seagrade 

Roche’s setup especially is unusual in that he is still using Cobalto brake levers without integrated quick release in combination with a slightly later Delta caliper also without a quick release.

The combination was of course never intended to be used together, with a C-Record brake lever with integrated quick release appearing in late 1986 catalogues, well before this photo was taken during the 1987 Giro.

More obvious of course is that Visentini and Breukink are still using exposed cables even though their brake levers, whether Cobalto or C-Record, could be readily set up with “aero” cables.

rccardr 

Yours is the only one I’ve ever seen in pictures owned by someone I’ve met in person.
Have never seen another Pelozzoli bike in the flesh.

verktyg 

1. MODULATION has frequently been used by many as a lame excuse for brakes that DON'T STOP WELL!!!

2. Brake pads are probably the single biggest factor in how well modern bicycle brakes work. The pads on many C&V bikes can be up to 50+ years old. The rubber or synthetic polymer compounds harden with age. In the case with most types of rubber, it's the heated vulcanized surface that turns hard during manufacturing. Sort of like bread crust!

Even brand new pads have a hard surface layer from .1mm to .3mm+ deep depending on the material and manufacturing process used. The hard surface will eventually wear down with use and the pads will start working better but why wait???

3. I sand, grind or file the face of every brake pad that I install or work on. One product that I found that works very well is 3M Screen Cloth. It's inexpensive and readily available for sanding smooth Dry Walls after plastering. Medium Grit works well.


Now back to the original topic - Delta Brakes. I bought two 1991 Lemond TeamZ bikes back in 2009. Both were C-Record equipped with Delta brakes. The one that I sold to jamesdak had a few miles on it. The other has never been ridden and is on consignment at American Cyclery in San Francisco, CA. Needless to say I can't comment on the stopping attributes of those Delta brakes. BUT WAIT, scroll down to my Eddy Merckx below.



The virgin TeamZ bike.



I picked up a low mileage 1985 Merckx Corsa with a 1988 Croce d'Aune gruppo including CDA Delta brakes.I never rode the bike very much but the ride and handling were exceptional. The first thing that I noticed about the CDA Deltas was that they took a much higher amount of force on the levers to get the same kind of breaking effect compared to all of the other standard single pivot brakes that I was using like Campy NR/SR, Dia-Compe and Weinmann Carrera models. Needless to say not very impressed!

Sorry about the crappy photos. A lot of them deteriorated when I switched computers...





Good website with lots of info on Delta brakes: https://www.campyonly.com/roadtests/delta.html

Now onto to something different, Campy Monoplaner brakes. To me, Delta brakes have an elegance like something that came out of a Faberge or Tiffany shop. The Monoplaners are handsome, manly brakes with more than adequate stopping power that compares with some dual pivot brakes. .



One last observation, Campy vs. Shimano Dual Pivot brakes. I have a number of different models of both brands on my bikes: 105, Ultegra, DuraAce vs. Centaur, C Record and so on. The early 105 brake pads sucked but I replaced them with DuraAce that fixed the problem. Regardless of the brake pads, OEM or KoolStop, the Shimano calipers seem to work a little better with less effort. JMHO.

Now for the ultimate in bicycle rim brakes: back in time, I received a set of prototype Bontrager "Speed Limit" brakes to road test. For the shear joy of experiencing the onset of retinal detachment a la Big Daddy Don Garlits when he popped a chute in his top fuel dragster... These are the brakes!



Been riding derailleur bikes since 1964 and these are the best! They look a little quirky but man do they stop well with complete control!!!

verktyg

Keefusb

Clearly, Dick York was the better Darren. He was Jim Carey before Jim Carey. Unfortunately, he injured his back, and the injury and the subsequent pain medication addiction got him written out of Bewitched. He was a three-pack a day smoker and died from COPD.

Dick Sargent was dull.

Keefusb

BTW, Dura Ace 7800 calipers are the best I have used. It's almost like they have power assist. Helps me stop my big fat 215# self under any condition. Subsequent Dura Ace stoppers were not quite the same, I think they sacrificed stopping power for weight savings.

georges1

They are my favorite dual pivot brakes alongwith the 7700 and 7400

smd4

I’ve heard they’re excellent, but prefer the 7700s for effectiveness AND amazing looks. Coupled with SwissStop pads and compressionless cable, and I’d put them up against any brake on the market, including disks.

jamesdak 

LOL, I find this a bit humorous. After all your negative comments here you praise what is widely acknowledged as the worse modern caliper in the Dura Ace family.

