11/22/2008

Straitline Components Levers By Patrick Hamilton

Straitline levers mated to a classic pair of Purple Hayes on Patrick's Vintage Super 8.

While the levers were being installed on my bike Greg Parish from Straitline educated me on the difference between replacement levers and upgrade levers. He said that they didn’t just take the original design and shorten the length or make them look a little different; they looked at the original and redesigned them totally. Here is what they aimed to accomplish.

1) Stay the course. The lengths of the levers are about the same as the manufactures original levers. Why mess with the length the manufacture originally determined? They spent time and money looking for the optimal length to give consumers the best stopping power. Shorter levers, depending on riders usage and style, can help in the increase of forearm pump as well as cramping of fingers during continuous braking.

2) Broader Face.  The amount of contact surface, according to Straitline, also affects arm fatigue. They made the levers surface wider than stock to give the rider a more comfortable pull during braking.

3) More comfort.  The backside of the lever and the end is smoothed out to prevent pinching against the grip and bar.

4 ) Wrap. The end wraps 180 degrees around finger(s) allowing full contact as the lever swings through its arc.

5) One finger vs. two. Straitline levers are made with both single or double digit users in mind.

6) Pretty Fly.  The anodizing, machining and polishing aren't only for good looks.  Actually that's not true - Straitline went to all that trouble for the bling factor.

Monster Ts?  Go old school!

I have tried a variety of brakes over the years but I’m still happy with my old school Purple Hayes brakes. I have never had any problems with them (knock on wood). I have replaced my cables with Goodridge and swapped my stock levers with a shorter after-market model. Over the past year I've begun to notice an increase in forearm pump and finger cramping (could be that I am just getting older!). My last trip up to Whistler earlier this year, definitely emphasized the problems, making me stop and rest ever so often down the hill.

I thought the best place for me to test these levers was a trip up to Mt. Washington. Yes Whistler would be prime but time wasn't on my side. Before I left Greg told me to “make sure you bring your Allen wrenches as you will need to adjust them. Once you start riding you will adjust them”.

I didn’t heed his advice and paid for it after about 5 runs. Switching from the shortys to the Strailines had me too heavy on the binders. I just couldn't get consistent braking through my runs. The good news was that my forearms weren't pumped - but my fingers were still cramping. After adjusting the levers closer to my bars and moving the levers further out on my bars I had it dialled.

The Avid Juicy model replacement lever.

The following weekend I rode Mt. Seymour. After a run down CBC my verdict was in.

The broader face definitely made the levers feel really comfortable. The bulged ends fitted perfect to my fingers so that I didn’t pinch them if I was doing either one or two finger braking.  The redesign of the lever angle reduced fatigue while improving both power and modulation. With the Straitline levers I no longer needed two fingers on the levers which meant I had one more finger on the bars.  My second run down Seymour I had total synergy, everything seemed to be working as one; brakes, bike and myself. What a wonderful feeling. I have been riding with the levers for over a month now, riding street, trails and some pretty good downhill bombs and have found that the levers feel better each time I ride.

These barrel nuts have a nylon-tipped set screw which keeps the lever adjustment bolts in place.  No more wandering levers.

Find out more at straitlinecomponents.com

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