Originally Posted by
bulldog1935
Someone might say the same about my Weinmann CP, but with Kool Stop Dura cartridge pads, they will lock up both wheels.
I've ridden Weinmann CP brakes as well, and found that they functioned very well compared to the Dia Compe brakes. In fact I liked them so much that I decided to go centerpull rather than side pull for my restomod project.
Originally Posted by
Salamandrine
They aren't great brakes, but even so you should be able to get them to work better than that. I'd suspect old dried out pads and/or steel rims. Almost any vintage rubber pad is going to be useless by now. Other possible issues: thin cheap brake cables, too much housing, cheap flexy housing, short reach levers.
No, this was with Kool Stop Salmon pads, the original Ukai alloy rims, new housing and cables, and both the original Dia Compe levers and Tektro RL341 aero levers. They just flex way too much. I'd call their performance passable on level ground when it's dry out, but add any sort of negative grade or water and they were downright dangerous. Maybe you had higher-end Dia Compe brakes, but the 400 sidepulls that are ubiquitous to vintage Japanese bikes were simply not good. I'm also quite heavy at 220 lbs, so a brake that might seem good to someone who is lighter is not going to work well for me.