Groove in my Front Brake Lever??

[Woodaddict]

I have a groove in my front brake lever. At first thought it was an errant disk grinder went wandering,, getting the shipping crate off? Then I met another NT rider and he had the same mark. So what is the purpose? My only thought could be a break-away feature if too much pressure is applied? We will let those who know figure this out, correct winner gets 3 attaboys!!!

 

[Phil Tarman]

They've all got them. I think it's a break-away feature, but not because Honda is worried about us squeezing too hard. More like so if we fall-down-go-boom we won't end up with no way to stop if we have to ride home.

That's my theory and I'm stickin' to it.

 

[seagrass]

I agree with you Phil

 

[Mellow]

Yup.. I came up on a guy a few years ago here in a suburb that was sitting waiting on a tow truck because his older bike didn't have that and he'd dropped it on a spot of oil and snapped it off so close that there was no way he could get home.

I also carry a brake and clutch lever with me on the ST... Of course, means I'll never need them but with so many at the events I go to having STs it's good in case it's needed by someone.

 

[Husker]

I would agree its so you can ride home if you drop it.

 

[garwil]

I have been pondering the groove in the brake lever for some time. I had not thought of the "Break Point" theory above. It sounds like it could be plausible. However, my theory is that Honda has a special tool for holding the brake lever when some type of service work is being done. The tool uses the groove so it does not slip off. Bicycle mechanics use a similar tool (called a third hand).

I have no idea if this concept is correct or not. But that is one explanation I have been able to come up with.

 

[Mellow]

Okay.. I stand corrected...

I went out and looked and yes, the ST has a similar one on the brake lever..

However.... ONLY on the brake lever so it makes no sense that this is for riding off after a drop as you could always use your foot pedal for a brake... if you break your clutch lever... you're done..no such notch.

 

[garwil]

Yes, I noticed that only the brake lever has a groove. That is why the reason has to be brake specific.

 

[stupidmonkey]

The notch is a break off point. Some of the Triumphs have it on the clutch close to the end of the lever, some bikes have it on the brake like the NT. I think most dirt bikes, like KTM, have it on both.

I think the smartest bet is if you are just going to have it on one side would be the clutch as you can always use the rear brake to get you home.

 

[nuron]

here's my reasoning. Yes it is a break off for if you drop the bike. But, as any attorney would point out, if you drop your bike while riding you are suppposed to have it trailered away and inspected by a mechanic. Honda doesn't want you to be able to ride home after an accident, therefore there isn't a similar breakaway on the clutch lever. But if you happen to drop your bike at home it is most likely going to be while mounting/dismounting or putting it on the side or center stand - all of which have you standing on the left side and the bike falling to the right. So why does it even matter if you don't have to ride it before fixing it? Because by snapping off it prevents much worse damage - you'll only have to replace the lever instead of the entire integrated brake handle-fluid reservior assembly.

 

[rcase13]

Is it put there so the lever breaks off and not get jammed against the throttle possibly causing a run away bike problem? I struggle to come up with a reason to only have it on one side.

We know the NT700 is using a lot of parts from the parts bin. Is this something that is used on other bikes but not ours?

 

[nuron]

The clutch lever is just a clutch lever. The brake lever attaches directly to the master cylinder. On BikeBandit the master cylinder sub-assembly alone (which is where the lever directly attaches) is over $207. This notch gives us a chance that we only have to replace a lever all the times we drop to the right.

 

[dannyjo]

I thought my wife had been filing away on it for the insurance money!

 

[rcase13]

correct winner gets 3 attaboys!!!

I thought my wife had been filing away on it for the insurance money!

I think dannyjo deserves the 3 attaboys for the best answer...

 

[stupidmonkey]

^I agree with the above statement.

 

[Woodaddict]

Well the contest is over,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

dannyjo receives 5 somethings for a cute idea his wife may have caused the harm in the lever, when she may have been secretly going around to all NT's and leaving her mark so there could be a national recall!


Phil just gets 3 as-close-to-attaboys-as-you-can for a good answer or maybe more smileys if he has speaks from experiance on how the lever can break away and not cause more damage

 

[Phil Tarman]

Thanks for the recognition of possibilities which I bring to issues like this, but, believe it or not, my answer was all suppositon.-- in all my drops, I've never even hit the handlebar to the ground, much less some critical control like a brake lever.

 

[mikesim]

I suspect that it's there to allow the lever to break off and prevent damage to the master cylinder.

Mike