Anyone put disc brakes on a V-Rex?

Bobinator wrote:
I put a rear disc on mine. It still fades in the wet, but not as
much. Before trying something as involved as a disc conversion, try
a brake booster.


Tell me more. What is a brake booster?

A brake booster is a horseshoe-shaped device which attaches to the
canti posts. Its purpose is to prevent the stays from bowing out
when the brakes are applied. This is especially useful on RANS
bikes, which use relatively small diameter tubing for the stays.
Preventing the stays from deflecting makes more pressure available
on the rim, with obvious benefit to braking power.

Brake boosters can cost as much as $50USD, but if you watch for
deals they can be had for $5.

--

John Foltz --- O _
Baron --- _O _ V-Rex 24 --- _\\/\-%)
_________(_)`=()___________________(_)= (_)_____

On 27 Jul 2003 14:51:26 -0700, (Jeff Wills) wrote:

Dave Miller wrote:
My V-Rex was almost in a V-Wreck today after a sudden downpour altered
the stopping power of my brakes.

Anyone have any advise or experience adding disc brakes to a V-Rex

Like John said, it's a very involved conversion. You'll need a
frambuilder to fabricate tabs for the caliper mounts, a paint job to
follow, and new hubs and rebuilt wheels over and above the purchasing
the disk brake hardware. I can't see getting away from the shop for
less than $500. Five hundred bucks buys some darn good caliper
brakes.

In addition to John's suggestion of a brake booster, I'd try replacing
the brake shoes with Kool-Stop salmon colored units:
http://harriscyclery.net/site/page.c...=49&SKU=BR1226 .
The salmon-colored shoes are the choice of bike couriers here in
Portland. They've worked fine for my commuter bike, too.

Jeff


A recommendation from a Portland'er on stopping in the rain.....what
kind of fool would ignore that !!!!!

Thanks.

On 27 Jul 2003 14:51:26 -0700, (Jeff Wills) wrote:

Dave Miller wrote:
My V-Rex was almost in a V-Wreck today after a sudden downpour altered
the stopping power of my brakes.

Anyone have any advise or experience adding disc brakes to a V-Rex

Like John said, it's a very involved conversion. You'll need a
frambuilder to fabricate tabs for the caliper mounts, a paint job to
follow, and new hubs and rebuilt wheels over and above the purchasing
the disk brake hardware. I can't see getting away from the shop for
less than $500. Five hundred bucks buys some darn good caliper
brakes.

In addition to John's suggestion of a brake booster, I'd try replacing
the brake shoes with Kool-Stop salmon colored units:
http://harriscyclery.net/site/page.c...=49&SKU=BR1226 .
The salmon-colored shoes are the choice of bike couriers here in
Portland. They've worked fine for my commuter bike, too.

Jeff


A recommendation from a Portland'er on stopping in the rain.....what
kind of fool would ignore that !!!!!

Thanks.

Mike Vore wrote in message ...
The salmon-colored shoes are the choice of bike couriers here in
Portland. They've worked fine for my commuter bike, too.

I had 'red' KoolStops on a Bike-E - the frame was Red.

I've replaced the pads on my Limbo with black Kool Stops - the only
color that were in stock at the time. They squeel lots.

My question - Is there a difference betweek the Red and Black - and
for that matter other colors.

mike

There's *lots* of difference between the colors. Here's their chart:
http://www.koolstop.com/brakes/#chart . (Wait for the page to load-
it's got lots of graphics.) My experience with the Kool Stops is that
they tend to squeal if the pad or the rim is contaminated. I usually
have to clean the rim and the pad with alcohol after oiling my chain-
the slightest splatter makes them noisy.

Jeff

(Bill Anton) wrote in message m...


John, could you say more about your "V-Rex 24"? Did you convert your
26/20 to a dual 24? I'm thinking about a similar mod for my R-40, and
I'd like to hear about your experiences. Thanks


My V-Rex came from the factory with an ISO 451 (20 inch) front wheel
and an ISO 520 (24 inch) rear wheel. It was, I believe, the very last
V-Rex24 to go out of the RANS factory in Hayes, in '97.

