running front brake only?

I think it would be alright, i have a freewheel running back brake only

had mine set up like that for quite some time, wouldnt worry about it at all. you can always debate that 2 brakes are better than one in case of an emergency, but the front is the best for stopping power in most conditions.

should be fine.

Just be carefull, if the brake grabs too well unexpectedly, you could find yourself in front of the bike. I use back for slowing, both for stopping. make sure your weight isn't too far forward when braking only in the front.

If I were running a freewheel, I'd want a rear brake as well as the front.
With a fixed its not important, as you brake through the pedals.

I run just the front on my fixed\free. Only time I have probs stopping is in the wet running free. You just need to allow more braking distance or flip to fixed. Quality brake pads are a good idea too.

U.K. law dictates that a bicycle must have an independent brake acting on each wheel. A fixed wheel is regarded as a brake.

If you look at old copies of Cycling (price 3d!) you will see that most of the top time-triallists of the years either side of WWII elected to ride fixed-wheel with just a front brake - perfectly legal, and safe.

The Worthing Excelsior's press secretary in Victorian/Edwardian times was [censored] Long, who wrote as "[censored] Turpin" in the Worthing Gazette. He had this to say in about 1904. I like his view of a brake as a "refinement.

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[font=Times New Roman]"Ah, you free-wheelists; for you the mad, headlong rush downhill at a speed you never realise. But you know not the exhilarating joy which is for the fixed-wheel rider behind you, with the pedals carrying his feet round to a tune which will infuse life into an Egyptian mummy! [/font]
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[font=Times New Roman]Taste, my free-wheeling pleasure-seeker! You will want more, and farewell to the clumsy speed gear with its levers and rods, its pinions and ratchets, and its occasional lapses into uselessness.[/font]
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[font=Times New Roman]For pedalling down hill will teach quick pedalling; then you can with comfort ride a single gear low enough to ride hills with comfort".[/font]
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[font=Times New Roman]Sam Clark offered similar advice to those admiring his new 1906 machine, "a speedy-looking little jigger, with twenty-six inch wheels and small Paris tyres". I shall expect our Champion Veteran to exhibit a turn of speed again this year.[/font]
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[font=Times New Roman]Sam is like myself, he does not appreciate the lazy free-wheel, or the luxurious change-speed gears.[/font]
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[font=Times New Roman]This year, for the first time, he is indulging in a brake, which little refinement I have used and like for three years now".[/font]
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[left]Nice![/left]

[left]John[/left]

agar said:

I have a single speed with flip/flop hub no rear brakes what do you think of running a freewheel with a front brake only? thanks

if you're only going to run one break, definetly run the front, it has a lot more stopping power. i had to ride with just a front brake for a while last year as my rear brake broke on my only bike and had no problems with it.

RussB said:

Just be carefull, if the brake grabs too well unexpectedly, you could find yourself in front of the bike. I use back for slowing, both for stopping. make sure your weight isn't too far forward when braking only in the front.

A properly-maintained and adjusted brake shouldn't grab. To reduce the risk of the front (or any!) brake grabbing, avoid bumping up kerbs, or any other activity which deforms the rim and creates "[censored]" spots.

Another ages-old tip is to bias your brake blocks so that the leading edge engages first: this ensures that any slack (there shouldn't be any!) in the brake stirrup is taken up before the brake fully engages.

🙂 John 🙂