[CR] Sidepull brakes.

(Example: Events:Cirque du Cyclisme:2004)

Date: Mon, 19 Jan 2009 21:21:54 +0000
From: <billydavid13@comcast.net>
To: <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>
In-Reply-To: <380400600.4559881232400106816.JavaMail.root@sz0035a.emeryville.ca.mail.comcast.net>
Subject: [CR] Sidepull brakes.


Hi all. I've got to side w/ Harry on this. I like sidepulls. Weinmann 500s, Universal 68s, Campy Records and esp. their many Japanese clones. Dual Pivots just seem bulky and unattractive. "V" brakes even more so. Cantilevers, maybe on a tourer. Centerpulls w/ brazed on posts, those are OK. I don't like the way the cable splits the view of the headtube, or the headset mounted cable housing stops, or the seatpost bolt mounted rear cable stops. I like the ease of adjustability of sidepulls, even the cheap ones. I like the assymetry and the absence of the yoke cable hangers. I like the option of mounting the rear brake forward of the seatstays to show off the lines of the rear triangle and give clearance for a rear rack. Some bikes call for centerpulls, but given the option, i'll choose sidepulls. Do centerpulls stop better? I don't care, SPs stop well enough and have been proven in the most gruelling conditions out there. Want more power? Squeeze harder! If only Mayakovsky, who wrote a paean to the Brooklyn Bridge, were alive he might voice my love for the sidepull brake. Billy Ketchum; Chicago, IL; USA.