Hi Sheldon,
Thanks for your reply.
Sheldon Brown said:David Trudgett said:Your elaborations here of what you had on your website are quite
valid, of course; it's just that maybe some of those elaborations
could perhaps make it onto the web page. I only read the pertinent
section on brake extensions, though, so it's just possible there was
some context I missed that may have put a slightly different spin on it.
I've revised and expanded the entry at:
http://sheldonbrown.com/gloss_e-f.html#extensionlevers
Hey, that's great! Much better than it was. Appreciate your taking the
time to attend to it.
By the way, I noticed a small typo: "reaach" near the end of the first
para.
Quoted message said:
Quoted message said:Some more comments below.
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:"Well made" extension levers do exist (though no longer in production.)
However, they're very uncommon, at least in the U.S. Might be
different in Oz. Up north, the crummy Dia-Compe units originally
designed as an add-on to Weinmann brake levers were ubiquitous in the
late '70s and early '80s.
I've no idea how common they are in Oz (ones that are "well made",
that is). As you say, I doubt that they are still in production.
Also, the ones I have at least don't appear to be "add-ons" (in the
sense of after-market).
So you still aren't willing to reveal what kind you have...?
It's not a secret, if that's what you mean! If they had any visible
markings on them, no doubt I would have mentioned it. The bike itself
is an Australian brand, 'Cyclops', and the model is 'Javelin'. I
picked it up (for $25, and I was ripped off! ;-) ) second-hand in bad
condition and did it up, replacing brake and gear cables, chain,
pedals, tyres, and retensioning the wheel spokes. Didn't need to
overhaul the bottom bracket and headset, remarkably (though I should
probably get around to doing it for preventive maintenance). Because
some of the spokes had seized up, though, preventing proper
tensioning, the rear wheel started to come out of true, so I also (a
few months later on) replaced both wheels (from another second-hand
bike). At the same time, I replaced the front brake caliper, as well
as the front and rear brake shoes.
What all that has to do with brake levers, I don't know! But I
wouldn't want to be accused of holding back information! ;-) <evil-grin/>
Anyone else here have a Cyclops, by the way? Maybe they're collectors'
items! ;-)
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:Quite. Mine are pretty much like that, which is why I'm extremely
cautious if I occasionally have to ride (short distances) in those
conditions. The old steel rims are definitely death traps in wet
weather, brake extensions or not! :-)
Interesting use of the word "cautious" to describe riding a bike with
inadequate brakes. ;-)
It sounds worse than it is, Sheldon. For starters, it's not my only
bike, as you know, and I ride my other bike when it rains (which isn't
nearly frequently enough these days -- dams are getting pretty
low). My other bike has no problems stopping in the wet (nice V
brakes, aluminium rims). For seconds, in a year and a half or so of
almost daily riding (only down to the local shops and the train
station, really), I think I've been caught maybe two or three times in
the rain, which means it's a rare event to begin with. And for
desserts, those times that I +have+ been in the rain on it, I *have*
ridden very cautiously so that there was absolutely no greater danger
to myself or anyone else, than under normal conditions. Believe it or
not.
As for "inadequate", that has two meanings, only one of which is
true. The brakes are not inadequate if you ride according to their
capabilities. The key is to know what those capabilities and
limitations are. This is the same with any equipment. Is a road bike
inadequate because you can't take it down mountain trails safely? It
sure is according to one meaning of the word. But, if for some reason
you had to one day ride a road bike off road, you would do so very
cautiously, would you not? You would employ sufficient caution to make
it just as safe as using an MTB (or safer!): you'd go very slowly,
follow a different line, walk it, carry it over difficult bits and so
on, depending on the actual conditions. The same is the case with my
junk heap bike: it's perfectly adequate for dry weather short-distance
riding, in the places I want to ride it. In the wet (once in a blue
moon), caution is required. That means riding very slowly, walking it,
going a different route, avoiding going near to cars and
pedestrians. Used that way, the bike is perfectly "adequate". It's
only +inadequate+ if you want to ride it like a wet weather bicycle.
That's a long-winded way to say that the brakes are perfectly
adequate. (Note: adequate != ideal) For +some other+ person, who wants
to use it differently, the same bike might have +inadequate+
brakes. The combination of usage patterns: (1) nearly always dry
weather; and (2) short distances, makes the brakes _adequate_ for
*me*. Hope that's clear! ;-)
Sure, I could do up the brakes and put aluminium wheels on, as well as
a lot of other things, but it is a throw away bike, after all, in the
sense that it's not going to hurt if someone liberates it from my
possession while it's sitting outside the shops unlocked or at the
train station. Doing it up like that would be counter-productive in
this situation. In fact, for my use, *gears* are not even necessary
and I'd be better off without them. Even a fixed wheel might do the
job, except that it violates SGC (Slacker's Guide to Cycling) rules
(never pedal downhill!).
If the weather here becomes a lot wetter than it has been, then, of
course, bets are off, and I would probably need a better steed,
because riding at walking or jogging speed is not what I want a bike
for! ;-).
Quoted message said:Not being able to brake from the top of the hoods is a solved problem.
Modern "aero" brake levers permit anybody to do this.
Yes, but I thought we were talking history and/or old equipment here.
Casual riders (nearly all) of the type we've been discussing don't use
"aero" levers these days because they don't use drop bars. In fact,
they virtually universally use either BMX style bikes (the kids) or
MTB or "comfort" style bikes, which don't look like road bikes at all.
Quoted message said:Quoted message said:Such a person probably needs a mountain bike style setup.
Not necessarily.
Yes, that's what the "probably" means! :-) But I get what you're
trying to say.
Quoted message said:
A taller handlebar stem, or one with less forward extension would also
do the trick. Back in the '70s, however, such stens were nearly
impossible to find. Even today, some riders eschew such stems because
they look un-stylish. Many non-racers ride bikes that are set up with
a racer-type position for reasons of looks.
For one meaning of "many", I don't find that to be the case over here
in my experience, for the simple reason that MTBs are nearly universal
among non-racing, casual riders here. My LBS, for instance, currently
has one (I think) racing-type bike on display (which is about the most
they ever have), and the rest are the BMXs, MTBs, "comfort" bikes, and
so on. The racing bikes also tend to start off at around $700 to $800,
IIRC, which is more than twice what you would pay for an average MTB
there.
Of the very few casual or non-racing riders who *do* go for a racing
bike or racing position, then what you say may be true. I wouldn't be
able to tell, because I rarely if ever see any casual riders of
racing-style bikes these days (I'm the only one I know of around here,
and my reasons are not because of the looks).
Actually, very few adults around here ride bicycles at all. They seem
to think they're for kids. Wait till petrol gets to two or three
dollars a litre...
Quoted message said:Actually modern brake levers are one of the most worthwhile upgrades
for an older bike.
Sure, in a general sense.
Quoted message said:+-------------------------------------------------------+
| Military conscription is the worst form of slavery. |
| A more enlightened age will consider it a War crime. |
+-------------------------------------------------------+
Too true. And a more enlightened age will also consider war a crime.
David
--
David Trudgett
http://www.zeta.org.au/~wpower/
Many young soldiers enter military service having bought the whole
story about the US military as some liberatory force, and the
discovery of its true nature creates a traumatic sense of dislocation
and betrayal.
-- Stan Goff, retired from U.S. special forces.
