Can someone explain to me why a vintage bike maker would use short reach (610) brakes on the front, and long-reach (750) brakes on the back? I am thinking mainly of Raleigh, of course, but I also think that Peugeot and maybe Motobecane and maybe others did the same thing. This might make sense if the maker shipped larger tires on the back, but I'm pretty sure that they never did this ...
Is the bike maker trying to allow a larger fender and tire on the rear, while providing good braking leverage on the front, where it matters ?? Is there another reason? This isn't done any more, as far as I am aware.
- Don Gillies
San Diego, CA