Old Trek touring bicycle .. new parts question

My old Trek, circa 1984. I want to put on new wheels, .. but the brakes ..
will they reach.

I measured the distance and it is 2 inches from the bolt to the pad. These
are center pull caliper brakes.

I found a place that sells 55-73 mm distance brakes..

Will the 55-73 reach far enough to hit the 700c wheels?

On May 18, 8:48 pm, "NE Sailboat" wrote:
My old Trek, circa 1984. I want to put on new wheels, .. but the brakes ..
will they reach.

I measured the distance and it is 2 inches from the bolt to the pad. These
are center pull caliper brakes.

I found a place that sells 55-73 mm distance brakes..

Will the 55-73 reach far enough to hit the 700c wheels?


Hi there.

73 mm should be plenty long enough. On average there is only 12.5 mm
(1/2 in) increase in reach between a 27 in rim and a 700C rim. You
have a current reach of 50.8 mm (2 in) so the reach needed will be
about 63 mm which gives the 55-73 reach brakes an extra 10 mm or so.

Cheers from Peter

On 2007-05-19, NE Sailboat wrote:

My old Trek, circa 1984. I want to put on new wheels, .. but the brakes ..
will they reach.

I measured the distance and it is 2 inches from the bolt to the pad. These
are center pull caliper brakes.

I found a place that sells 55-73 mm distance brakes..

Will the 55-73 reach far enough to hit the 700c wheels?

Trek made several models intended for different brake reaches. Touring
models had more clearance to accommodate fenders; racing models less
clearance. What's the distance from the center of the rear axle to the
center of the brake bridge?

--

John )

NE Sailboat wrote:
My old Trek, circa 1984. I want to put on new wheels, .. but the brakes ..
will they reach.

I measured the distance and it is 2 inches from the bolt to the pad. These
are center pull caliper brakes.

I found a place that sells 55-73 mm distance brakes..

Will the 55-73 reach far enough to hit the 700c wheels?

More than likely, you'll need the 47-57mm kind. That used to be the
standard reach length for road bikes, but the "short reach" brakes of
the '80s became the '90s and early '00s default standard.

I know of no road bike other than something like a Euro city bike that
would require 70mm reach brakes.

Chalo

On May 18, 7:48 pm, "NE Sailboat" wrote:
My old Trek, circa 1984. I want to put on new wheels, .. but the brakes ..
will they reach.

Probably. Don't buy new brakes till you test fit. Can you drop the
pads 3-4mm? Then you're good to go. You could probably file out
another mm of the pad slot but at your own risk.

Alternately, just put some new 27" rims on your old hubs. 27" tires
are still easy to find and cheap. I rerimmed a Raleigh last year and
put some Vittoria Zaffiro 27x 1 1/4" tires on it for a total cost of
around $50. I used the Alex X404 rim. It's dirt cheap, and laced up
well, it's strong enough for most folks, despite being single wall.
it's a similar inside diameter to a lot of basic old rims, so the swap
is quick. Doesn't take tires narrower than 1.25".

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/117/2...67326dd2_o.jpg

On May 19, 12:20 pm, landotter wrote:
On May 18, 7:48 pm, "NE Sailboat" wrote:

My old Trek, circa 1984. I want to put on new wheels, .. but the brakes ..
will they reach.

Probably. Don't buy new brakes till you test fit. Can you drop the
pads 3-4mm? Then you're good to go. You could probably file out
another mm of the pad slot but at your own risk.

Alternately, just put some new 27" rims on your old hubs. 27" tires
are still easy to find and cheap. I rerimmed a Raleigh last year and
put some Vittoria Zaffiro 27x 1 1/4" tires on it for a total cost of
around $50. I used the Alex X404 rim. It's dirt cheap, and laced up
well, it's strong enough for most folks, despite being single wall.
it's a similar inside diameter to a lot of basic old rims, so the swap
is quick. Doesn't take tires narrower than 1.25".

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/117/2...67326dd2_o.jpg

To follow up, Nashbar's got those Velocity Twin Hollow basic wheels in
27"/freewheel/130mm for $50 and $40. AFAIK they come with regular cup
and cone hubs. A little TLC and they would be perfectly decent drop in
replacements.

Landotter ,,,

I figured I'd tell you about the old Trek... and what I did.

This bicycle is a 1984, touring model. I can't remember the model number
off the head but a very nice bicycle.

I want to use it this summer along with my Canondale road/touring bicycle.
The Trek will be along on my sailboat.

I took the Trek to Harris Cycles in Newton, Mass on Saturday. Harris has
lots and lots of hard to find equipment.

I bought a set of 700c wheels for $130 and the wheels are set for a
freewheel setup.

The brakes are being changed out for a long reach brake, also in stock at
Harris.

Couple of touring tires, two tubes.. Bingooo.


I am making up a bag which I will put the Trek in, this way I can take it
with me on the boat. The bag is going to be made up from the blue tarp
stuff you see on roofs, etc. I figure if I keep the bicycle in the bag it
won't be affected by the moisture of the boat as bad.

I will store the bicycle in the forward V berth of my sailboat. Should fit
... I haven't checked yet.


If all goes as planned ... The bicycle will come out on deck in the bag.
I will lower it into the cheap fiberglass dingy, row to shore... and pull
the bicycle out of the bag ... and off.

I may use some bubble wrap in the bag to keep her nice and happy.


"landotter" wrote in message
ps.com...
On May 18, 7:48 pm, "NE Sailboat" wrote:
My old Trek, circa 1984. I want to put on new wheels, .. but the brakes
..
will they reach.

Probably. Don't buy new brakes till you test fit. Can you drop the
pads 3-4mm? Then you're good to go. You could probably file out
another mm of the pad slot but at your own risk.

Alternately, just put some new 27" rims on your old hubs. 27" tires
are still easy to find and cheap. I rerimmed a Raleigh last year and
put some Vittoria Zaffiro 27x 1 1/4" tires on it for a total cost of
around $50. I used the Alex X404 rim. It's dirt cheap, and laced up
well, it's strong enough for most folks, despite being single wall.
it's a similar inside diameter to a lot of basic old rims, so the swap
is quick. Doesn't take tires narrower than 1.25".

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/117/2...67326dd2_o.jpg