Can someone identify this brake please?

[mzjo]

I got this at the bike jumble at the week-end to replace the dual pivot Shimano 600 on the back of the 992 which has an alarming amount of play in one of the arms. It was cheap and basically similar to the old brake (and since the old brakes don't work especially well with the 600 integrated levers I don't have too much to lose). No markings, a serial number that I can't photograph. Any guesses what it might be?



Also are these Promax brakes as awful as the reports on the net would seem to suggest? Very cheap and obviously off a Cannondale but the condition would suggest that the last user took them off pretty quickly! I think they must be Renders and look like a rip-off of a BB5. Would Cannondale really fit rubbish or did someone just fancy something a bit better (or hydraulic perhaps)?





Quality doesn't really matter that much, they are for a retired mtb frame destined to be a pseudo-flatbar gravel bike and commuter (and occasional tourer) and I'm not very fussy provided that I know. The mtb has a Tektro mechanical disc on a postmount sus fork but the Tektro won't fit on an ISO adapter and these will (and I can't get a 2" rear tyre in without forcing on the V brake at the back).

[grams]

The cable adjuster is quite distinctive and going by Google Images it's a Tektro R559, but the design of the calliper matches the Tektro R312:
https://www.tektro.com/products.php?p=171

(these are *very* common on brand name road bikes as a cost reduction measure, usually unbranded like yours, but there may be an "R312" stamped on the back somewhere. Unfortunately the braking is utterly crap when used with modern Shimano STI shifters)

[hubner]

The cable adjuster is quite distinctive and going by Google Images it's a Tektro R559, but the design of the calliper matches the Tektro R312:
https://www.tektro.com/products.php?p=171

(these are *very* common on brand name road bikes as a cost reduction measure, usually unbranded like yours, but there may be an "R312" stamped on the back somewhere. Unfortunately the braking is utterly crap when used with modern Shimano STI shifters)

It looks quite different.

[Brucey]

The Promax Render is nigh-on identical to the BB5 in most respects. Just make sure that the cables are good (the smoother the better), the cam is greased, the FPA has anti-seize on it, and you have decent pads and you will be alright. They can be MTB cable pull or 'road' cable pull. Make sure that your levers match your calipers.

The caliper brake looks a lot like a slightly older model of tektro, eg R359 (*).  They are suitable for non-NSSLR levers (anything meant for DPs 1993-2008, plus some others). The pivot bushings on cheap DPs are almost invariably  shite; you might well be better off fixing the shimano brake.

edit;  (*) of which there are many knock-offs too.  Some of them are alright but most of them are not.

cheers

[igauk]

The brake caliper looks like a black version of the Tektro 521 fitted to my Moulton.

[mzjo]

Thank you everyone for that. It is reassuring to know that my hard-earned euros haven't been wasted.

I have to assume for the time being that the levers attached to the Promaxes are the right ones. I will try to trace the serial numbers but don't have too much hope. The cables on them are Jagwire, so decent enough, but unlikely to be the right length for me as my mtb has a very big frame.

The dp brake must be compatible with the original Shimano 600's which were from about 1993 ( original fitment on my Vitus 992 frame). If I had a way of repairing the Shimano caliper I would, just to keep things matching, but I am not sure that the arm bushings are replaceable or that I could find some. The Tektro will do fine as a replacement and since the Shimano dp's are not as impressive as some of the Shimano sp's that I have from about the same period I am not overly concerned. For 5€ I don't think I can go too far wrong. 

[Brucey]

the FPA usually has a 1mm pitch thread, so you can wind it in until the pads touch, wind it out two turns and then you know that the pads are exactly 2mm apart. A full swing of the brake arm should close a 2mm gap. If this takes about 22mm cable pull then the brakes are 'road pull' and if the cable pull for 2mm of caliper movement is more like 30mm then the brake calipers are 'MTB' cable pull.

cheers