Ladies' Favorit 1981

[Chris S]

It's hard to see from the photo but are those brake levers for linear pull brakes? They may not give enough leverage with calliper brakes.

 

[dimrub]

It's hard to see from the photo but are those brake levers for linear pull brakes? They may not give enough leverage with calliper brakes.

I must confess I don't know the answer to this. I went back to the Aliexpress listing, and it is not clear on this point either. I guess I'll need to try and adjust the brakes and see whether they can generate enough pull to actually break - unless there's a way to tell based on their look?

 

[Chris S]

Linear pull brake levers have to move more cable with less force. They're shorter than caliper brake levers and have an obvious angle in them.

Caliper brake levers are longer as they need to apply more force. Ideally they should be straight but they usually have a slight curve in them for ergonomic reasons.

 

[dimrub]

Went back and adjusted the brakes today. Seems like the levers were the correct type. At least the front brake worked perfectly almost immediately. The rear one is giving me a bit of grief. The cable keeps sagging, and I'd be happier if the caliper arms were a couple of milimeters longer - the pads are not fully aligned against the rims. The wheels are also not as aligned as I thought - but luckily, my proper new truing stand is here, and here's a perfect chance to use it. But never mind that, the gears are connected and sort of aligned, and I can do a test ride tomorrow, then deal with the finer adjustments.

 

[dimrub]

Did a test ride today. Very nice riding for a city bike. Some more tweaking is required:
- Having another go at retruing the wheels
- Perhaps a better adjustment of the gears
- Connecting the lights

But other than that, it's done. The brakes work great, much better than expected.

 

[All uphill]

You've done a nice job there, @dimrub

 

[Chris S]

Bikes from that era used rectangular brake pads. It would explain why the rear ones on yours catch the tyres.