Originally Posted by
gkamieneski
Those bars need to be rotated downward probably 20 degrees almost to the point where the bottom of the drops are almost parallel to the ground (about 10 degrees short of parallel). Those look to be Weinmann calipers and levers, but I guess I didn’t realize how much they standoff from the bars. A more modern brake lever would be much closer to the bar overall.
Once you rotate the bars, you look to have an inch or so to move the brake levers up towards you to the point where the hoods will pretty much be parallel to the ground and comfortable for your hands.
Thank you for your explanation, I'm sure learning a lot from this forum. You are correct I have the original Weinmann calipers and levers. One thing I have been doing is probably totally wrong. I have a habit of pressing the release buttons. I put new kool stop brake pads on and thought they were awfully close to the rims unless I pressed the release buttons. In the morning before I ride I will rotate the bars down just short of being parallel to the ground. I will also raise the levers and see how things feel. I don't want to put my new tape on until I get my adjustments right. I was also thinking about cleaning my bars up with some 0000 steel wool. They haven't seen daylight in almost 60 years. When I took the original tape off it was no surprise there was no padding, strckly cosmetic.