I've almost always been pleased with the stoption provided by Weinmann's centerpulls. I raced a 700c-wheeled mountainbike for 3 years using these, and only added a booster plate when steep descents on a wet course presented itself. I've since put another 7 seasons of 'cross on them. I've not had a problem keeping them centered, and this includes at least a half-dozen bikes over the years. I've always been amazed how any caliper with plastic bushings held up for a reasonable time, yet they do.
If I can find one real fault it's that the post's can become effectively shorter if the pivot bolts are heavily tightened, and this can cause binding just as it often does with cantilever brakes (tho a different "failure" mechanism is involved). This could be a cause of lack of proper centering but is fixable by sanding the bushing's flanges (or the arm's mating surfaces) down a bit, but not so much fun putting them back together as I recall!
I suppose the plastic-capped slider pin that attempts to synchronize the two arms of the Weinmann caliper can also induce friction if the brake is not set up straight, but it can also compensate for the cable carrier getting pushed to one side as often happens on a commuter bike.
Now Mafacs, these often squeel badly but do also deliver good braking power, and you've almost gotta love the look of those things.
David Snyder
hopping on the Gitane now in
Auburn, CA usa
>I agree with all of this. I'll also add that the Weinmann 999 centerpulls
\r?\n>standard on mid-1970's Raleigh Competitions and Internationals were the
\r?\n>biggest piece of crap to ever come out of Belgium. I believe none other
\r?\n>than Sheldon Brown referred to them as "evil". (God bless him, may he rest
\r?\n>in peace) Hard to work on, hard to center and impossible to keep centered.
\r?\n>It seemed every time the lever was squeezed the calipers were pulled out of
\r?\n>center. I could reach the front caliper while riding to readjust but the
\r?\n>rear was a bit difficult. The Universal centerpulls of the same era were
\r?\n>much better. The Mavic Racers were better still. The only worse brakes than
\r?\n>the 999's, IMHO, were the Weinmann sidepulls found on the Competition GS.
\r?\n>And don't even get me started on the old Universal sidepulls although they
\r?\n>provided an incredible amount of reach. The Campy brakes were a revelation
\r?\n>to me. I didn't think brakes could work that well.
\r?\n>
\r?\n> George Allen
\r?\n> Lexington, Ky