Old fashioned brake levers...

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Cab

New Member
Location
Cambridge
Anyone know where I can get old fashioned brake levers of the type you saw on road bikes/racers in the 70s? I'm referring to the ones where you've got levers both on the drop part of the bars and the cross bars at the top, so you can brake in either position. I haven't seen any in donkeys years, I'd love to get a set.
 
C

chillyuk

Guest
Item number:280430101807 for starters.

New, £6:99 buy it now.

I am NOT the seller!!
 

jay clock

Massive member
Location
Hampshire UK
the ones you are after are called suicide levers. Try your local dump as they will be on a lot of very old bikes. And increase your life insurance cover asap
 

Ian H

Ancient randonneur
The problem with them was that the secondary levers would easily contact the bars even when the brakes were properly adjusted. So grabbing a handful of lever on the tops would lead to less retardation than expected, and an inevitable look of panic on the rider's face.
 
Cab said:
Anyone know where I can get old fashioned brake levers of the type you saw on road bikes/racers in the 70s? I'm referring to the ones where you've got levers both on the drop part of the bars and the cross bars at the top, so you can brake in either position. I haven't seen any in donkeys years, I'd love to get a set.

How many pairs do you want? We have loads of them at Cyclemagic off the bikes we get in for recycling.
 
OP
OP
Cab

Cab

New Member
Location
Cambridge
Really that dangerous? I rode around on an old 'Sun Super' with those on for years, never had a problem with them; had to keep the brakes working properly but it never seemed a problem.
 
OP
OP
Cab

Cab

New Member
Location
Cambridge
Hilldodger said:
How many pairs do you want? We have loads of them at Cyclemagic off the bikes we get in for recycling.

It'd be one pair, but the others have just scared me a bit; are they that dangerous?

Would you chaps be able to send a pair out for postage and a wee donation?
 

Norm

Guest
I have them on my old Viking and I've never had a problem with them. Sure, they don't have the ultimate stopping power that you get on the drops but they are enough to moderate speed on descents or something like that.
 
They are a truly dreadful invention and should have been put down at birth. When men were men and bikes were bikes you could tell a cheap n nasty steel bike from a lightweight cos the cheap one always had the suicide levers.
 

bauldbairn

New Member
Location
Falkirk
Cab said:
Really that dangerous? I rode around on an old 'Sun Super' with those on for years, never had a problem with them; had to keep the brakes working properly but it never seemed a problem.

Had them fitted to a Raliegh Europa from the early to mid 80's with no proplems at all - they're auxilliary brakes. I think some people tended to have them wrongly adjusted, or the main levers fitted incorrectly so as to restrict their operation / efficiency.
 
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