Originally Posted by
Thrahl
Basically like the title says.
I currently am running some no-name aero road levers I bought from eBay with some very cheap single pivot tektro brakes hooked together with some $5 cable I got from Walmart and some brand new Kool-Stop Thinline brake pads.
After replacing the pads I noticed a fairly significant increase in braking performance but I'm just not getting that nice snappy/responsive feel that nicer bikes have.
I'm just wondering, what part (or parts) contributes to responsiveness/braking performance the most?
What contributes the most? The rider. Or, more specifically, the rider technique. Before you've exhausted your wallet changing the pads, the brakes and the wheels, try changing your braking technique. If you brake from a relatively normal ride position, the highest deceleration you can achieve is around 0.5g before the bike flips you over the bars. If you move your center of gravity down just a little and back you improve the deceleration to around 0.9g. The further back and down you go, the higher the deceleration you can achieve before the bike pivots around the front hub.
How much do you move down and back? Even a few cm in both directions makes a big difference. Generally speaking, if your arms are extended (but not locked) and the rear of the saddle is hitting you about mid-thigh, you'll get close to that 0.9g deceleration.
This technique makes even crappy brakes work better and good brakes fantastic. Dump the cheap HelMart cables, too. Get a nice teflon coated Aztec inner cable and good housing.