What brake blocks please?

[Rodderstrotter]

Looks like a good result, glad it worked.
Also received my swissstop green today, quick fit. Gave them a little sand first with emery paper, and cleaned the rims with IPA. Haven't been on a proper ride yet, but a quick test proved much better braking, and hopefully they'll improve even more once bedded in. Well worth £20 IMO.

 

[Louise Harley]

Can anyone tell me where I would get these wonderful inventions called cross levers, as I am finding myself afraid to do any speed in traffic for fear of not being able to stop?

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

These are the ones I purchased, but just search on "cross levers" on any bike shop website you use...
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/cane-creek-crosstop-brake-levers/ (I had to add extra 'padding' around the bars for these because I ended up mounting them into the narrower section of the bars to allow for things like the lights to stay on the bike.

these are a cheaper pair http://www.wiggle.co.uk/tektro-ml570-dirt-jump-levers-pair/

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/dia-compe-tech-99-gold-finger-brake-levers/ these are more expensive, but come in different colours and also have narrower bar sizes available.

I would say that unless you have the confidence to disconnect your brakes and then cut brake cable housing (not the cable) you might be better off asking a LBS to do it for you. I have to say when I first did it, it was a touch daunting. I found having another bike to bale to aided my confidence and I guess next time around I will probably do a slightly better job of it that I did first time around. (I'm not trying to put you off, just make you aware of what you are getting into - I don't have a car available to me during the week so can not afford to kill my transport options!) You are going to need to remove all of the brake cable from its housing which means disconnecting the brakes completely and pulling the cable out all the way to the STI shifters. Then you get the wonderful descision on where to cut the cable housing to feed into either side of the brake levers - get it wrong and you need new cabling and could end up putting new tape on your bars as well. Once everything is in place, you then need to feed the brake cable back into the housing and re-connect your brakes.

 

[GlenBen]

Totally off topic...I had ways wondered how those cross levers pulled the brake, I couldnt understand how two cables could pull one brake. Turns out they dont...they both pull the same cable...fairly obvious really.