Mountain Biking - Tektro brake quality

Specifically, has anyone tried their brake levers? It is getting harder to find nice cantilever brake levers. The only ones I can find are Tektro. Ebay seems hit or miss on NOS Shimano or Dia-Compe levers.'

Tim

Ive been using Tektro V's for about 2 years, the brakes kinda sucked, but the levers were ok. I recently upgraded to Avid BB7 mech discs, but kept the Tektro levers, they still work fine.

Yeah, my dad has Tektro levers mated to BB5's, they work fine.

The Performance Forte Team brake levers have a little switch inside the handle where you hook the cable. The switch allows you to select v-brake or cantilever for correct cable pull. Nice feeling brake lever and now only $13/pair.

I have a set. I just checked on the web site and it doesn't say they work for both v & canti. Check before you buy to make sure they didn't do a switcharoo.

If you want more bling. There's always these LINK (http://www.paulcomp.com/cantilever.html)

If you want more bling. There's always these LINK (http://www.paulcomp.com/cantilever.html)
Hey Raiyn you should know is: isn't there enough adjustment run-in on a set of Speed-Dial levers to set them for cantilevers? Just a thought . . . .

Hey Raiyn you should know is: isn't there enough adjustment run-in on a set of Speed-Dial levers to set them for cantilevers? Just a thought . . . .
To tell you the truth I've never tried, nor would I try it in the first place. V-brake levers pull twice the cable, half as hard, where Canti levers do the opposite. The lower leverage of the V lever makes up for for the higher leverage of the V-brake. This is why it's not a good idea to mix and match.

V-brake levers used with any other type of brakes will feel all sorts of firm when you squeeze them, but due to their lower leverage you'll need to clamp down twice as hard to stop and there just isn't enough adjustment in the Speed dial to fully compensate for this.

To tell you the truth I've never tried, nor would I try it in the first place. V-brake levers pull twice the cable, half as hard, where Canti levers do the opposite. The lower leverage of the V lever makes up for for the higher leverage of the V-brake. This is why it's not a good idea to mix and match.

V-brake levers used with any other type of brakes will feel all sorts of firm when you squeeze them, but due to their lower leverage you'll need to clamp down twice as hard to stop and there just isn't enough adjustment in the Speed dial to fully compensate for this.I get your point but consider this for a moment: I had a set of levers that could be set up for either canti or V - - depending on where you flip-flopd the cable pull anchor inside. It occurred to me that it was like a manual equivalent of the Speed-dial, but without the infinite adjustment in between the two points. But I'm not sure if the SD runs in far enough toward the pivot center (more leverage, less cable pull) to actually work the same way.

But I'm not sure if the SD runs in far enough toward the pivot center (more leverage, less cable pull) to actually work the same way.
That's my concern as well. I do understand your concept (I've run speed dial levers for years), but I'm not comfortable saying "Yeah go ahead". As I see it, the speed dial changes the pivot point decreasing the felt pressure at the lever yet it still pulls the same amount of cable and still has the same applied leverage at the wheel. This would make the lever unsuitable for a canti application.

I will never forgive Tektro brake pads. They just super suck, no grip at all which caused me to lose control at a lot of places. Not sure about their levers though.

I though Avid Speed Dial is one of those good cantilever brake levers?

I though Avid Speed Dial is one of those good cantilever brake levers?
Nope they've been V for a long time

I had tektro levers with shimano v's then switched it out for avid bb5's and they worked fine...but I switched the levers anyway two weeks ago to the fr5's cause they were too cheap to pass up.

If you want more bling. There's always these LINK (http://www.paulcomp.com/cantilever.html)

Those are very nice. Now, if I could only get them in a 4-finger size. I really like the look of full size levers. That's the problem being a dinosaur.

Tim

Those are very nice. Now, if I could only get them in a 4-finger size. I really like the look of full size levers. That's the problem being a dinosaur.

Tim

4 finger?....seriously, you brake using all 4 fingers?

4 finger?....seriously, you brake using all 4 fingers?

Even on V's the most I've had to use is 3.

wow, I only use 1 or 2

Speed dial can be cranked in half the way to the pivot point. Thats half the pull, twice the force. Works fine on cantilever.

Speed dial can be cranked in half the way to the pivot point. Thats half the pull, twice the force. Works fine on cantilever.
No, it isn't, and no it doesn't. I happen to have Speed Dial levers on my commuter. Just to double check myself I went out and adjusted them through the whole range of motion with the speed dial.
If it was as you said the pads wouldn't make it to the rim (half the cable) and the force applied would change. Guess what. The pads hit the rim, and they achieved the same amount of terminal force regardless of Speed Dial position. The only thing that changed was the position of the lever when the wheel achieved lock.

That plus the fact that the instructions say NOT TO USE THEM WITH ANYTHING BUT DIRECT PULL (V-BRAKES) http://www.sram.com/en/service/avid/view.php?catID=1&subcatID=3 Take your pick

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If it was as you said the pads wouldn't make it to the rim (half the cable) and the force applied would change. Guess what. The pads hit the rim, and they achieved the same amount of terminal force regardless of Speed Dial position. The only thing that changed was the position of the lever when the wheel achieved lock.


The purpose of the Speed Dial is to adjust the amount of leverage the lever applies, not to affect when the pad will contact the rim. The modulation, amount of cable travel relative to finger lever travel, is changed with that dial.

The purpose of the Speed Dial is to adjust the amount of leverage the lever applies, not to affect when the pad will contact the rim. The modulation, amount of cable travel relative to finger lever travel, is changed with that dial.
That's true and applicable to what I had said. However the amount of cable needed to actuate the brakes doesn't change. These levers are NOT compatible with Canti's

4 finger?....seriously, you brake using all 4 fingers?

Actually no, I just like the way those Old School levers look. 2 finger levers work just fine. I just don't like the way they look.

Tim

Try and find a better pair of cantilever brake levers than these. They're light adjustable and have always been known as one of the best if not "The Best" brake levers for canti's. Have ridden them going on 15 yrs. Two pair in that time. Some things do wear out with use.
http://cgi.ebay.com/RITCHEY-LOGIC-Brake-Levers-Single-Speed-Mountain-NIB_W0QQitemZ200113809038QQihZ010QQcategoryZ27949QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Try and find a better pair of cantilever brake levers than these. They're light adjustable and have always been known as one of the best if not "The Best" brake levers for canti's. Have ridden them going on 15 yrs. Two pair in that time. Some things do wear out with use.
http://cgi.ebay.com/RITCHEY-LOGIC-Brake-Levers-Single-Speed-Mountain-NIB_W0QQitemZ200113809038QQihZ010QQcategoryZ27949QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

I had those ritchey levers for a while and didn't care for them so much. They weren't bad, but most other levers I had used seemed better. They were just sort of sloppy.

cs1- I have a pair of suntour XCM lever I could sell or trade if you like big levers:

Like these: http://www.velomech.ch/images/parts/suntourbremshebel.jpg