|
Post by cusqueno on Oct 29, 2018 15:10:20 GMT
Hi. Does anyone have any advice about correctly adjusting brakes with suicide levers? (These are those thin bar thingies that used to be very fashionable so that the brakes could be operated more easily while riding with the hands on the top of the handlebars.) I have a set of Dura Ace ones (made early in the 1970s, not for very long). They are better made than most, with the brake cables going to the suicide bars, which the ordinary levers operate on. Most are the other way round, which can make for very vague braking.
The adjustment seems to need to be quite precise, with the position of the body of the brake on the drops setting the distance of the operating bit from the handlebar and the angle of the body in the vertical plane also having a big effect.
The brakes aren't yet on the bike - I plan to fit them to my Viscount Corsair Wayfarer Mixte, which originally had the Viscount version (I think - no branding) of suicide levers, which aren't very good, but I have fitted them tho the handlebars.
Many thanks!
|
|
robt
Viscount
Posts: 558
|
Post by robt on Oct 30, 2018 11:31:25 GMT
Hi. Does anyone have any advice about correctly adjusting brakes with suicide levers? (These are those thin bar thingies that used to be very fashionable so that the brakes could be operated more easily while riding with the hands on the top of the handlebars.) I have a set of Dura Ace ones (made early in the 1970s, not for very long). They are better made than most, with the brake cables going to the suicide bars, which the ordinary levers operate on. Most are the other way round, which can make for very vague braking. The adjustment seems to need to be quite precise, with the position of the body of the brake on the drops setting the distance of the operating bit from the handlebar and the angle of the body in the vertical plane also having a big effect. The brakes aren't yet on the bike - I plan to fit them to my Viscount Corsair Wayfarer Mixte, which originally had the Viscount version (I think - no branding) of suicide levers, which aren't very good, but I have fitted them tho the handlebars. Many thanks! John, you might also want to check that the wheels on the bike are running as true as they can be made to. My apologies if I'm stating the obvious, but any out-of-line in the wheels will need to be accommodated by setting your brake pads a bit further apart to avoid rubbing on the 'high' spots - this tiny additional clearance will be magnified at the brake levers. Unless I get the wheels decently true on my Sebring, which has the conventional(?) suicide bars operating onto the brake levers, the extra bit of cable I have to allow for the rim wobble makes the suicide levers pretty much useless (which I believe is their normally anticipated operating mode). I have only ever found them to be even slightly effective when the brake pads can be set to run with the tiniest of clearances from the wheel rim. It sounds as though your Dura Ace version might operate more like the modern in-line (interrupter/cyclo-cross?) bar top levers, which operate by pushing the brake cable outer casing.
|
|
|
Post by cusqueno on Oct 30, 2018 12:38:35 GMT
Thanks for the advice Rob. I haven't really got round to the brakes yet. They are like these (only on eBay for another day) but were much cheaper(!). I assume that they will be better than the original Tourney centre pulls, which are prone to squealing, but the DA ones lack the quality of finish that one now expects from that group set. So they might not be brilliant and hence tricky to set up.
|
|
|
Post by blackwizard on Oct 31, 2018 3:58:21 GMT
I can agree with Rob, they are not much use unless you have the pads very close to the rims. These were fitted to he Carlton GP using Weinmann centre pulls and I find they are only useful when in touring mode when you want to scrub a bit of speed off, if you are pushing things or on a descent I don’t go near them.
|
|
|
Post by proaktive52 on Oct 31, 2018 22:12:15 GMT
Hi. Does anyone have any advice about correctly adjusting brakes with suicide levers? (These are those thin bar thingies that used to be very fashionable so that the brakes could be operated more easily while riding with the hands on the top of the handlebars.) I have a set of Dura Ace ones (made early in the 1970s, not for very long). They are better made than most, with the brake cables going to the suicide bars, which the ordinary levers operate on. Most are the other way round, which can make for very vague braking. The adjustment seems to need to be quite precise, with the position of the body of the brake on the drops setting the distance of the operating bit from the handlebar and the angle of the body in the vertical plane also having a big effect. The brakes aren't yet on the bike - I plan to fit them to my Viscount Corsair Wayfarer Mixte, which originally had the Viscount version (I think - no branding) of suicide levers, which aren't very good, but I have fitted them tho the handlebars. Many thanks! Hi there I have cleaned up my duel extension levers (DEL 50) for my Viscount gran prix by stripping and putting back together carefully with a little grease to make sure working ok (there are a few of star washers that keep things a bit tighter) I set my brake distances for the drop levers quite tight and then turned off the cable adjuster a few turns (if the DEL's are loose its because they have too much play in them and I don't think there is a answer to this apart from replace the offender) DELs are for slowing down not stopping as they are not efficient for hard braking. Great bike ride you have in the mornings (where you live thread)(Are you a spy working in that nice building?) Best Regards Richard
|
|