Heading out and looking forward to an Amazing Ride one day, everything was sweet. The Weather was Grand, the Conditions were fine, the Bike seemed to be pedaling really strong….. Until I hit the brakes!!
As I checked the Bike to observe the damage. Sure enough….. The Damage was found.
The Brake Cable holding the Crimp End which hooked onto the Rear Brake finally let go. Now although it was not picked up at first, it was certainly picked up now.
Being quite determined to get back on the Ride after attending to the broken Cable, I Rode to the Car, loaded the Bike in, and drove straight to the nearest Bike Shop.
After purchasing Two New Cables thanks to the Dual Brake Cable system (as shown in the pictures of the BMX below) it was time to head back to the workshop and fit them up.
Coming time to fitting up the New Cables, I realized that both ends were crimped and that I would need to cut off one end to feed the Inner Cable through the Outer Shield.
However, this was a bit of a challenge thanks to it working as a Closed Loop System as Pictured Below.
Stammering around the workshop trying to work out what to even do, I saw a piece of steel that gave me a bit of inspiration.
As I picked up the 6mm solid Rod being around 60mm long, I checked if it would be compatible with the Brake. After finding out it would be, I placed it on the pedestal and drilled a small 2mm Hole in the side of it. Turning the Rod around, I did the same on the other end.
Sticking the Rod into the 3 Jaw Chuck, I Drilling and Tapping an M3 thread on one end, followed by turning it around and doing the same on the other end.
The Rod was then taken out of the Chuck, placed in a Vice, and had Two pieces cut at around 10mm long Each.
I finally painted the little Pins Black, placed each one on each end of the cables and tightened the little worm screws from the top of the Pins onto the Cables. They seemed to lock on quite well but just to be sure I decided to take the Bike for a quick spin Up and Down the Street as well as giving it a few other little tests.
After all that, I tidied up the cables by putting Heat Shrink on the ends, loaded the Bike back into the Car, and went straight back to the original destination.
Trekking out for about a 2 and half hour ride, I was quite impressed by the result of the New Pins. However, it wasn’t until a few Years later before it was planned to be an actual Product that people could soon buy.
Hey Guys…..
Welcome to the Brake’N’Pins series or quite literally Brake End Pins.
They are specially designed for specific Type BMX Brakes with the slots (pictured below) allowing them to offer a nice looking finish.
There are Two Types soon to be on offer…..
TYPE 1. Based on a simple Round Rod Type Shape.
TYPE 2. Based on an Oval Rod Type Shape that suits the shape of the brake arm.
They both have an option of either Polished Stainless Steel 316, Or Polished Titanium Grade 5 in either Round or Oval.
Will keep you all updated as the Project draws near completion. Meanwhile, any feedback is more then welcomed. :)