Sorry, but just had to tease you about that!

I find 7700 just fine myself by the way but there's as many haters of them as there are Delta Brakes.

smd4

Really? I’ve seen many threads on the 7700 parts and don’t really recall seeing any hate for the brakes.

muzpuf

wont leave home without them ....where they really work well in is the rain .... and how long have I had them 30 years

Jimbo1983

I have a set of the 5-pivot Deltas on a bike I don't ride often, but have ridden enough to have opinions about the brakes!
For me they work as well as a reasonable set of single-pivots, I don't notice any real difference in braking between them and the Superbe Pro I have on another bike. The thing I don't like about them is how close they are to the tyre. A small amount of dirt on the tyre and there's all kinds of rubbing and scraping noises.
I haven't taken the bike down any big fast downhills but given how they work on my normal rides I can't imagine they'd be any worse than anything else. I don't know what levers they are being used with, I don't know how much difference it would make as long as they are some type of Campagnolo Record.

Chombi1 

And I thought my Delta front brake was very close to my 23mm front tire on my Montello, but yours look like its so much closer. Do you have the height adjustment on the main mounting bolt maxed out already?

Jimbo1983

Not so much maxed out as right in the sweet spot between the tyre not rubbing the underside of the brake, and the brake pads not touching the tyre when the brake is being used. Those tyres are 25mm which is probably why the tolerance is so much finer.

El Chaba

joluja 

I have ridden with them for a couple of years and have never had any problems. Set up was a bit longer than normal but not terrible. Performance is fine and honestly don’t feel much different than other brakes I ride.

botty kayer

I was out on my only Delta equipped bike this morning and didn't die.

They've gotten hate for their looks but I love them, and clearly so do many others. I've got a dozen bikes and the Delta's are the only brakes random people on the street approach me and ask what they are.

They epitomize the era of Italian form over function. Like the same era Campagnolo SGR pedals, which were over engineered, complicated, expensive, heavy and got widely slated in reviews....but they are still probably the most beautiful pedals ever in my opinion, and like the Delta's still expensive to buy today. People like pretty things. Beautiful versions of things seem to cost more than their fugly equivalents, in fact beautiful things car be worse than ugly things and still be forgiven their foibles, because, swoon.

I'm sure there are probably are some obscure and super rare and expensive brakes out there, but I don't know what they are. Are Delta's the most expensive old brakes around? Great if you they came on the bike you bought like mine, or if you ever want to sell them, not so great if you have to venture onto eBay for your first set.

repechage

the croce’ external spring versions definitely provided a bit more room about the tire. Obviously this is functional, but would function a bit like a tire scraper easily enough. As a bike shop mechanic when these were new, plenty of bikes that came in with the presented debris scraping on the underside. And to think the prototypes were smaller.

iab

I'm certain you meant Fausto vs. Eddy. Proper vs. poser is the correct order.

As for Delta, interesting read this thread, I have no interest in them. But I can guarantee the calipers I use are much much worse in stopping power and I have a 2023 off-topic Ekar. So why does performance matter in C&V?

repechage

not much, but the design should be in a revised edition of Objects of Desire by Adrian Forty.
not a bad ID history book, along with The Art of American Car Design.

The Italians had a long history with design super flourish, thinking of the Bertone BAT series cars.

Wildwood

Deltas on Italian bikes,
on English bikes,
Belgian and French, too.
one from a DownUnder bike,
on Lemond - not sure where built? Billato?

There are lots of Japanese collectors - Is there a pic of Deltas on a classic Japanese frame?

for American - have seen images of R Sachs roadies (yeah,...red with white panels) with Deltas.

smd4

Why can’t C&V bikes have good performance?

iab

Its relative. Always has been, always will be. And unless you are putting food on the table racing bikes, it is largely irrelevant.

smd4

It’s certainly not irrelevant to people who enjoy high performance C&V bikes. To them, it’s the entire point.

iab

Really?

And how exactly is their "performance" measured? By height?

Jimbo1983

I love your bike, it's probably the best bike I've ever seen online. It's amazing!