Best bike brake calipers according to redditors

Yes, like this!

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https://www.amazon.com/TEKTRO-Reach-Calipers-55-73mm-Silver/dp/B01N99BGKO/

Cyclocross bikes.

But since you limit your budget to $250... The only new bike I can think of that fits that bill is the Schwinn Solara.

However:

-You'll need new brakes ($30-50, get long reach ones only),

-and I also suggest spending on some [new tires]((https://www.google.com/search?q=Maxxis+re-fuse+700x28&oq=Maxxis+re-fuse+700x28&aqs=chrome..69i57j0l2.5863j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#safe=off&q=Maxxis+re-fuse+700x28+or+700x32) cuz the stock ones on these are absolute shit and these Maxxis tires kick ass, aren't too slow, and are very difficult to puncture.

-You will get an annoying creak in your bottom bracket every time you turn your pedals after a few months or a few rainy/wet rides- that's the compromise for having such a low budget. Once you have the money, I almost beg you to spend more- you will get what you pay for in terms of quality and durability (up to $2000 or so). Believe me. Let me know if you want more info for your next bike.

But until the money arrives.... the wheels on this bike are indestructible, unlike any other I've owned. ( i still have my Schwinn.) Same goes with the hubs. Best new bike for <$250

http://www.amazon.com/Shimano-BR-5700-Super-Brake-Caliper/dp/B003RLHMAU/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1320589529&sr=8-3

Been hearing great things about these on other forums too

Just a heads-up, but check that the plastic collar between each brake arm and the fork (i.e. on the brake boss) isn't cracked. Most, not all, Exage cantilevers came with an underengineered plastic ring there. If that plastic ring is cracked, you'll never get the brakes adjusted right. For some reason, Shimano decided the return spring that gives your brake arms tension should be fitted through a hole drilled through the plastic collar. The tension invariably causes the ring to crack and split wide open. Cracks tend to be on the underside of the plastic ring, and can be straight enough to be mistaken for a design feature. You can often see the crack widening and narrowing as you squeeze the brake levers.

The fix is to buy new brakes. V-brakes won't work well because your levers are engineered around a different cable pull ratio than cantilever levers. The easiest replaement option, then, would be cantilevers without Shimano's plastic collar.

These worked perfectly fine on my mountain bike right up until the day I sold the entire bike:
https://www.amazon.com/SunLite-Sunlite-Alloy-Cantilever-Brake/dp/B016QRKKRI

Those are long-pull brakes. You don't need long-pulls on a track or road-geometry bike. They're also single-pivot, which is an outdated and totally shitty kind of mechanism. And they're also way too cheap.

Get one of these instead, and a Tektro trigger if you like. It'll cost more but you'll like it more.

I always believe that anything is safe provided you respect their limits. Coaster brakes can work fine and other times they can be disastrous... it depends on the rider.

But I also like efficiency and getting the most out of your equipment. It'll improve your performance knowing that you have decent brakes.

I like Tektro personally because they are good manufacture that represents very good value for money. You'll have to double check the measurements, but...

https://www.amazon.com/Tektro-Caliper-Brake-Beach-Cruiser/dp/B00BLM3TZO

Something like that. 20 bucks for the caliper, 7 for the cable, and 15 dollars for the lever. Little less then double of that for both front and back. A very nice upgrade for those is the salmon-colored kool stop pads.

Cutting cables and such things is a pain in the butt if you never have done it before, but a lot of videos online for how to do it.

The Tektro Beach Cruiser Caliper should work for you. Any shop in your area should be able to order them, and they are solid brakes.

You'll definitely need a standard reach (vs. the new standard "short reach"). I made the mistake of not checking and had to run out and grab a new brake when I built my Steamroller. I have a Tektro R539.

Removing the fender changed how the brake nut sunk into the frame. You'll either need a brake washer, or a shorter recessed brake nut. Any bike shop will have both of these parts, often times buckets of discarded ones.

yeah, exactly what u/stewmeatsundays has said, watch vids and rewrap the bars.
I personally like the Arundel cork bar tape.
Also, for older braking applications, I would recommend better brake pads like the Kool Stop Conti and you will also need a 4th hand cable puller, like this IceToolz unit.
The alternative would be to fit some long-reach modern dual pivot calipers like these Tektro r559 which come in nutted fitment to suit your frame.


nice looking bike btw, I love a Shogun. Had a Samurai until a few mths ago when it had an argument with some idiot in a Camry...Samurai lost

Parts kit
https://www.amazon.com/Avid-Elixir-Bicycle-Brake-Caliper/dp/B00IMLLSC8

Page 52
https://sram-cdn-pull-zone-gsdesign.netdna-ssl.com/cdn/farfuture/-ltgltHMB1o9DGmdKjkrPdlCFEd6YjqFBlA4nztroNg/mtime:1471624827/sites/default/files/techdocs/2017_avid_spc_rev_a.pdf

Caliper rebuild instructions
https://sram-cdn-pull-zone-gsdesign.netdna-ssl.com/cdn/farfuture/prSaC2uBzxZ8XWW52Qm4UhlBu9gbV6y3VcWMxQJZqR4/mtime:1464209644/sites/default/files/techdocs/gen.0000000005124_rev_a_2016_level_and_level_t_english.pdf

That manual is for level brakes but they look very similar to the DB's and they will all pretty much be the same process.

