I don't know the proper term for the thingy found at the top of this photo. This is from an Atala on the local CL. I just wanted to share/ask about it. I think it's clever.

I have often set those things up to be ridden "off". When I park the bike, I flip them on. Bike rolls nowhere until you flip it off. And brake release is as good as any name.

Ben

^ that's pretty funny. tune the bike to trap impeding theft.

i call them quick releases.

That, even though it is simplicity personified, is a remarkably good idea!

Sound like a pretty good idea.

I will still carry my Abus with me.

That type of brake release was SOP for years with centerpull and canti brakes. It was essentially outlawed by the US CPSC back around 1970 because so many people would forget to reset them and end up brakeless.

The CPSC mandate called for releases that would not affect the function of the brakes when left open. The modern systems built into the lever reflect that mandate.

Of course, using the "release" as a parking brake meets the requirement.

If you're looking for the one that fits your sixties Cinelli seat post bolt and clamp…I call them rare as hen's teeth.
Not me tho'.

I love those headset and seatpost cluster quick releases; it just makes removing the wheel that much easier.









And I, apparently don't have a good pic of the front QR.

I love those things. Two of my bikes have them.

That one pictured on the right is one of them!

This particular type has to be kept thoroughly lubed to function properly. Not uncommon for them to get bent into uselessness because they become grunged up and resistant to opening/closing and then the user resorts to force, with the obvious result. You may also need to "help it along" by holding the caliper closed or pulling up on the straddle cable to provide some slack so it can be moved without having tension on it.

Same trick works for side pulls (Campy, SunTour, Shimano, etc). The only potential issue is that you need to deflate the tire to pull the wheel in many cases. Still, lack of a quick release is better than lack of a bike.

Strange that the CPSC would just pick on this type of quick release to "outlaw". As other types of quick release mechanisms function pretty much the same way.......

Maybe it was the magnitude of the release? Perhaps the center pull quick releases open up the brakes so wide they won't work at all. On the very common side pull brakes on my road bikes (Campy, etc), opening the quick release increases the lever movement necessary to apply the brakes, but doesn't open up the calipers so far that they are completely useless. On my bikes with squealing brakes, the squeal will, over time, open up the lever on its own. They still work, but I have to reach down and close up the lever on the squealing brake every now and again. Just one of those lovable quirks, I guess.

I don't think there was a lot of rhyme or reason to many of the things the CPSC mandated. For example, it's not clear to me that adding that lip on Campy front derailleurs achieved anything other than to foster some compatibility problems down the line. And you still have those scary teeth on chainrings and cogs. Why weren't those on their hit list of "stuff that's too dangerous for people to use without protection"? Did the CPSC do anything about naked straddle wires and knobby tires, or was that the bike manufacturers themselves figuring that one out?

And then there is the law of unintended consequences. Lawyer lips (also a solution to some CPSC mandate about losing a front wheel) came with their own problems, not least of which was that they demanded that people use quick releases as both wing nuts (to get past the lip) and cam-operated wheel locks (to actually secure the wheel to the fork ends). Consequently, we are experiencing a huge recall many years later -- in part -- because (no big surprise, in retrospect), many inexperienced cyclists apparently are either unaware of the cam function, or believe the wing nut aspect of their operation is sufficient, allowing floppy QR levers to get overly amorous with modern disc brake rotors.

Ah...the Consumer Product Safety Commission. Bless their hearts, they tried to safe us from ourselves and those devilish manufacturers. I hope every person who ever worked there has been forced to ride bikes with quick release front wheels and has to deal with them daily.

They didn't "pick" on this design. They simply mandated that any release were designed such that it would reset automatically when the brake was applied, or that the released brake still were functional. They left it to the brake makers to design around that requirement, and we now see that most release systems are in the lever, or have limited travel so there's still some brake functionality.

Understand that the CPSC doesn't mandate any designs. They set objectives to be met, and/or ban design features they deem problematic, and let manufacturers figure out solutions.

They are called quick-release cable hangers for center-pull brakes. By 1964 Weinmann began including quick-release functionality in its brake levers so the hanger mounted releases were no longer necessary, allowing plain hangers to be used instead. The following pic shows the first example of the Weinmann quick-release levers:

Hmmmm.... I don't have any brakes with quick release mechanisms that would reset "automatically"..... and they were never "outlawed" as far as I know.
I think the CPSC was very inconsistent with their rulings on specific manufacturer's products. Just like the "Coke spoon" ends on Campy brakeset quick release levers and the RD adjustment screw plastic horns they had them put on their NR RDs in the 80's. Mafac/Spidel seemed to have dodged that bullet with their LS2 sidepull brakesets, even though they were sold in the US market about the same time the "safety modified" Campy brakesets were.....

Actually the earlier CPSC requirements were simple and straightforward. I was very much involved in translating & interpreting them for the Italian manufacturers we represented at the time.

There was no issue of inconsistancey because the CPSC didn't tell manufacturer what to do. They simply identified a number of issues & stated their objection and the general type of solution they wanted. But they only identified goals and objectives, and tests for measuring compliance. They left it to manufacturers to design to meet those objectives, which is why various makers came up different answers.

Also keep in mind, that the rules applied only to complete bikes sold at retail, and not to components sold separately as upgrades. They also allowed exceptions for "special purpose" or bicycles intended for competition.

In the case of brake QRs, not all manufacturers went to in the lever solutions. Some elected to reduce the throw of caliper or hanger mounted QR systems, though that approach depended on the proper adjustment.

At the time, I wasn't a fan of many of the requirements but, overall, considering the quality of what was being sold at the time, it was something that had to happen.

In general, the approach to regulation (not only for bicycles) in that era, where regulators identified a problem, and said "fix that however you want" was much better than the type of micro-management by regulation we see today.

I've often thought of using it as a parking brake, but I don't want to give up its original purpose. I just had an idea: install two in series!

The 1964 and up Weinmann quick-release levers reset automatically.

The releases in the brake lever work differently. Instead of effectively lengthening the wire, they simply return to further from the handlebar. You still have all the braking power. just a longer reach to the lever. Now in some, like the current Tektros, the release pops off as soon as you squeeze the brake. But others, like older Tektros and the Diacompes for many years, stay on. A real plus if you are riding and your wheel goes out of true and rubs the brake pad like after I crashed in a race. You can (and I did) release the brake and race with all your braking power intact. And you can do it keeping both hands on the bars, nice if that wheel is seriously out (as mine was). (I finished in the money. Thank you, Diacompe.) Another plus, with a second release elsewhere (edit: yes, two in series) , you can set the second as a parking brake and still pull wheels with ease. Best of both worlds!

Ben

Yeah, that's the one I like the best.