Broken front brake advice

sebbyj

Hi all,

I was on a ride yesterday when my front brake failed. On closer inspection, it appears that the cable has snapped near the lever and also a small spring appears to have sheared.

Is it possible to purchase and install a new cable and spring, or will I required a totally new lever unit? If it's any help, my bike is an entry level Raleigh Airlite.

Many thanks in advance for any help.

Seb

skyd0g

The cable is no problem to replace, the spring may be ALOT trickier to source.
Try your LBS first, if they do not have a spare they may be able to order a spring/ lever unit from Raleigh direct.

Wooliferkins

Are they Tektro levers? A set of R200s will set you back about £25. A pain for a spring but if your LBS hasn't got anything.

sebbyj

Thanks for the responses!

I have checked the levers and I think they are manufactured by Alhonga (the brandname is worn down to 'Al' but this is the name on the actual brakes).

Those Tektro ones do look very similar. I will pay a visit to my LBS this weekend to see what they suggest.

I am considering purchasing a new pair of levers anyway, as the existing working one is a bit stiff and I don't want the same problem to occur again. As I have downtube shifters, do you think I can do a straight swap between my existing levers and those Tektro R200s (or similar)?

Thanks once again,

Seb

Wooliferkins

The listing I looked at on the web said Tektro levers, I presume you have caliper brakes not canti's. Calipers R200s will be just fine.

sebbyj

Yeah they're caliper brakes, not cantilevers.

My bike is a good 4-5 years old so they may have changed brake suppliers since then.

I will see what the LBS says and based on that I may invest in some new ones and try my hand at replacing them.

Thanks for your help Wooliferkins,

Seb

Wooliferkins

Cake walk, worst bit is replacing the bar tape. You'll need a new brake cable but it's all pretty easy.