Front Brake

Dave Hennessey & Perry Ruiter
Compiled from reader's pictures

Do 1931 front brakes really work better?

My first ride on a KJ was Steve Lippoldt's 1931 KL. Steve told me that the brakes didn't work very well, but when I got to the end of his 1/2 mile long driveway, I found that there were no brakes at all!
Uh-oh! I had to shoe-leather the beast to a halt.

My second ride was on a 1930 KJ on the city streets in Boston. I was twisting and squeezing and stomping all these strange controls, so I didn't notice the relative merit of the 1930 front brake. Since I didn't actually crash into anything, I figured I should take that one home with me. The front brake is great for holding on hills, but it doesn't seem to contribute much to stopping forward motion.

So we're still looking for an answer...