get it in large Japanese touring bikes, VFR, or BMWs or some scooters in the US. Euros can get ABS a much wider array of Japanese models. So why are Japanese and Harley not making ABS available on all models?
Years there was no such thing as abs and now everyone is screaming about how every bike should have em, well i drive an old bike and never used them, not saying they are not better, just dive properly and you will not need them, more gimmicks more problems
“…many experienced riders can bring their non-ABS bike to a stop faster than an ABS equipped bike…”
Not necessarily true. I teach a hundred MSF courses to 1,000 students every year. Many riders use their own motorcycle for the course. I have observed differences in how well the ABS systems work from bike to bike. BMW has the ABS system down to an art. It is not possible to stop faster because of traction limitations. Other ABS-equipped motorcycles, such as the Yamaha FJR1300ABS or Honda VFR, Gold Wing or ST1300 stop well, but in a measureably longer distance than the BMWs. But any kind of ABS is better than none in an emergency, when our brains tell our hands to grab the front brake lever, causing the front tire to lock up and the bike to low-side.