I have since converted the rear to the 507 version of 24 inch wheel,
but the front remains a 451. Both are uncommon sizes. At a quick
glance, the wheels look *almost* the same size, which I have always
found to be more aesthetic than having a large disparity in sizes.
I've considered converting the front to 507, but have never been able
to find a fork in that size that I like.

It's problematic getting tires for 24" wheels. The 520 version has two
tires available. The 507 version has many more, but only one good road
tire - the rest being cheap low pressure knobbies. Luckily, I like
that one choice. I don't plan on converting from the 24" anytime soon,
but I would not recommend anyone converting *to* a 24" wheel. Better
to convert to a size that has more tire choices.

(John Foltz) wrote in message . com...
snip

It's problematic getting tires for 24" wheels. The 520 version has two
tires available. The 507 version has many more, but only one good road
tire - the rest being cheap low pressure knobbies. Luckily, I like
that one choice. I don't plan on converting from the 24" anytime soon,
but I would not recommend anyone converting *to* a 24" wheel. Better
to convert to a size that has more tire choices.

FWIW: the 24" (ISO 520mm) tire selection is five (at least):
http://www.terrybicycles.com/BPA/2400000.lasso
Panaracer Tecnova 24" x 1" black sidewall (25-520) - $17
Panaracer 24" x 1-1/8" tan sidewall (28-520) - $17
New! Panaracer 24" x 1-1/8" black sidewall (28-520) - $17
New! Terry Tellus TT 24" x 1-1/4" (32-520) - $40
Primo V-Trak Knobby 24" x 1-1/8" (28-519) - $17

Jeff

On 30 Jul 2003 11:13:18 -0700, (Jeff Wills) wrote:

FWIW: the 24" (ISO 520mm) tire selection is five (at least):
http://www.terrybicycles.com/BPA/2400000.lasso
Panaracer Tecnova 24" x 1" black sidewall (25-520) - $17
Panaracer 24" x 1-1/8" tan sidewall (28-520) - $17
New! Panaracer 24" x 1-1/8" black sidewall (28-520) - $17
New! Terry Tellus TT 24" x 1-1/4" (32-520) - $40
Primo V-Trak Knobby 24" x 1-1/8" (28-519) - $17

And when I ordered the 25-520, I was told it comes in kevlar or steel
bead. The box just arrived, to I should be able to say something soon
about the kevlar 25-520!

I bought a set of the knobbies last fall, but it never snowed enough
for me to give them a try.

-- Robert

On Wed, 30 Jul 2003 12:38:18 -0600, I wrote:

And when I ordered the 25-520, I was told it comes in kevlar or steel
bead. The box just arrived, to I should be able to say something soon
*so*
about the kevlar 25-520!

I bought a set of the knobbies last fall, but it never snowed enough
for me to give them a try.

-- Robert

Plus, IRC has a 520/28 also 24x 1 1/8.

Tom

Jeff Wills wrote:
(John Foltz) wrote:

... The 520 version has two tires available.


FWIW: the 24" (ISO 520mm) tire selection is five (at least):
http://www.terrybicycles.com/BPA/2400000.lasso

Panaracer Tecnova 24" x 1" black sidewall (25-520) - $17
Panaracer 24" x 1-1/8" tan sidewall (28-520) - $17 New!
Panaracer 24" x 1-1/8" black sidewall (28-520) - $17 New!
Terry Tellus TT 24" x 1-1/4" (32-520) - $40
Primo V-Trak Knobby 24" x 1-1/8" (28-519) - $17

I guess I should beg forgiveness. The two Panaracer 28x520 are
essentially the same tire with a choice of sidewalls. The knobby -
well, I don't consider knobbies road tires. I forgot about the
Tellus, though; it's pretty new and I haven't seen one yet. So if
I'd said two *road* tires available, I would have been off by one.
Still a pretty sparse set of choices.

Thanks for the updated availability list!
--

John Foltz --- O _
Baron --- _O _ V-Rex 24 --- _\\/\-%)
_________(_)`=()___________________(_)= (_)_____