I've done a lot of two-up riding and riding with a trailer, on my america, both at high speeds. I've read the same revues and I can see their point. The front brakes don't feel "sharp", and as has already been pointed out have a single cylinder on a sliding caliper. There's also only a single disk compared with the twin disks found on the speedmaster & thunderbird sports.
The "feel" can be improved by replacing the rubber brake line with a braided steel one, and a "floating" disk can be used to minimise uneven pad wear. The speedmaster wheels & brakes are available as a factory option on the america.
However I feel the complaints are mainly an effort by "experts" in magazines to find something to complain about. While I've not come close to flipping the bike on it's front wheel, I've never felt like I didn't have enough brake to do the job. They're not amazing brakes, but they do the job as well as I want. Personally I'd like to upgrade to twin disks, but it's of so little importance to me that I'd rather keep the single disk rather than lose the spoked wheels for the speedy's alloy ones.
I suggest that if you really want reassurance, read through the forums here searching for people complaining about the performance of the front brakes - I think you'll find there's not many complaints (other than Adey who seems to find joy in making his front disk warp
).
Matt
