I worked on two classic British bikes today, and both made me question either my own or their builders´ (or their customers´) sanity as far as positioning of cable stops is concerned.
Let´s start with Ron Cooper who made my Gillott TT Fleur de Lys in 1954. Why oh why did he put the brake cable stops right underneath the top tube, dead in the six o´clock position? A slight offset would have vastly helped cable routing, and also braking power, of course.
Funnier still, the cable stop which isn´t. Imagine me getting along really well fitting the Simplex derailleur on its Agrati dropout eye, putting beautiful red outers between their stops over the bottom bracket and between derailleur and stop on the chain stay. In goes the inner, tightening, checking, and whoosh goes the beautiful red outer through the cable "stop" in front of the dropout end, stripping its beautiful red covering. Aargh. Why do I need a MAFAC outer cable end nipple only here, of all places?
Or whoever made my 1952 PT Stallard Monthlery frameset. Again a cable stop for a Simplex which is stuck somewhere on the lower end of the seat stay. It is again right in the six o´clock position, so that one has to route the cable at two impossible angles instead of just letting it go where it wants (and needs) to. Doesn´t make shifting any easier, I suppose.
Any ideas, anyone?
Regards,
Toni Theilmeier, Belm, Germany.