ESW116

I have a '77 Fuji Sports 10 that I built up a few months ago as a single speed commuter/all around fun bike. The guy I bought it from removed the rear brake for whatever reason, leaving only the front, which is not adequate because it feels worn and old and it does not pull well on the pads. If that can be fixed, let me know.

Anyway, I want new brakes front and back. Obviously, it is originally meant to have 27 inch wheels, however I have installed new 700c's. I am worried that this will require some kind of modification to get brakes that fit the new wheels that are of course slightly smaller than what the frame was designed for.

I'd like something of good quality but at a good price, so it doesn't have to blow anyone away - just work. All suggestions appreciated.

Airburst

You won't need to modify the brakes, you'll just need brakes with more reach than the standard calipers fitted to road bikes. They're readily available, in both nutted and recessed mounting (I can't tell which your frame and for are designed for, I'd imagine they're nutted from the age of the bike).

Sheldon Brown's article on caliper brakes will give you some idea of what you're dealing with. https://www.sheldonbrown.com/calipers.html

The rear brake may have been removed because the owner had the bike set up with a fixed-wheel at some point, and could therefore use his or her legs as a brake on the rear wheel. That front brake could still be made to work reasonably well, it'll need new pads and possibly a new cable and housing, but you'll still be buying at least one brake for the rear, so you may as well replace both, unless you have the original rear brake.

ESW116

Yeah, I should have clarified that the pads are brand new. I replaced them. It just isn't pulling on them well. I'm sure it has to be rebuilt or adjusted, if I were to go that route.

catmandew52

Maybe it's not the brakes.
Can't see what type of bars and brake lever you have.
A modern flat bar brake lever may be for canti's or v-brakes. Some(Tektro comes to mind) have an adjustment screw to somewhat change the effort needed or buy caliper brake specific levers.

https://www.tektro.com/_english/01_pr...r&sort=1&fid=3

LarDasse74

As long as the brake pads are adjusted so they hit the rim and not the tire, then there is no need to worry about compatibility with 700c wheels.

Replace brake cable with a new one with the correct length of housing. Ensure the brakes are actuating smoothly wthout any excessive looseness in the pivots.
There will be some loss of leverage in the brake when the pads are moved further away from the brake arm pivots. So a 27" -> 700c conversion will necessarily drop the braking power a bit.

THose brakes are not awesome performers, but thy should work adequately. I have the same brakes, as do many others.

ESW116

I like the Tektro suggestion. Didn't think of them.

gyozadude

I have a pair of Tektro R536 dual pivot calipers that had a standard nutted mount which would accommodate frames without recessed bolt mounts (which is mostly older bikes before the mid '80s) and some newer bikes, like single speed and track frames. The brakes work great and stop well with just light finger pressure. And I can run 700x32c (really 32mm wide!) tires on the R536 which I think had up to 57mm reach.

The R539 is the newer replacement of R536 which is getting harder to find. It comes with both recessed bolt mount and standard nutted. Same reach up to 57mm. But if you need even longer reach, try the R559 which go to 73mm or something like that.

puchfinnland

I agree on the levers need to be investagated, I also think you should get a rear brake also.

those old weinmann brakes are plentyfull.

I think there is a guy in thunderbay with boxes of parts and could set you up on the cheap with a matching set,
might also be able to get you a matching set of levers if interested.

I got those brakes in buckets but shipping from finland is more then the parts is worth

Retro Grouch 

Maybe- maybe not.

Your photo doesn't show the amount of brake reach that's needed very well. You should measure the vertical distance between the brake mounting hole and the rim's breaking surface in millimeters. Up to about 78mm should be fairly easy to source.

SweetLou

Most braking issues have to do with the cables and housing. The cable in your picture doesn't look new and shiny, so I am guessing it hasn't been replaced. New cables and housing will most likely increase braking for you. Newer aero levers have more mechanical advantage than the older non-aero levers. This can help also.

If your new pads are the ones in the picture, I'd replace them and get better pads. Those are not very good pads in my opinion.

Most likely, that brake is fine and should stop you well. I am not at the bike to tell, but usually it is not the brake that is the problem. Also, how are you squeezing the levers? Are you using the actual lever or the suicide lever? Suicide levers won't give you good braking.

ESW116

All of those tektro's are side pull's. Is converting from a center-pull to a side-pull an easy conversion?

bicyclridr4life

yes, You will have to replace the outer brake cable housing and remove the center pull brake's cable stops. Other than that, it is just a matter of taking off the center pull, installing the side pulls, and adjusting them. The center pull and side pull use the same brake levers.

surreal

-Easy to "convert" to sidepull...Really, you'll just need to install the new brakes and remove the cable guide.
-Measure the distance from the brakebolt to the middle of the rim's braking surface, with the wheel installed. In mm. Add 4mm, to make up for the difference between 622 and 630mm rims. Find a brakeset with a range of reach that the above figure fits into.
-Finding modern dual-pivot calipers with a nutted mount is getting harder all the time. If you're not running fenders, look at Sheldon Brown's advice on reversing front/rear recessed brakes to fit a frame set up for nutted brakes.

hth
-rob