Are the Avid Ultimate levers I link here for V's or Canti's?

[ibbz]

Are these levers for V or canti?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/130831090949? ... 1423.l2649

The seller is stating that they're for V brakes. I messaged him to confirm and he said they were for V but could be used for Canti's.

Elsewhere a seller selling these (here) said they're Canti's - but he wasn't 100% sure.

Can anyone enlighten me?

 

[jimbog]

I was chatting to my local bike shop owner last week who knows his retro stuff. He stated (against what I believed) that v brake levers can operate either cantilever brakes or v brakes happily.
Apparently you cannot use canti brake levers with v brakes as the amount of cable taken up does not offer sufficient braking power on the rim.

 

[ibbz]

Thanks jim.
Any idea whether the ones I linked are V or canti only?

 

[jimbog]

All signs would point at both. I googled it for you and a pair sold on here a while back for £55 stating that they can be used for both. The owner of the ones that sold used them for cantis.

 

[We_are_Stevo]

The Avid levers in your link WILL work both canti's and V's, but generally the two are incompatible...

...the 'giveaway' is the measurement between the lever pivot and the inner-cable nipple; typically a canti' will be 23 - 27mm whilst a V will be 27 - 32mm.

This is all to do with the different 'mechanical advantage' (Sheldon Brown is the best site to Google for more info than your brain can process regarding any query you have about cycles!) required by the two types of brakes.

'Generally' canti' levers do NOT work with V's but the Avids WILL because they are adjustable.

You certainly wouldn't want to use V-brake levers with canti's...

...not unless you have a very good dentist!

 

[We_are_Stevo]

I was chatting to my local bike shop owner last week who knows his retro stuff. He stated (against what I believed) that v brake levers can operate either cantilever brakes or v brakes happily.
Apparently you cannot use canti brake levers with v brakes as the amount of cable taken up does not offer sufficient braking power on the rim.

Wrong! :shock:

Canti' levers will work with V's, but they'll feel horribly spongy, until the pads wear down and you run out of adjustment; then they won't work all...

...try to work canti's with V levers and the brakes are either off, or full on with no modulation; grab a handfull of brake and you'll be straight over the bars!

 

[MikeD]

Those are designed for cantis but I believe will work acceptably (for certain values of "acceptable") with Vs if you wind the Speed Dial adjusters right out, which doesn't leave much scope for actual adjustment.

I don't know what the range of pivot-to-cable-anchor distances the canti versions have -- the Vs are about 26-38mm, so if the canti ones can muster some overlap with that then they'll work to a certain extent.

 

[FMJ]

Definitive answer.

These levers were made......

to work with these brakes.

These levers were made......

to work with these brakes.

The pivot to cable distance and cable adjustment throws on both levers is exactly the same, so the answer is yes, they will work with either cantis or Vs.

 

[MikeD]

The pivot to cable distance and cable adjustment throws on both levers is exactly the same

Every day's a schoolday Seems a bit peculiar, but there you go.

 

[gtRTSdh]

I was chatting to my local bike shop owner last week who knows his retro stuff. He stated (against what I believed) that v brake levers can operate either cantilever brakes or v brakes happily.
Apparently you cannot use canti brake levers with v brakes as the amount of cable taken up does not offer sufficient braking power on the rim.

Wrong! :shock:

Canti' levers will work with V's, but they'll feel horribly spongy, until the pads wear down and you run out of adjustment; then they won't work all...

...try to work canti's with V levers and the brakes are either off, or full on with no modulation; grab a handfull of brake and you'll be straight over the bars!

Wrong! :shock:

V brake levers make canti's useless, unless they have a high power setting, but even that is rarely enough to make them work nicely.

Canti brake levers on V-brakes offer more power but don't pull enough cable to set the pads far enough away from the rim to avoid rubbing, the lever will be spongy due to everything flexing under the increased power.

A canti brake lever pulls less cable with a higher mechanical advantage.

A V-brake lever pulls more cable with a lower mechanical advantage.