Early 70s Raleigh International

Does anybody happen to know of a set of dual pivot calipers that would work
for this bike? Also, what is the proper way to measure the reach. If I
measure from the center of the brake bolt to the center of the bolt that is
holding the correctly adjusted brake pad, I come up with 64-65 mm. The long
reach dual pivots I see (Tektro, Shimano) seem to go to 57mm. If there are
no dual pivots available does anyone have any other ideas for brakes on this
bike? I use this bike to pull two kids in a trailer, backpacks, etc... and
the centerpulls on it just don't work. Besides that they clutter the beauty
of those chrome lugs.

"Jai Ma" wrote:
Does anybody happen to know of a set of dual pivot calipers that would work
for this bike? Also, what is the proper way to measure the reach. If I
measure from the center of the brake bolt to the center of the bolt that is
holding the correctly adjusted brake pad, I come up with 64-65 mm. The long
reach dual pivots I see (Tektro, Shimano) seem to go to 57mm. If there are
no dual pivots available does anyone have any other ideas for brakes on this
bike? I use this bike to pull two kids in a trailer, backpacks, etc... and
the centerpulls on it just don't work. Besides that they clutter the beauty
of those chrome lugs.

You should measure from the center of the brake bolt to the center of
the rim's braking surface.

Harris Cyclery (no relation) sells a couple of long reach dual pivot
calibers.
See:
http://www.sheldonbrown.com/harris/brakes.html#calipers

The other thing to consider is that your bike probably doesn't use
recessed allen bolts to attach the calipers to the bike. See the site
above for tips on how to work around that.

Art Harris

"Jai Ma" wrote:

If there are
no dual pivots available does anyone have any other ideas for brakes on
this
bike?

27" wheels?

The Raleigh International was originally fitted with Weinmann center-pull
brakes, and even with the 27-inch rim, I believe the long-reach model is
necessary (up to 70 m.m. reach). There is a Japanese counterpart, which was
available during the same period. The name on these brakes was DiaCompe.

Try some bike shops that have been around for a long time, and you can probably
find some Weinmann or DiaCompes lying in a parts drawer somewhere.

If nothing turns up, send a message back to me, and I could recommend some
possible sources.

The International is a really nice, relaxed geometry bike that came with
outstanding components, and it's nice to know you are enjoying it 30 years-plus
after it was made.

Yours,

Tony Turbeville

ospam (Tom Paterson) writes:

"Jai Ma" wrote:

If there are
no dual pivots available does anyone have any other ideas for brakes on
this
bike?

27" wheels?

Kogswell sells some long reach dual pivots. I forgot the exact spec,
but they are longer than the shimano r600s, somewhere in the 65mm
range, I think.

"Jai Ma" wrote in message ...
Does anybody happen to know of a set of dual pivot calipers that would work
for this bike? Also, what is the proper way to measure the reach. If I
measure from the center of the brake bolt to the center of the bolt that is
holding the correctly adjusted brake pad, I come up with 64-65 mm. The long
reach dual pivots I see (Tektro, Shimano) seem to go to 57mm. If there are
no dual pivots available does anyone have any other ideas for brakes on this
bike? I use this bike to pull two kids in a trailer, backpacks, etc... and
the centerpulls on it just don't work. Besides that they clutter the beauty
of those chrome lugs.

Kogswell bikes sells long-reach dual calipers brakes (64mm). Go to
www.kogswell.com and scroll midway down the page. I have a pair and
they seem very well made, though I haven't actually used them yet. The
brakes are designed for recessed nuts, but I believe you can replace
the bolt with a standard metric bolt (you should probably check with
Kogswell about that).

Another option is the Brompton dual-pivot brake (front only; the rear
is single-pivot). This is a very long reach brake (don't remember
offhand, but probably in your range). I did a conversion like yours
for my brother and it works fine. The US importer --
http://www.foldabikes.com/ -- was willing to sell me just the front
brake (for about $40). The only problem is that the brake cable enters
the brake from below. (I just ran the cable down the fork, taped it to
the fork in a loop and then ran it back up to the brake.) If I were
doing it again, I'd try the Kogswell brakes first, though.

ospam (Tom Paterson) wrote in message ...
"Jai Ma" wrote:

If there are
no dual pivots available does anyone have any other ideas for brakes on
this
bike?

27" wheels?

