As someone who likes to fiddle, I find the adjustability (read: fiddliness) enjoyable. I like supporting small businesses, especially in this industry and despite the bling factor, I do think Paul Components has some great ideas. Designing all their brakes to run the same V-brake pads is nice, as I'd only have to stock one type of pad for all my bikes. No return springs in levers = a simpler mechanism, one less thing to break down, and one fewer variable in adjusting brake feel or "snappiness". Once you get a hang of their coil spring setup, you're good to go. Cool colors are fun. I could also add readily-available replacement parts/fully-serviceable components as another plus, but a full "rebuild kit" for one brake is often times more expensive than a full set of new off-the-shelf V brakes or Cantis, but it's at least good to know you'll always be able to repair them, even if it costs a bit. I've got no doubt that my Paul brakes will surely outlast me, barring availability of replacement bits here and there.
This part is more aimed at the constantly-fiddling tinkerers like myself, but there's also resale-factor. You can get nearly a 100% return on your investment on the secondhand market, especially if you pick them up used. You can always pick up boutique parts to try them out and hock them for little-to-no-loss if they're not quite what you're looking for. That doesn't matter to everyone, but it's a plus for me. The brakes and levers are great. The thumbies are cool if that's your cup of tea. Never tried the seatposts or stems, but I am happy with regular forged posts and quill stems and I usually look to Nitto for that sort of thing. At the end of the day, boutique components are only "worth it" if you like them and feel good about your purchase. Cheaper brakes will stop your bike just fine, just like a cheaper bike will still get you from point A to point B, but many folks willing to shell out for a Riv also don't mind paying the "Paul tax" to support a small brand and get a cool, shiny piece of gear to add to their bike. I say give it a go and if you ultimately can't cope with the expense, there's surely someone here who will happily take them off your hands. -J.C. On Sunday, September 25, 2022 at 4:06:03 PM UTC-5 Joe Bernard wrote: > Tire clearance is a thing, too, if you're looking at v-brakes. My > Motolites are quite tall and clear a 650B x 47 "gravel" tire with room left > for fenders. > > On Sunday, September 25, 2022 at 2:00:19 PM UTC-7 Ryan M. wrote: > >> I really do think they are worth the money and when/if you ever decide to >> sell them you can recoup a lot of the cost back. >> >> I've had the fortunate experience of using most of the current Paul >> brakes at one time or another and I do think they all work really well. >> They work even better when you pair them with a set of Paul levers too. I >> think the combination really makes the system work quite well and the >> levers are just strong and smooth. I'm a huge fan of the moto lites, >> Klampers, and the canti brakes, either the touring or retro models. It does >> take a little time to set up those cantis, but once dialed in they are >> great. >> >> Worth it for you...well, that depends on the money. A set of Shimano xt v >> brakes and levers just isn't that much money and they will work fine. Pauls >> are just better and IMHO, easier to setup...and the motolites have an >> industry best disconnection system. >> >> On Sunday, September 25, 2022 at 3:34:47 PM UTC-5 eric...@gmail.com >> wrote: >> >>> Only speaking for myself, here: I love my Paul cantis and moto lites, >>> have them currently installed on two Rivs, had them on another bike and, as >>> Laing mentioned, pulled them off before I sold it. >>> >>> I love that there is a small machine shop in Northern California making >>> weird bike parts and I am happy to support them. They are certainly >>> expensive. A lot of people will tell you they're downright ugly, I won't go >>> that far. I do like the look of the cantis and the "canti lever" brake >>> levers. Dig their barrel adjusters, too. >>> >>> I believe you can purchase replacement parts for all of their brakes, >>> springs, spring adjusters, pivots, o-rings, etc. >>> >>> In the past I've sold a set of their thumb shifter mounts and one set of >>> touring cantilevers and while I don't have an immediate need or use for >>> those I do regret it. >>> >>> For more about Paul Comp check out their YouTube channel, lots of vids >>> about their shop, installation how-to videos and other funky stuff! >>> >>> This video <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1pIGXyf6Nw> is about the >>> coolant recycling system that Paul installed in the shop which I found >>> quite interesting. >>> On Sunday, September 25, 2022 at 3:56:00 PM UTC-4 J J wrote: >>> >>>> Echoing Bill and Joe, it depends on which criteria are important in >>>> your value calculation for a particular set of circumstances. >>>> >>>> I went to great lengths to find (out of production but soon to be back >>>> in production) Paul brakes for one of our bikes. It felt appropriate and >>>> justifiable, even “necessary”. And they’re great. No regrets. >>>> >>>> In contrast, I was going to install a new set of Paul cantis on another >>>> bike but instead, I sold them, telling myself that my relatively cheap >>>> Shimano cantis were just fine, and that the Pauls weren’t worth it. So I >>>> sold the Paul cantis at a slight loss to lighten my parts hoard. It’s >>>> really subjective. >>>> >>>> I chuckle at myself when I consider that I have no problem paying >>>> serious money for Rivendell frames (they’re worth it!) yet I sometimes >>>> balk >>>> heavily at the cost of components. After all, why should I spend, for >>>> example, $xxx on a fancy rear derailer when I can buy a $25 Altus that >>>> works “98 to 100 percent” as well as the fancier ones, according to Grant? >>>> Well, I got a fancy RD for the same bike on which I retained the cheaper >>>> brakes. >>>> >>>> Ultimately I don’t have a consistent algorithm or a set decision tree >>>> to figure these choices out. The Pauls were more than worth it for one >>>> Riv, >>>> but for another Riv they didn’t seem to be. Kinda whacky of me, and >>>> amusing. >>>> >>>> On Sunday, September 25, 2022 at 2:16:00 PM UTC-4 Joe Bernard wrote: >>>> >>>>> "Worth it" is of course subjective but I have these brakes on my >>>>> Rivendell Custom and they're worth it to me. The feel and power is >>>>> notably >>>>> superior to the Shimano v-brakes I started with, the qr function on the >>>>> arms is miles better, the adjusting springs are very easy to fiddle with, >>>>> the very slim clamp on the levers stays out of the way of hands and >>>>> shifters, I love the slightly industrial look (some folks aren't into >>>>> it), >>>>> and they're made 95 miles from where I'm typing right now. Yes it's a >>>>> chunk >>>>> of cash but they're on a very nice bike I ride almost every day. I'm glad >>>>> I >>>>> did it. >>>>> >>>>> Joe Bernard >>>>> >>>>> On Sunday, September 25, 2022 at 10:52:35 AM UTC-7 Bill Fulford wrote: >>>>> >>>>>> I was recently gifted $500 to Rivendell. My plan was to upgrade my >>>>>> 2007 Atlantis with Paul brakes and levers. I placed the order only to >>>>>> read >>>>>> later that the brakes are sold per wheel. That’s more than I wanted to >>>>>> spend. So before I call Rivendell tomorrow morning to cancel I’m >>>>>> wondering >>>>>> how folks feel about these brakes? I would be ordering the linear pull >>>>>> brake with love levers. Are they worth it? >>>>> >>>>> -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/38283555-3bb5-4409-a4ca-4819a3cbf54cn%40googlegroups.com.
