Originally Posted by
earth_pig
So I was a little confused on the last bit you just posted up. Is it not possible to buy the R556 brakes and just use the longer bolt from my older brake set, seeing as it's already cut to the proper lenght for my frame? And if the answer's no, is there any way to simply buy that bolt somewhere where I am not spending 18 bucks on it and ending up with a set of brakes I'll probably never use?
...Thanks for the post up by the way, I'm doing my first single speed conversion from an old schwinn worldsport frame I have and this problem didn't even occur to me untill I caught your thread. Thanks for the heads up.
That's what this part of my post was intended to address:
"Originally, I didn't understand why I just couldn't use *any* bolt as a replacement. I didn't realize until I took apart the caliper that it has step threading - one set of threads holds the first-pivot caliper to the mount (secured by a recessed allen screw) and the second set of threads allows the nut to thread on."
They are special bolts with two different sets of threads. The whole point of buying the 800a's is just to get the bolts, so if you can find them somewhere else then for all means go for it. BUT - this type of bolt is specific to dual-pivot caliper designs. So, your old brakes would need to be dual pivot AND use the proper threading (in order for you to be able to swap in your old bolts).