Brake cable help! A noob with two vintage bicycles... :/

[Rhiannon217]

Hey everyone!

So I recently acquired two vintage(?) shopper bicycles. One Dawes Kingpin (rigid frame) and one Hercules Compact (folding). I was given the Hercules and its not as nice, so thinking of selling it once I have got it back into a reasonable order. The Dawes on the other had is great and I have completely fallen in love with it, so obviously I'm planning on riding it around (probably constantly). I have absolutely no idea of their ages and have no idea how you determine their ages either!.
As you can probably tell I am new to this and have NO idea where to start when it comes to replacing things like brake cables... Fortunately for me both bikes seem to be in really good order except for the brakes and some more superficial things like being a bit grubby and the handlebars and the seat post have some teeny rust spots on. Basically, I was hoping to get some advice on where to get new brake/gear cables. I have scoured ebay and come to the conclusion that they aren' t that easy to source, especially because I want white ones to keep in line with the originals. I have found a website - theoldbicycleshoroom.co.uk but the cables on there are £8, which is a tiny bit steep when you think I paid £10 for the dawes and the hercules was free.


Any help would be greatly appreciated! Also, if anyone knows how I can find out the ages of theses bikes that would be great too! Although I'm not overly fussed about how old they are - just curious!

 

[teletext45]

Hey Rhiannon welcome to the forum. In my opinion i'd head down to your local bike store with patterns for your cables and they should be able to match them up.

As far as replacments are concerned theres mountains of 'how to' videos on youtube but its always worth considering to take your time, be methodical and have patience.

I'm not an expert with bike mechanics myself so i hope my limited input helps

andy

 

[biggs682]

local wilkinsons sell complete cables from £1.40 each and seem adequate for the job

 

[rh100]

HiI think anything that's slightly retro is going to cost more, if you want cheap just go for the black ones I'm afraid

 

[Chris S]

You've also probably got caliper brakes acting on steel wheels. They're OK in the dry but in the wet they might as well be made out of Teflon. Allow a lot longer to stop.

 

[tyred]

The only source of white cables I know about is the old bicycle showroom. I bought some for my Raleigh Twenty a few years ago. I can't remember the cost now but they were dearer than standard black cables but not prohibitively so. If your white outers are in good condition, you could probably just replace the inners which should be easily and cheaply available from an decent bike shop in the pattern you need. Take an old one or the brake lever with you. If fitting new inner cables to your old outers, put some grease or a heavy oil on an old rag and pull the new inner cable through it to add some lubrication.

As mentioned above, these bikes have steel rims and probably long reach calipers so it will never stop on a sixpence. An upgrade to better quality period long reach Weinmann calipers might work a little better than the pressed steel originals but I wouldn't like to put money on it. Also pay attention to pads. Most modern compounds are designed to work with alloy wheels and are too soft to work properly on steel rims. NOS pads might be better or Fibrax do a range of pads to suit steel wheels, some are even leather faced which will work better in the wet but not in the dry. Riding with anticipation is the key.

I fancy a Dawes Kingpin myself. Supposedly a superior ride to the more common Raleigh Twenty and certainly a lot lighter.

 

[Rhiannon217]

Wow thanks guys! I wasn't expecting such prompt replies.
I think I might just fork out for the cables from the old bicycle showroom...although I have discovered today the extent of the wear to the Hercules and i'm not sure I can be bothered to put my full effort into it - its ride-able but quite tatty and the previous owner rode it with the hinge slightly undone and now its got a crack in it. Brilliant.

Thanks for the info on the brakes too. I think I am just going to brake carefully until the brakes already on my kingpin actually need replacing. Hopefully I won't need to emergency stop...
I will give you my verdict on the kingpin asap...I haven't had a chance to ride it yet and I am just dying to give it a go. I hear its better than the raleigh, yet much more uncommon. Pretty chuffed that I found it to be honest

 

[lpretro1]

I have some white outer brake cable if you want it. Please send me a PM and Let me know approx what lengths you need as I have some precut stuff. Inner cables I can also supply.I won't charge as much as the Old Bicycle Showroom!