Brake snake good idea?

[sjonnie]

Does anyone have any experience in using a brake snake to prevent the brake lever and/or shift lever from braking or bending

I saw a picture of bartolinis cr450 with a brakesnake so the pro's clearly must think it's a good idea

[Pete_Z]

I don't know if a brake snake will prevent crash damage,but they do work well for keeping grass,twigs etc. from lodging between your brake pedal and the engine case.If you ride through tall grass or underbrush for any length of time enough hitch hikers can accumulate between your pedal and cases to apply your rear brake. This dragging brake may not be readily noticable and you could overheat it,wasting the pads,and possibly warping the disc.

[olson_jr]

During a ride at Geels, one of my favorite single tracks in lower Mich, I discovered the absolute need for brake snakes. A chunk of hardwood lodged itself between the brake pedal and frame/case. It caused me to have NO REAR BRAKE as I tried to slow for a turn.

That was last May, my shoulder still hurts just thinking about it.

Trust me, it's $10.00 well spent.

[Hick]

Pete,

Having trail debris lodge behind the lever is something that happens to me pretty regularly but using a brake snake to combat this has never occurred to me.

Anybody know where to mail order a good brake snake?

[GRC]

One more thing to remember is that if you do manage to break your rear break pedal it is only $120.00 to replace it and it is a dealer item only. I just installed a break snake with my new rear break pedal. To me it seems like a pretty smart investment.

[Pete_Z]

Hick,I know that Tucker-Rocky distributes a couple of different "brake snakes" which should only cost $5-$7 USD and be available through most dealers.If you want to go the real inexpensive route,go to a fishing tackle shop and buy a really heavy-duty stainless wire leader.(They are used to prevent fish of the nasty-toothy variety like northern pike or musky from biting through the line)If you've ever seen a pre-made brake saver,it won't take much imagination to fashion one out of the leader.If you slide a piece of 1/8" fuel hose over it before final assembly,it'll look pretty much exactly like the commercially availabe MSR unit.That should only cost a couple of bucks,or even less for those of us that have a bunch of dusty fishing crap laying around the garage or basement.The best part is you can laugh at all of your riding buds that paid retail for brake savers,as well as showcase your technical knowledge and ingenuity!