Pedals and Brakes.

Robfactory said:

Hi everyone. I recently purchased a 70's Takara bike.
The main reason I purchased it was because in the new town I'm in they have a city bike thing once a month, and I wanted something vintage with a bit of history.
Either way, I need to get new brakes for it because they are still original and new pedals. What do you guys recommend?
I will use the bike prob. about 4-5 times a month.
BTW...Sorry about the break/brake type-o

Brakes:
Why do you want new brakes? didn't the bike come with any? If it didn't, and you want to stay true to the vintage look your best bet is to look for old brakes on ebay or similar. If it did come with brakes it should be enough to replace the pads. Just look for some nicely square looking ones to remain true to the vintage theme.

Pedals:
Will you only be using this bike 4-5 times/month, or will 4-5 times/month be you total bicycling quota?
If all you're planning is the occasional "social ride" I think a pair of cheap platform pedals would do nicely. If you want to raise your sights a bit, I'd suggest going for a pair of clipless and some bike shoes. Wellgo are perfectly serviceable although entirely devoid of bling value. I'd also recommend MTB-type shoes to make you less awkward off the bike.

Thanks for your response and time.
The bike still has the original pads. I want to replace them since I know the rubber might be a bit stiff.
The pedals are original too, but was told I might want to replace it.

Well, replacing the pads is a sensible thing, maybe even the cables. They're fairly critical items, and certainly merits seeing to before bringing the bike out in traffic again.
But those parts are generic, easily sourced and easily replaced. The levers and the actual brake arms should still be good to go.

As far as pedals goes it feels like there's something missing, it's generally speaking quite a task to wear a set out.
If yours have gummed up old pedals are as a rule rebuildable, but it might be cheaper to simply replace them instead.
Or maybe you have a set that were originally meant to be used with clips and old-style, blocked cycling shoes?
Those can real uncomfortable to ride with sneakers or similar.

Anyhow, odds are that new ones are more "nice" than actually "needed".

Thanks for the detailed answer.
Yeah, I'm going to wait 'til I get the bike and evaluate.
I just wanted to have everything ready.
Since the bike does have the original pads, I might need to change those.He did mention in an email the pedals might need to changed. I'm going to try to WD-40 them and see how they respond.
Here is a link to the bike and description.

Robfactory said:

..Since the bike does have the original pads, I might need to change those.

Good plan.

Robfactory said:

.... I'm going to try to WD-40 them and see how they respond.

Don't do that, unless as a last resort. WD-40 is way too runny to be a good choice for pedal bearings. Have a look at the end of the pedal spindle, there might be a cap there that can be removed. If that is the case the pedals can be stripped, lubed and rebuilt fairly easily.
Otherwise ther don't seem to be anything special about those pedals. They will probably be a bit uncomfortable if you intend to ride in sneakers or running shoes, but for shorter rides it's not going to be a problem. If you want to get race-retro you can probably fit clips to them.

Don't expect too much from that rear brake though. That big bough on the brake cable is likely to sap quite a lot of the bite from the brake.

Robfactory said:

..Here is a link to the bike and description.

Looks fairly well kept, but the positioning of the brakes is a bit funky.