On Thu, May 10, 2012 at 8:43 PM, ted <ted.ke...@comcast.net> wrote: > One of the key features of V brakes is that the tension in the brake > cable is lower that that in a cantilever, side pull, or dual-pivot > brake.
You lost me here. What do you mean by "tension in the brake cable"? If you're talking about brake return spring tension, that's just a design decision and not inherent in the style of brake. Modern brakes of all sorts have much lighter return springs. My early 90s Shimano cantis have the same "tension" as the Avid v-brakes on the tandem. But maybe I misunderstand. > Also if the > brake cable fails a V brake will stay open where as with cantilevers > if the straddle wire catches on tire nobs it may lock up. Again, not inherent in the design. Lots of cantis use Shimano's "link wire" design that runs the main cable directly to one of the canti arms. If the main or link cable breaks, the brake opens. And, as you say, not a big deal anyway. > What I find really inexplicable is how many folks seem to get so very > wound up about this stuff. For a long time, it seems like new bike gear was just assumed by default to be better. I like that among groups like this new stuff has to earn it. OK, now that I think about it, the fact that v-brakes still qualify as new technology here is pretty funny. I've tried v-brakes on 3 bikes and have liked them OK. For me, they stop the bike about the same as nice medium profile cantis, squeal about the same, set up easier, and are really ugly. Ugly probably shouldn't matter on a bike, but for some reason it does. Best, joe broach portland, or -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.
