Originally Posted by
fender1
I am going to be the outlier here and say that I would not pay a premium for Paul center pulls. I had them on the same bike, nutted mount and brazed on. In both case I felt they were less responsive than a nice set of dual pivot calipers. I have the VO dual pivot calipers on 2 bikes and they outperform the Paul's (IMHO) in every aspect.
The VO are also a good bit simpler to set up, simpler to live with if you make changes to your set up and do not squeal.
FWIW, Paul products I have tried and been underwhelmed by : Racer brakes (Long reach) Neo-retro Cantilevers, Touring Cantilevers and mini Moto's. They all work OK but not at at the "game changing" level that justify the extra cost. This is just my opinion/experience, not fact. Other's have used them and loved them quite a bit.
Let me add another contrarian voice to this thread, as well. I'm coming at it from a different perspective, having not owned any PAUL products.
Why bother? You have at least two perfectly functional brake set ups. If you want them and have the money, okay. If you want black-colored brakes, okay. However, it's not like you can expect any game-changing performance over what you have.
As a point of reference, I am perfectly happy with my Campagnolo side pulls. With new brake pads, they are easily modulated, and, if desired, they can lock up either or both wheels (I'm not sure why you'd want to do that but you could). It sounds like there are many others out there that can do the same.
If this is a hand strength or lever-reach issue, buying aero levers may be all you need.