How well are the brakes supposed to work?

[leeleatherwood]

Took my FL350 for my first spin today, amazing. Love it.

One thing that I noticed is that the brakes are not good at all and I certainly would not be able to count on them in an emergency stop. I can squeeze the front brakes as hard as possible but if I hit the gas it will overpower them.

I understand the front brakes are drum, but the rear is not so good also. If this is normal that's fine I guess, but if its not I would like to get it resolved.

My Yamaha Raptor 660's brakes are much better (literally night and day difference)

Thanks.

[cbatcheler]

That's not how they are supposed to work. Even though the fronts are drums they are still pretty powerful. You should be able to squeeze them and lock the wheels up making the tires skid and stop the odyssey. They should also feel similar to a modern 4wheeler hydronic system where the closer you pull the handle to the steering wheel the more feedback/pressure you feel in the handle. IE harder you squeeze the harder the handle is to pull. I would recommend bleeding the system being very careful to not run the master cylinder dry and make sure there is no air or old fluid in the lines or system. Also check the rubber bladder under the master cylinder lid and make sure it's in good shape as well as the condition of the lid itself making sure it is not warped and seals securely on the casing of the master cylinder.  If all those things check out take the wheels off and check the wear on the shoes themselves and the conditions of the wheel cylinders making sure no leaks and both are operational. If that checks out put the drums on and adjust the shoes through the window in the drum to where the shoes drag/scrub slightly on the drum. The wheel cylinders only move so far and if you are maxing them out to get the shoes to touch the drum in order to stop the breaks will feel weak. Hope this helps

[hoodlum]

The things posted in the previous comment all apply first....Once all this is done, and you're still not happy with them, consider replacing all the rubber lines with braided lines...Best brake mod you can do to an otherwise healthy brake system...
Hoodlum

[leeleatherwood]

Thanks guys.

I will try to do most of those things this week if I can find time.

[LiveWire]

Not sure if you realize the drums are manual adjust, not automatic like cars that had them. It is common that by the time they do get manually adjusted, the shoes are pointed in the middle. I adjust them until they drag. They may need readjusting each ride until the shoes wear in enough to go longer.

When I first got an FL350R, I adjusted the brake cables like I would on a bike with cable brakes. I left play. I figured out that there is no need. In fact, I adjust the cable so that the plungers in the master cylinder are partially pressed in. Adjust too far and the plungers will pass the holes where the fluid fills them from the reservoir and they won't pump up. Just a little less pre-load than that will get you the most fluid movement.