They can of course be found cheaper elsewhere, just be careful the nutted thing. http://www.amazon.com/Tektro-R559-Calipers-Silver-55-73mm/dp/B006Z0OVWC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1422652766&sr=8-1&keywords=r559 If you're buying /new/ brakes I can't in good conscience recommend a cheaper product or I would, these are about as good as it gets on a budget for new brakes on old bikes. If you need cheaper, I would try and search eBay for older dual-pivot calipers and see if they have the long reach arms like these, or short reach like moderns ones (will be immediately apparent looking at pictures). But, that's me. Some good old centerpulls do exist, I just can't say I've ever been a fan of adjusting them compared to the dual-pivots.

Something like this may fit your situation: http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B006Z0OVWC?pc_redir=1396654313&robot_redir=1

You may want to look into caliper brakes as well. When I was building mine, the frame and hubs I had didn't have disc brake mounts, meaning I'd either have to weld them on or find really niche adapters (you may be in the same boat?). Most beach cruisers have caliper brake mounting holes though, it's usually just a hole sometimes filled with a bolt in the frame directly above the tire. This is assuming you don't have v-brake mounts which would be even easier.

If you look into caliper brakes, keep in mind that the front and rear brakes aren't the same, since their mounting bolts have to be different lengths.

Your 'turkey legs' are the older road bike brakes with the 'suicide levers' that curve around so they are reachable from the flat section of your drop bars, yes? in that case, No, you cannot install v-brakes, they require your frame to have canti studs to mount them to. Your frame likely does not have these. You can greatly increase your braking power with a set of dual-pivot caliper brakes (likely long-reach model is necessary), a newer set of levers can help power and comfort greatly as well.

Accessories and consumables

Hand grips, bar tape, seat, seat post, brake pads, racks and even tires are all very personal choices. I am not a serious rider but I have 4 seats and at least 3 set of tires hanging around in my basement.

These are the items that are easy for anyone to customize to their own taste. The average rider will be fine with what comes on a new bike then will start to upgrade as they become more obsessed with the sport.

BikesDirect.com is probably the best example of this. They tend to sell bikes with excellent drive trains, decent frames, and low end everything else because they know their customers. The single best example I can think of is the Windsor Fens which has a full (almost) 105 groupset for only $699 which is not much more than your or I would spend just to buy the the derailleur/shifters/crank etc. The frame is decent but the rest is entry level. This is the type of bike you buy for the platform knowing you will want and need to upgrade everything else as you improve.

You can almost throw brakes into this catagory. Again using the BD Fens as an example which uses the Tektro R530 which are under $60 for the pair on Amazon. Where the Shimano 105 brakes are going to be at least double that amount.

Using amazon because I am lazy

From the bottom up:

• Pretty standard Alex flip-flop wheelset
  
• 56cm Felt Brougham frame (I think it's an '07, but I can't swear to that since I bought it used).
  
• FSA Crank with some super shitty pedals I had laying around.
  
• Shimano 105 brake.
  
• Bontrager stem
  
• chopped riser bars
  
• cheap/light Easton seatpost
  
• cheap Brooks gel seat
  
  It's nothing super flashy or expensive, but she rides like a dream and she's built solidly.

I was thinking maybe these and/or maybe these for the front. What do you recommend.

If you could manage $70-odd for a couple of good upgrades, that could be made to ride quite well (for what it is). Assuming everything works, I'd suggest losing the grip/twist shifters and replacing with Shimano ef51 shifter/brake levers and Shimano t4000 linear pull brakes. Looking at the pic, will likely need a new chain as well, so add $15 for a KMC 7sp chain. The benefit of these changes mean braking is more consistent and the shifter will actually work properly as opposed to only occasionally (Shimano twist shifters are garbage)... Then just give it a service, and enjoy.

I replaced mine with these generic canti brakes - comes with the arms, a yoke cable, and pads but no brake cable. It is a less of a headache to go with these than v-brakes, which require different brake levers (long vs short pull), and I didn't want to go down the rabbit hole of upgrading everything.

https://www.amazon.com/Sunlite-Alloy-Cantilever-Brake/dp/B016QRKKRI

I know theres a lot of front brake hate here, but hear me out. Im in the proccess of building my first fixie and I definitely want to have the option of a front brake. What front brake would you guys recommend?

