Bicycle Mechanics - V Brake levers on calliper brakes ???

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Flakmonkey
03-26-04, 04:25 AM
Hi,

I've just fitted a set of combined brake & shifter levers to my commuter MTB which has left me with a rather nice pair of Shimano 2 finger V brake levers spare.

I was wondering as to the wisdom of possibly fitting these on my flat bar road bike which currently has calliper brakes, but rather long levers, would this be OK or is it a definite NO - NO ?

I could always try them out but, thought I'd ask here first to save me a bit of work & a set of cables if the idea is a complete non starter.

Cheers

FlakMonkey

schwinnbikelove
03-26-04, 04:54 AM
I've never been able to get it to work good, the levers always seemed to hard to pull for some reason. (I've tried it a couple different times...) Maybe you'd have better luck?
Gonzo Bob
03-26-04, 06:42 AM
V-brake levers don't have enough mechanical advantage for canti-lever or caliper brakes. Your stopping power will be drastically reduced.

Retro Grouch
03-26-04, 09:57 AM
Hi,

I've just fitted a set of combined brake & shifter levers to my commuter MTB which has left me with a rather nice pair of Shimano 2 finger V brake levers spare.

I was wondering as to the wisdom of possibly fitting these on my flat bar road bike which currently has calliper brakes, but rather long levers, would this be OK or is it a definite NO - NO ?

I could always try them out but, thought I'd ask here first to save me a bit of work & a set of cables if the idea is a complete non starter.

Cheers

FlakMonkey

At least some of the Shimano V brake levers have two pivot positions. They're marked "L" and "H". I'm thinking that if you move the pivot to the "H" position they'll work fine.
madpogue
03-26-04, 10:19 AM
At least some of the Shimano V brake levers have two pivot positions. They're marked "L" and "H". I'm thinking that if you move the pivot to the "H" position they'll work fine. I've even seen some (Tektro's, maybe) marked "V" and "C", for (duh!) V-brake and canti/cali, respectively.
Flakmonkey
03-26-04, 12:02 PM
I've just checked and they have, in fact, got three pivot positions so I think I'll give them a try on the "H" setting & see how they work out.

Thanks for the input guys.

Cheers

FlakMonkey