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Old 02-28-15, 11:32 PM
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Just picked up an old mountain bike, this one has got brake levers that have "high" and "low" settings, and it's equipped with V brakes. Shouldn't that be in the "high" position? It came to me in the "low" position and the brakes seem really grabby to me. That could be just because I'm used to cantilevers, or that might be because these are old Servo-wave levers and might not be adjusted correctly. Either way, I want to be sure they are in the right setting, because if I'm not mistaken, the other setting is for cantilevers right?

Sorry, normally I feel like I'd be able to find the answer to this via googling, but all my google attempts bring up everything except the info I'm looking for.
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Old 03-01-15, 12:03 AM
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I believe the settings have to do with the pull ratio. V-brakes use a unique "pull" compared with...

This stuff...The Geometry of Cantilever Brakes
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Old 03-01-15, 12:10 AM
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Impossible to know what the manufacture meant by "hi and low". But the canti setting need more cable pull and the V setting less. You figure it out. Andy.
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Old 03-01-15, 12:52 AM
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Originally Posted by cale
I believe the settings have to do with the pull ratio. V-brakes use a unique "pull" compared with...

This stuff...The Geometry of Cantilever Brakes
Yeah, that I get. I need to know which is which.
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Old 03-01-15, 05:55 AM
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"High" is the canty setting. "Low" is the low effort V-brake setting.
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Old 03-01-15, 05:57 AM
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Lever brand & model?

Post some photos.
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Old 03-01-15, 06:52 AM
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Originally Posted by Andrew R Stewart
But the canti setting need more cable pull and the V setting less.
Nope, the other way around.
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Old 03-01-15, 06:55 AM
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Originally Posted by Medic Zero
I need to know which is which.
For v-brakes, the cable should hook up as far as possible from the lever's pivot point.
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Old 03-01-15, 07:36 AM
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Originally Posted by cobba
Lever brand & model?

Post some photos.
I'll will in a few hours. Stuck at work at the moment. According to Bikepedia, should be "Shimano Deore LX levers" from 1997 (OEM for a '97 GT Tequesta FS), they say "Servo-wave" on the levers though.

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Old 03-01-15, 07:41 AM
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Originally Posted by Retro Grouch
"High" is the canty setting. "Low" is the low effort V-brake setting.
Ah! Thank you! I think that may be it, but it might be complicated in this case by the fact that they are older Servo-wave units. Doing some more research tonight, I came across this: "it's more of a concentric cam where initially it was low leverage/high cable travel and as it rotated (as the brake lever was further squeezed) it would roll up on the high leverage/low travel portion of the cam. The "L" and "H" on the bottom allowed you to tune how much leverage you had and there is a button-head screw on the front that held the cable in place as it was wrapped around the cam 360 degrees. I thought it was a pretty clever design, but never caught on probably due to the same mechanics that whined that double-hump rollercam brakes were too difficult to adjust" - unfortunately the poster didn't say which model Servo-wave units they were talking about, and that post was several years old and they hadn't had any recent activity.
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Old 03-01-15, 08:00 AM
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I don't have experience with "Servo Wave", but some newer brakes-
Have a little plastic "plug" that is held in with a screw.
It can be installed in either of 2 positions foe canti's or V brakes.


I'm pretty sure from your description yours are not these.

What I gather from reading about the Servo Wave is that adjustment is somewhat critical so you get the transition from "travel" to "force" at the correct time.
They are designed for canti's.
V brakes pull more cable with less leverage. Servo Wave would probably be too much force as the pads are engaging.

To quote Sheldon-
"Shimano ("Servo-Wave" ®) and Odyssey both make mountain-bike type levers with a variable mechanical advantage that increases as the lever is pulled."
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File Type: jpg
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Last edited by Bill Kapaun; 03-01-15 at 08:14 AM.
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Old 03-01-15, 08:12 AM
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IMO there are no dumb questions on anything. To me it indicates a person is willing to learn something.
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Old 03-01-15, 11:36 AM
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Originally Posted by dabac
Nope, the other way around.
Of course you're correct, my dyslexia keeps pulling me to that other left Andy.
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Old 03-01-15, 02:38 PM
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Originally Posted by Bill Kapaun
I don't have experience with "Servo Wave", but some newer brakes-
Have a little plastic "plug" that is held in with a screw.
It can be installed in either of 2 positions foe canti's or V brakes.


I'm pretty sure from your description yours are not these.

What I gather from reading about the Servo Wave is that adjustment is somewhat critical so you get the transition from "travel" to "force" at the correct time.
They are designed for canti's.
V brakes pull more cable with less leverage. Servo Wave would probably be too much force as the pads are engaging.

To quote Sheldon-
"Shimano ("Servo-Wave" ®) and Odyssey both make mountain-bike type levers with a variable mechanical advantage that increases as the lever is pulled."
Everything I've read so far indicates the Servo-wave levers were intended for V-brake use. In fact, I think they were an attempt by Shimano to provide more modulation for linear pull brakes to more closely match the feel of cantilevers.

Pics in a few minutes...
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Old 03-01-15, 09:49 PM
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.


Sorry, here's the photo! (Fell asleep, I work nights; 12 hour shift + 20 mile round trip commute...)



I found the model # on the underside of the clamp: BL 600
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Old 03-01-15, 10:02 PM
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It's a v-brake lever.

Exploded diagram: https://bernd.sluka.de/Fahrrad/Shiman...-M600_1997.gif
Service instructions: https://www.retrobike.co.uk/gallery2/...00+bl-m600.jpg
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Old 03-02-15, 12:48 AM
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Originally Posted by cobba
AWESOME! Muchas dankes! THAT was exactly what I needed, and I still wasn't having any luck with the googles despite having the make and model #. Thanks again!

Bike Forums delivers!
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