Which Brake levers to buy?

Buy the levers according to:
- a kind that fits your bar diameter
- have a pull ratio that matches your brakes
- are of the style that you want
Then get wires that fit the brake levers.

Wires are cheap enough, and it doesn't hurt to replace them every now and then anyhow. Adding wire type to your selection criteria is likely to limit your options severely.

On top of that I've never seen a flat bar brake lever that used anything else than the perpendicular cylinder end piece.

dabac said:

Buy the levers according to:
- a kind that fits your bar diameter
- have a pull ratio that matches your brakes
- are of the style that you want
Then get wires that fit the brake levers.

Wires are cheap enough, and it doesn't hurt to replace them every now and then anyhow. Adding wire type to your selection criteria is likely to limit your options severely.

On top of that I've never seen a flat bar brake lever that used anything else than the perpendicular cylinder end piece.

Thanks for your help. I was hoping to not to have to rewire my cable, but as you say it is limiting my options. I do have a pair of old type caliper brake levers barrel end fit. If I used these what wire would i need?..and is it difficult to wire up my bike?..Thanks for your help. I'm new to all this.

Ali238 said:

I was hoping to not to have to rewire my cable, but as you say it is limiting my options. I do have a pair of old type caliper brake levers barrel end fit. If I used these what wire would i need?..and is it difficult to wire up my bike?.

You are looking for MTB/(Flat Bar)/BMX levers which were originally designed for CANTILEVER BRAKE calipers ...

To the uninitiated eye, the brake lever MAY (or, may not) look the same as a lever for a V-brake, so be sure you ask if you don't know.
[INDENT]FYI. The "dog leg" (for want of a better name) on a V-brake lever is longer.
[/INDENT]Although the ends of the cables for MTB levers are a barrel shape instead of a so-called mushroom shape (sometimes, the end is flat), the mushroom end from a Road brake cable will nest inside the cavity that the barrel end is meant to fit into [in other words, it will be merely a cosmetic issue] & the cable tension will keep it from falling out.

Ali238 said:

I have an 80's derailleur bicycle (no brand name). I want to change the drop handlebars to straight ones. I have bought the handlebars but I need to know what brake levers to buy. I have downtube shifters. The cable ends that are currently on my bike are 5mmx5mm (i think it's the same as the one in this picture).
I'd be greatful if you could suggest which brake levers I should get.

BTW. The cable you have the red arrow pointing to in the picture is a derailleur cable and not a brake cable.

The brake levers which I presume are currently on your bike will have cables whose "ends" will look similar to the cable which is the fourth from the top in the picture.

Ali238 said:

I was hoping to not to have to rewire my cable, but as you say it is limiting my options. I do have a pair of old type caliper brake levers barrel end fit. If I used these what wire would i need?..and is it difficult to wire up my bike?..

BTW. The pictured lever will be "okay" to use with the brake calipers which are currently on your Road bike.

Hi, Thank you so much for your help, I feel really silly..I'm totally new to all this. I have this bike that i'm determined to fix up myself..although i know nothing about bikes.. 😕
If the hole in the 'brake lever pictured in earlier post' is approx 7mm and the end of the brake cable is 5mm and as you said looks like the 4 one down (in the pic i posted earlier) will it really work ok?..i've attached a pic of my bike caliper, can you tell me what type it is please (it needs a good clean i know.. ;-/) also how do i get the cable out of the current 'drop brake levers' i keep trying to get it out but it just keeps springing back into it's slot...Do i have to unscrew the brake cable from the other end?

Thanks again,
Alison

P.S I just thought if i buy new 'brake cables with barrel ends' that will fit the 'brake levers' pictured earlier. Is it a difficult job to connect the other ends of the brake cable to my bike?..And is there a specific barrel ended brake cable i'd need or can i just get one like this
Universal bicycle brake cable on eBay (end time 19-Aug-10 19:06:15 BST)

Cheers again,

Alison

Ali238 said:

If the hole in the 'brake lever pictured in earlier post' is approx 7mm and the end of the brake cable is 5mm and as you said looks like the 4 one down (in the pic i posted earlier) will it really work ok?..i've attached a pic of my bike caliper, can you tell me what type it is please (it needs a good clean i know.. ;-/) also how do i get the cable out of the current 'drop brake levers' i keep trying to get it out but it just keeps springing back into it's slot...Do i have to unscrew the brake cable from the other end?

Yes, you can use a ROAD brake cable with a MTB (or, 3-speed?!?) brake lever ... I've tried it with a MTB levr ... as I said, the tension on the cable will keep it in place.

As far as removing the cable ...
[INDENT]The first thing you want to do is to remove the wheel from the frame/fork ...