Edit: My budget for the brakes is under $35 and I found these two brakes but I have no way of knowing which one will be better: https://www.amazon.com/Tektro-Bicycle-Reach-Calipers-55-73mm/dp/B01MRJ8RE7/ref=sr_1_5?keywords=dual%2Bpivot%2Bbike%2Bbreaks&qid=1569168748&sr=8-5&th=1

https://www.amazon.com/Origin8-Classic-Road-Caliper-39-49mm/dp/B003BCCCDC/ref=sr_1_18_sspa?keywords=dual%2Bpivot%2Bbike%2Bbreaks&qid=1569168748&sr=8-18-spons&smid=AFUNG49VH4BIB&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEzMlg5RzkzRk1KV0lEJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwODAwNTg3MjBTWTRXTFhVTExOWSZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwNzI4ODg1M0VSRk0xTjM3MDRETyZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX210ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU&th=1&psc=1

I went with the Tektro r559. They were $45 a pair on Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/TEKTRO-Reach-Calipers-55-73mm-Silver/dp/B01N99BGKO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1543383269&sr=8-1&keywords=tektro+r559

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These barely reached all the way in the rear.

I've got butterfly handle bar, so MTN style levers.

If I got Spryes, is this what you would recommend? https://www.amazon.com/TRP-SPYRE-Mount-Mechancial-Caliper/dp/B074FQ4MXC/ref=sr_1_fkmr1_4?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1541529965&sr=1-4-fkmr1&keywords=Spyre%2BMTN%2Bdisc%2Bbrakes&th=1&psc=1

> Also will this be a good chain braker?

I use this to brake my chain.

Mind you I'm not braking it directly, but it accomplishes the goal.

this?

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https://www.amazon.com/SRAM-Force-Rival-Caliper-Mounting/dp/B0050VFNTM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1540573034&sr=8-2&keywords=sram+brake+nuts

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I've read that disk brakes put extra force on the fork (which makes sense to me), so I doubt a fork that hasn't been built specifically for disk brakes will be able to withstand that force.

Have you looked into long reach calipers? I'm not sure if that's what you meant by "dropped brakes". You'll need brakes with about 4mm more reach than you have right now.

These brakes seem to be well reviewed for 700c conversions. They are nutted, which is what you'll probably need if the bike is sufficiently vintage (which it probably is, given that it doesn't have 700c wheels).

Edit: looking at this thread, you may have issues with freewheel vs. hub. The last comment is particularly interesting and probably warrants more research for your specific case.

> These brakes seem to have really long reach, and I can't fine any with the the 23mm extra I would need.

You only need 19mm to drop from 622 to 584. Which is still a lot, yes.

These brakes have the longest reach:
https://store.somafab.com/dimod750cepu.html
https://www.amazon.com/Tektro-R559-Calipers-Silver-55-73mm/dp/B006Z0OVWC

Keep in mind that going to brakes with longer caliper arms means that you have to squeeze harder at the lever to get the same force on the pads.

These are pretty standard budget aftermarket brakes. The important thing is to measure from the mounting bolt to the plane of the brake pads on your current set in order to find the reach, then find replacements that fit. Looking at Giant Kronos pics, they look like pretty modern short-medium reach brakes.

Another option is to figure out what model of crank/derailleurs you have and find the brakes that were part of that groupset when they were sold new.

Okay, so with $200, assuming I was doing the work:

Wrap handlebars - $11.53 (sweet dark red, cause the red on there looks awesome already)
Cheap 700c wheels from co-op - $20? (Talk with them about the gearing to see if the range is the same, or if you want tighter range or whatever, they probably have a few sets there with somewhat different gear ranges on the rear)
Saddle from co-op - $5-10
Tubes/tires - $45 (tires, tubes)
Derailleur cables - $7 (Shimano, here)
Brake cables - $10.39 (Shimano, here)
Brake levers - $22.53 (Tektro RL340)
Brakes - $62 - (Tektro 539 rear, front)
5-speed chain - 7.98 (here)

Then I'd try to get pedals and a cheap but aluminum quill stem, handlebars, and seatpost from the co-op. Depending on where you are, you may be able to get all for $20 or less. Functional new parts suggestions: (not guaranteed to fit. These have all sorts of different diameters over the years/models, so you need to know what you have/need. Handlebars, Seatpost, stem.)

> It has the fork and frame predrilled for brakes and comes with a set of brakes F/R

Now that you mention it, the page does say it comes with Promax RC-462 brakes - somehow I didn't notice that.

My bike had the old style one too and I just drilled out the hole in the back of the fork to accommodate them. I couldn't really do that for the back one so I ended up using the front brake on the back and getting a really long nut to use the back one on the front http://problemsolversbike.com/products/sheldon_fender_nuts. The drilling took about a minute, just get a drill bit that's the same size as the nut (I think I used a 5/8 bit, but don't quote me on that). If that's too much work for you Tektro makes the old style mount ones too http://www.amazon.com/Tektro-R539-Pivot-Brake-Caliper/dp/B007QMIP2K but its $30 each for basically the same thing

If the front wheel you have has no disc mount holes you could just use the rim brake surface. This rim brake would mount on the hole of the fork.

I wonder if this bike will take brakes like these: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00BLM3TZO#Ask

Nice. I'm already at 10 speed with mine ... I think I'm happy enough with my 4600 Tiagra, though I'd love to get the shift cables under the tape. Probably not worth the upgrade to 4700 though. Maybe someday I'll do a 5800 upgrade.

I'm thinking of upgrading the cranks to Tiagra or 105. Possibly the brakes to these TRP's.

Why did you end up swapping out the fork?