Secondary brake levers .... a surprising disclaimer

[Mrs M]

I have secondary brakes on my road bike, work fine and no yellow stickers

 

[TheDoctor]

Those levers are fine. I use them as the only lever on my SS, and have done for years.

 

[bigjim]

About what you'd expect for an ex shot putter and second row forward! I squeeze the bejeezus out of the levers on my regular bike to get the desired braking .... and the fact that I chew through pads so fast would suggest that the force is getting through. I am (ahem) 20 stone, though!

It (the reason for secondary levers) really is all about the neck with me. I guess if you've never experienced that, it might be difficult to convey. I used to find that if I ever went over 20-25 miles, I was in agony when I got home and tried to lift the garage door. Now I can happily do 60-70 miles with no neck pain.

I'm not quite as heavy as you but. A few years ago I had a newish tourer that I had been using for club rides and local training runs. It has cantilever brakes and I had no problems with them. I was talked into attempting the Coast to Coast. I loaded the bike up with four panniers and full camping gear. Everything seemed fine. Until I was descending a steep hill in pouring rain. Applied the brakes for a left turn coming up. Not a chance! Nothing. The damn thing just kept on rolling, gathering speed. All that weight was defeating the brakes. Thought I was going to die. Shot right past the turn and the only thing that saved me was when the road started to rise and I could eventually stop. I think your weight has a lot to do with the problem, including wearing your pads. I go through pads as well but I'm no lightweight either.

 

[Elybazza61]

Could be just Specialized covering their arses if something goes wrong

We've fitted them to a few bikes in the shop with no issues all on disc braked bikes.

 

[winjim]

I'm confused by the label. It says that the bicycle will not meet EN14764/14781 as secondary levers do not produce the required force. Surely performance of the secondary levers is irrelevant so long as the primary levers are able to meet the standards. It could be, of course, that installation of the secondaries affects the system in such a way that the primaries are unable to produce the required force, but that's not what the label says.

 

[Lonestar]

No.Generally I found secondary levers crap and the main brakes were not much better.

 

[alecstilleyedye]

the cross levers on my boardman cx are my brake of choice; makes filtering between two lines of traffic a lot safer…

 

[Andy_R]

Could be just Specialized covering their arses if something goes wrong

We've fitted them to a few bikes in the shop with no issues all on disc braked bikes.

^^This.
It's just arse covering bollocks. Secondary "interruptor" brakes are as good as any others. They stop the wheel from turning. Simples.

 

[ColinJ]

View attachment 383624

Note how the primary brake levers are drilled to offset the added weight of the suicide levers!

 

[Gravity Aided]

I will now bring up trekking and mustache bars, these would allow you to use the primary brakes from a less than upright position, yet not as severe as drop bars. As an XXL cyclist much of the same size and shape as yourself (thanks, Netherlands), I can verify that secondary brake systems may be as useful as teats on a boar hog.

Butterfly, trekking bars.

Mustache bars.
I have used both of these in the past, and find they offer positive aero characteristics and hand position choices on a par with drop bars. Handlebar width will be just as important, though, so get a good idea of your measurement for proper fitting. Admittedly, I still use drops, as I need the position over distance to keep my lower back from creating problems I would experience from a more upright riding position.

 

[hopless500]

I've no experience of the modern secondary brake levers, but I well remember the old suicide levers, they were aptly named.

My Wisp has suicide levers. Can't reach the main brake levers but the adjusted suicide levers work well.

 

[Nebulous]

I use em as the only brake levers on my 653 framed bike with the cable nipple in the adjuster.

View attachment 383621

If Mad Max did bikes...... Crossbow mount in the middle?

 

[Tenacious Sloth]

Lovely new bike @Donger.

I don’t know if you’ve ridden cable-operated discs before, but prepare to be initially underwhelmed when you first use them today.

But don’t panic.

A couple of years ago I bought a CAADX fitted with Pro Render R cable-operated disc brakes which have been universally slammed as being “pants” (including on this thread). This was my initial assessment as well, but since properly breaking them in, I now think they’re fantastic.

The breaking in procedure has been covered many times on this forum, but in a nutshell find a nice, long, steepish, but most importantly open/safe hill and, one brake at a time, gradually apply pressure until you almost come to a stop, then release. Do not hold the brake on after coming to a stop unless you want pad material glued to your disks. Repeat until you’re happy with the braking.

Most of all, enjoy the new bike and I hope it maintains the smile that was put onto your face after we beat the Aussies yesterday (I was going to say “thrashed” but even I have to admit that the score flattered us).



Graham

 

[Banjo]

Lovely new bike @Donger.

I don’t know if you’ve ridden cable-operated discs before, but prepare to be initially underwhelmed when you first use them today.

But don’t panic.

A couple of years ago I bought a CAADX fitted with Pro Render R cable-operated disc brakes which have been universally slammed as being “pants” (including on this thread). This was my initial assessment as well, but since properly breaking them in, I now think they’re fantastic.

.

Same experience with my Synapse

 

[Randy Butternubs]

I'm not quite as heavy as you but. A few years ago I had a newish tourer that I had been using for club rides and local training runs. It has cantilever brakes and I had no problems with them. I was talked into attempting the Coast to Coast. I loaded the bike up with four panniers and full camping gear. Everything seemed fine. Until I was descending a steep hill in pouring rain. Applied the brakes for a left turn coming up. Not a chance! Nothing. The damn thing just kept on rolling, gathering speed. All that weight was defeating the brakes. Thought I was going to die. Shot right past the turn and the only thing that saved me was when the road started to rise and I could eventually stop. I think your weight has a lot to do with the problem, including wearing your pads. I go through pads as well but I'm no lightweight either.

I had a similar experience and was only saved by a bit of fred-flintstoning. In my case it was entirely the fault of the stock brake pads - it must've been my first properly wet ride on them and they practically disintegrated into slippery black ink.