Then, manually squeeze the brake pads together AT THE PADS with your bare hands (or, the hands of a helper) ... manually squeezing the pads will release the tension on the straddle cable which the yoke is hooked onto.

Unhook the yoke.

You can now un-nest the cable end from within the gimbal (for want of a better name, that's what 'I' call it) inside the brake lever ... slide the cable through the slot ... and then, the cable can exit the lever through the top end of the brake lever. Some levers have a slot in the front of the lever through which the cable is inserted or removed.

There is probably (?) a slot somewhere-on-the-unseen side/edge of the OTHER brake lever through which you can feed the cable/-end through. Nest the cable end in the OTHER brake lever's 'gimbal' [well, your OTHER lever doesn't appear to have a 'gimbal'; so, let the mushroom end nest in the open hole]. While a MTB brake cable with a barrel end will nest (more) snugly in the hole, the 'mushroom end' is large enough to be held in place ... a derailleur cable end probably is NOT large enough without using a washer NOR is a derailleur cable a suitable substitute for a brake cable, regardless.
[INDENT]IF the narrower end of the mushroom barrel end doesn't fit inside your 'new' lever, then you will need to buy a new cable OR you can gently shave off the slight excess with a FLAT or HALF-ROUND wood file.
[/INDENT]There is probably an additional spacer-like stop between the cable housing & the brake lever ... if you don't detach the cable from the yoke, you will want it to continue to be positioned on the outside of the 'new' lever's mount bracket.
[INDENT]IF the lever's mounting bracket only has a hole through which the cable passes [i.e., no slot], then you will have to detach the cable from the yoke.
[/INDENT]The cable tension MAY need to be adjusted because there is no assurance that the distance between the outside of the lever & the 'gimbal' are exactly the same.
[/INDENT]I hope that makes sense -- the actual process will probably take less time than it took for you to read this!

Ali238 said:

P.S I just thought if i buy new 'brake cables with barrel ends' that will fit the 'brake levers' pictured earlier. Is it a difficult job to connect the other ends of the brake cable to my bike?..And is there a specific barrel ended brake cable i'd need or can i just get one like this
Universal bicycle brake cable on eBay (end time 19-Aug-10 19:06:15 BST)

While you are waiting for your new cables to arrive, try retrofitting your existing cables, as described (above).

BTW. The cable(s) you bought will be too short to reach the rear brake caliper.

Changing the cables isn't difficult.

The process is greatly facilitated if you have EITHER a good set of wire cutters OR a soldering iron + some silver solder ...

Subjectively, the best wire cutters that I've used are on HARBOR FREIGHT (made in China) pliers! The cost for the set of pliers varies depending on whether-or-not they are on sale ($10 (?) to $18 (?)). I have a pair of Snap On (a very good brand) diagonal wire cutters which are very good for multi-stranded wire, but are not capable of handling a multi-stranded cable. I don't know if you have the equivalent pliers where you are (Harbor Freight "stuff" has ORANGE handles).

My experience is that other dikes (diagonal wire cutters) fail miserably when attempting to cut either brake or derailleur cables UNLESS the strands are joined & stiffened by soldering them together prior to being cut. Soldering has the modest benefit of precluding the need for end caps.
[INDENT]Don't cut the cable until you know the length you want ... I always try to leave the cable an inch+ longer than it needs to be ...
[/INDENT]Since I have the fore mentioned Harbor Freight pliers/cutters, I don't trim the cable until after it is in place.

BTW. I strongly recommend that you run the length of the cable (any bike cable) which will be moving inside cable housing through a dab of Vaseline which is between your thumb & index finger to lube the cable.

Hi, Thanks again for your help. I'm learning lots here. I just wanted to ask, instead of taking off the front wheel to release the tension, it seems that there is a lever that when pulled up creates slack. See pic..does this mean i don't have to remove wheel?..
Also can i just buy longer cable for the rear brake and put it into the plastic housing that the short cable will come in?..

Cheers again for all your help.

Alison.

Ali238 said:

... instead of taking off the front wheel to release the tension, it seems that there is a lever that when pulled up creates slack. See pic..does this mean i don't have to remove wheel?..
Also can i just buy longer cable for the rear brake and put it into the plastic housing that the short cable will come in?..

Yes, if the flipping the lever releases the tension on the cable, then you don't have to remove the wheel(s).

And, yes, you can just buy a longer cable. You may want to measure the length of your existing cable to ensure that the new cable is long enough.

Brilliant!..
I probably wont get the chance to do all this until next week sometime. But thanks to all your help 'fingers crossed' it will all go well.

Cheers again,

Alison