Hi Jai Ma
So far as I can remember carter pull brakes worked quite well when the
rest of the system was ok.
I suspect that there might be simpler solutions than switching to
newer tech brakes. If you would like to take the low tech approach &
save some $, here's what I suggest:
1. Take levers & brakes apart clean & inspect, are all the washers in
place? Is there any galling or wear that causes excessive play?
Relubricate & reassemble & play w/ brake off bike, look for excess
play or binding.
2. Install new cables, & housings using high quality stainless steel
"slick" (die drawn) brake cables & lined housings. Ask for & make sure
you get Shiminano, or Quality brand names. (Quality Bicycles is a
brand name) Jagwire manufactures both of the above, but they also make
lower quality housings & cables. If the shop sells you Jagwire, it's
harder to be sure. If you're not sure your getting the top quality,
just go to another shop until sure. So often a shop will say, "it's
just as good as" when it's not. Also install a new straddle cable &
keep it as short as possible consistent w/ it being able to make the
full stroke.
3. Install new brake pads. Kool Stop in general makes an outstanding
line of pads. The best in the opinion of many of the posters on this
news group, myself included, is (damn I can't remember the exact word
for the color) brick red? In any case it's a dull red, not Kool Stop's
bright red.
4. Also super important, does your Raleigh have steel rims? If so you
will probably never enjoy good braking. Have new wheels made or buy
new wheels w/ aluminum rims
5. Finally for the best 411 on how to properly do all this, visit
Sheldon Brown's web site. Just Google his name & it'll pop right up. I
don't remember how good this news group's FAQs are on this subject,
but it wouldn't hurt to check. My favorite book is "Zinn and the Art
Road Bike Repair"
Others may not agree.
6. Finally, if you replace the current brakes, you'll have a number of
problems to overcome before you have working new brakes. Again visit
Sheldon's site. He has all sorts of neat work arounds for situations
like this.

Best wishes, John

27" wheels?

Nope. Originally came with sewups.
Phil Brown

"Jai Ma" wrote:

Does anybody happen to know of a set of dual pivot calipers that would work
for this bike? Also, what is the proper way to measure the reach. If I
measure from the center of the brake bolt to the center of the bolt that is
holding the correctly adjusted brake pad, I come up with 64-65 mm. The long
reach dual pivots I see (Tektro, Shimano) seem to go to 57mm. If there are
no dual pivots available does anyone have any other ideas for brakes on this
bike? I use this bike to pull two kids in a trailer, backpacks, etc... and
the centerpulls on it just don't work. Besides that they clutter the beauty
of those chrome lugs.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. For those of us who were riding
and turning wrenches on those bikes when they first came out, there is
a real beauty to those old Wienmann center pulls. As another poster
said, its a very, very good brake.

I'm not sure I understand what the mounting problems are relative to
the trailer or rack. I've mounted a gazillion racks on bikes with
center-pull brakes I think. If you can describe the mounting problem,
somebody might be able to suggest a work around.


-- Dave
==============================================
"It is impossible, or not easy, to do noble acts
without the proper equipment."
Aristotle, Politics, 1323a-b, trans Jowett
==============================================

In article , "Jai Ma"
wrote:

Does anybody happen to know of a set of dual pivot calipers that would work
for this bike? Also, what is the proper way to measure the reach. If I
measure from the center of the brake bolt to the center of the bolt that is
holding the correctly adjusted brake pad, I come up with 64-65 mm. The long
reach dual pivots I see (Tektro, Shimano) seem to go to 57mm. If there are
no dual pivots available does anyone have any other ideas for brakes on this
bike? I use this bike to pull two kids in a trailer, backpacks, etc... and
the centerpulls on it just don't work. Besides that they clutter the beauty
of those chrome lugs.


The question is, why aren't those Weinmann centerpulls working? Those were
fine brakes that have given good service to many, including racers. If the
lever is bottoming out before maximum braking, they are adjusted wrong. If
it is not bottoming out, just squeeze harder.

I suggest you change the pads to KoolStop rust-colored ones or the
equivalent Mathauser. Check cables etc.


And by the way they go great with the Nervex lugs, as they did on other
comparable classic bikes of the era, such as the Motobecane Gran Record and
the Schwinn Paramount. Not to mention that they were Rene Herse's favorite.

--
TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN

Please excuse the inconvenience allegedly caused by our son. Send
us the bill for all the damages, and we can settle this to your
satisfaction, without any need for a public record of the incident.

Most Sincerely, George and Bar