Brake calipers vintage Dawes frame
 

Just wondering what the best, dual pivot, brake calipers would be for a dawes racer Reynolds 501 frame - 22 inch size - circa 1983********** The originals work fine just not all that effective. Cheers!

Probably your best bet is a pair of Tektro as they will be the easiest to find with nutted mounting.

Have you tried new pads on the original brakes?

I second the vote for new pads (and new cables and housings) with the original calipers. Also consider aero brake handles, for an additional 15% leverage. Nothing is free -- braking force is limited by how much caliper and lever travel one can tolerate, so I would be very surprised if new calipers made much difference at all. Pad-to-rim friction and cable losses (from friction, housing compression, etc.) are what counts. I have the much maligned early Campag. sidepulls on the Bianchi. They were deadly with Shimano pads and the original non-aero brake handles, but with KoolStop pads and Shimano brake handles, they are very effective.

+1 to what has been said already especially about pads. Pls throw some pics of your Dawes up for us to see!

A big Welcome to BF!