Adam - There are an awful lot of variables in that equation...
Unless you are a big guy and running the bike with a lot of additional baggage, the Silvers and/or the Pauls should stop you, if properly set up. First off - If you are talking about lever feel, "Spongy" brakes actually have plenty of power. When they feel hard at the levers, you have to put more power in to get the same amount of power out - AASHTA (As Always, Sheldon Had the Answer) http://sheldonbrown.com/cantilever-geometry.html (though it is ostensibly about cantilever brakes, the "Mechanical Advantage" section applies to lever travel, braking power and related topics) The first place I'd actually look is at those levers. If you are running DuraAce, does that mean you have brake/shift combined levers? If so, there are a few places that you can introduce play in the system, starting with how the cable sits into the slot in the levers. You also have to make sure there's no gap between the housing and the brake body. I'm really suprised that you were hittlng the bars without slowing. On my Hilsen setup (with aero Shimano brake levers and Silver brakes), I've got a good inch and a half gap when applied and maybe an inch under a full gorilla grip. As others said, I'd check that you have the correct housing. And, what the heck, the cables are correct, right? Sometimes I've seen mis-marked packages, or cables with undersized/oddly shaped ends that won't seat properly or drop in too far. You don't want to run a travel agent. You shouldn't need to run a travel agent for a set up like you have. To be brutally blunt, if the mechanic actually suggested that, I'd consider looking for another opinion. I also find it odd that he thinks the problem might be with flex in the brake itself. That's one thing I have not really heard Paul brakes accused of. How high do you have the yoke set? IIRC, recommended height is 1-2" above the brake arms. The last comment about flex at the cable stop is a bit confusing. You really shouldn't be seeing any flex until the brake pads are firmly down against the rim. At which point, you should be stopping pretty effectively. Do you mean there's a lot of friction when you are pulling the levers, before the pads hit the rim? Once you get the lever issues and setup variables out of the way, then the only other advice I'd offer is that the salmon pads or the half/half salmon/black pads seem to work best for me. But, it doesn't sound like the pad compound is really the issue. hope that helps a bit, - Jim -- Jim Edgar cyclofi...@earthlink.net -- 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-bu...@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.
