A week or so ago, I posted the following: ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ At some point, keeping too much stuff gets beyond ridiculous, and I've reached that point. So, I'll give away, for the cost of shipping to any US location, my set of three more-or-less complete Phil "disk" brakes. This will leave me with only one, for sentiment's sake. If there is more than one person as deranged as I am, to even consider giving these things a home, I'll choose the loser 24 hr after this appears in CR Digest form.
The Phil's design, based on a motorcycle clutch geometry, is sublime. The machining is beautiful. They are easily adapted to many different bikes, since the driver mounts on standard 1.37x24 threading. But, they fail too easily in use. Early ones, with un-reinforced fibre disk, shed splines and spun freely. Later ones, with metal support, fried nicely in place.
So, what's the catch? The winning loser, the one who gets them, tells the most convining yarn of why he wants them (no woman would be this deranged?), combined with a fervent promise that they will never be used for the intended purpose of stopping a bike. I'll even include a genuine copy of a copy of the mounting instructions.
So, the text may be ironically humorous, but I am happy to send these all to some deserving home. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The losers, those who won the useless Phil brakes, will be individually notified. In the meantime, I was asked to post the reasons submitted for wanting them. There were seven folks deranged enough to ask for one of my stock of four (which may say something about my own state of mind). Arguments, condensed:
--> For the XXXX Bicycle Museum's proposed Death Bike display, featuring the Lambert fork, AVA stem, etc. Two other entries were variants on this theme (Franken-trike, etc). --> A teacher of appropriate subjects, to help kids learn about clay feet of their favorite fixie-gear idols. --> to install as decoration, handicapping weight, and thread protector on a tandem with Phil hubs. Variation: for tandem hour record bike. --> A European member who promises that shipping to him will forever protect me from US liability courts.
I will scan my relatively poor copies of the Phil materials on these brakes tomorrow, if anyone wants copies. I was told that Phil, Inc, will not acknowledge that an item such as this brake was ever associated with their firm, so please don't bother them. And finally, I absolutely love every Phil product I've ever used or owned, except this one poor anomaly. I have a first-generation pair on my late Hetchins, and at least one BB in use.
harvey sachs
mcLean va.