Brake calipers, keep or not?

dandl
dandl Posts: 24
in Road general
My road bike is a bit of a "triggers broom" with virtually nothing left of the original bike I bought 15 years ago. However, the one thing that has been a constant fixture has been my 90's vintage 105 BR1055 brake calipers (bought NOS about 20 years ago and still looking new). I have never really had any reason to replace them. I strip them every two or three years and that's it. However it is getting difficult to find things like bushes and spring guides etc for these apart from buying calipers to canibalize from ebay. I am looking at perhaps replacing these with more up to date 105 calipers but am I going to notice a huge difference or is this just a case of upgraditis?

Comments

  • MattFalle
    MattFalle Posts: 11,644
    all depends on if the new calipers match your shifters (ie cable pull ratios) tbh.

    .
    The camera down the willy isn't anything like as bad as it sounds.
  • First.Aspect
    First.Aspect Posts: 17,379
    Its upgraditis. But surely there are lots of rim brakes on eBay because everyone needs, and I mean really needs, discs? That's certainly the case with wheels...
  • MattFalle
    MattFalle Posts: 11,644
    Tbh as eell, what milesge are you doing to need to strip them every couple of years?
    .
    The camera down the willy isn't anything like as bad as it sounds.
  • First.Aspect
    First.Aspect Posts: 17,379
    MattFalle said:

    Tbh as eell, what milesge are you doing to need to strip them every couple of years?

    Winter riding without mudguards?

    Bike stored in a well oxygenated marine environment?

    Those are the two most obvious reasons.
  • MattFalle
    MattFalle Posts: 11,644
    nothing a hosing down and clean with soapy water once a week won't solve tbh which you'll do with your winter bike snyway..

    hose down

    spray with GT avoiding pads

    sorted
    .
    The camera down the willy isn't anything like as bad as it sounds.
  • dandl
    dandl Posts: 24
    Probably strip every three years to be honest. I enjoy stripping them as they are nice to work on and being an ex navy engineer, thats what we did. Yes, there are shed loads of rim brake calipers on ebay which is where I have been looking for possible replacements.
  • First.Aspect
    First.Aspect Posts: 17,379
    Fwiw I don't think pull ratio makes all that much difference. A bit, but providing you dont have t rex forearms they should all work well enough.
  • MattFalle
    MattFalle Posts: 11,644
    Tbh, I thought the same and used some random calipers on my winter bike years sgo with 105 shifters.

    all worked fine - fine being the word - but then replaced the front caliper with a 105 one and sll worked sooo much better.

    the shifters were still fat and ugly and heavy though, so I smashed them off with a road.

    nowadays I'm not eorried about the bsck one but I'll mske sure the front one is matched.
    .
    The camera down the willy isn't anything like as bad as it sounds.
  • MattFalle
    MattFalle Posts: 11,644
    dandl said:

    Probably strip every three years to be honest. I enjoy stripping them as they are nice to work on and being an ex navy engineer, thats what we did. Yes, there are shed loads of rim brake calipers on ebay which is where I have been looking for possible replacements.

    seriously?

    why were the navy using old 105 calipers?

    i thought you lot used dubmarines, battleships, etc.

    well blimey, you learn something new everyday.
    .
    The camera down the willy isn't anything like as bad as it sounds.
  • Dorset_Boy
    Dorset_Boy Posts: 7,610
    edited April 2022
    @MattFalle must have very, very fat fingers! Any chance you could occassionally get one of the MFs to read your posts and correct the fat fingered spelling mistakes? B)
  • dandl
    dandl Posts: 24
    Haha! No bike bits on ships, unless you wanted to take some for some strange reason. When I looked at my calipers recently, I found that both the spring bushes had split so the spring was just rubbing on the metal. The only place to find these bushes is on similar calipers for sale on ebay. Considering people are asking £20 for a ropey pair on ebay when there are immaculate sets of 105 and Ultegra calipers for not much more, the replacement route tends to look a no brainer. I have probably answered my original post there.
  • MattFalle
    MattFalle Posts: 11,644
    Dorset_Boy said:

    @MattFalle must have very, very fat fingers! Any chance you could occassionally get one of the MFs to read your posts and correct the fat fingered spelling mistakes? B)

    😅😅😅

    new telephone and all the letters are too close together!

    i like to think that its some kind of secret MI6 code though... hmmm if we transpose this letter and that letter and this random symbol......
    .
    The camera down the willy isn't anything like as bad as it sounds.
  • dandl
    dandl Posts: 24
    By the way, I like "dubmarines". Makes it sound like we had a retro music scene going on beneath the waves:-)
  • MattFalle
    MattFalle Posts: 11,644
    edited April 2022
    dandl said:

    Haha! No bike bits on ships, unless you wanted to take some for some strange reason. When I looked at my calipers recently, I found that both the spring bushes had split so the spring was just rubbing on the metal. The only place to find these bushes is on similar calipers for sale on ebay. Considering people are asking £20 for a ropey pair on ebay when there are immaculate sets of 105 and Ultegra calipers for not much more, the replacement route tends to look a no brainer. I have probably answered my original post there.

    no dramas.

    new Tiagra will work perfect and be fine cost wise if that helps.
    .
    The camera down the willy isn't anything like as bad as it sounds.
  • dandl
    dandl Posts: 24
    Thanks for all the replies. I am happy that I am not suffering "upgraditis" but a case of increasing difficulty keeping older stuff serviceable. Plenty of options out there.
  • davidof
    davidof Posts: 3,127
    MattFalle said:

    Tbh as eell, what milesge are you doing to need to strip them every couple of years?

    that's what I thought. I have Chorus calipers from the late 90s on my winter bike and never thought about stripping them down or replacing them either.
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  • dennisn
    dennisn Posts: 10,601
    dandl said:

    Thanks for all the replies. I am happy that I am not suffering "upgraditis" but a case of increasing difficulty keeping older stuff serviceable. Plenty of options out there.

    What do you mean unserviceable? I've got an old bike from the 1970's with Suntour Superbe brakes and have never replaced anything on them except Pads. They work just fine. Also don't understand your "increasing difficulty" keeping older stuff running. Plenty of internet places out there selling everything you could possibly need.
  • banditvic
    banditvic Posts: 549
    I remember when the 5800 series brakes came out, I was on a hire bike in Gran Canaria, a place where you really need decent brakes, so much better than most other brakes out there at the time. Obviously Dura ace is better but for bang for your buck you cant beat the 105 brakes.

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