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What kind of brakes are these?

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That's what I was thinking. As long as the arms are on those calipers, there's no way they won't flex under load. Why they need so much clearance above the fender is beyond me, but it looks like there's stops rivetted through slots in the calipers to keep them from pulling forward when you apply the front brake. At least they realized they needed some kind of support, but then the back plate is even thinner than the caliper! The idea is not bad, but the execution leaves something to be desired. But considering that most bikes back then didn't have front brakes, maybe it's not fair to compare them to modern designs.
@dnc1, what do the modern designs look like?
 
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I find it interesting that the Monark posted by Oilit has the same brake as mine. I had always assumed that it was an aftermarket add on but now I'm wondering if it wasn't factory installed.
 
I find it interesting that the Monark posted by Oilit has the same brake as mine. I had always assumed that it was an aftermarket add on but now I'm wondering if it wasn't factory installed.
The only way we'll know for sure is to see more examples. Does anybody have some good pictures of a Bearcat? And Gordon, I wouldn't mind seeing pictures of your whole bike!
 
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They're an add-on brake that allow you to add a front hand brake to a bike where the front fork is not drilled for a caliper. In the US, this tends to happen mostly on bikes where the front fork is drilled to mount the fender vertically, downward.

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The above brake is a Philco English brake that came with a pre-war Westfield lightweight I owned. The bike had a New Departure Model D coaster in the rear, and the front fork was drilled in the American style, which is to say that hole faces downward toward the top of the tire. So you have no fore-aft hole in the fork to take the caliper center bolt. The brake caliper can be added by means of the two clamps that mount onto the fork blades.

Somewhat more unusual are the rear-mounting caliper add-on brakes. These generally have different clamps and mount to the seat stays. Some mount to the chainstays though, down low.

As has been said, these brakes tend to flex under load because they lack the center bolt, though they do add some braking power and make a very interesting period accessory. Some are very difficult to gets parts for now, and some require special brake pads (save your old holders with these - some use unique pad holders).

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I reviewed a couple examples of "hybrid" braking with a rear coaster and front hand brake here:

 
That's what I was thinking. As long as the arms are on those calipers, there's no way they won't flex under load. Why they need so much clearance above the fender is beyond me, but it looks like there's stops rivetted through slots in the calipers to keep them from pulling forward when you apply the front brake. At least they realized they needed some kind of support, but then the back plate is even thinner than the caliper! The idea is not bad, but the execution leaves something to be desired. But considering that most bikes back then didn't have front brakes, maybe it's not fair to compare them to modern designs.
@dnc1, what do the modern designs look like?
The one I have is a complete kit from 'Dia-Compe' as seen below.....
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...the back plate/mounting plate is very rigid! There are options for the fork clamps in round or aero blade shapes to suit your forks' profile.
The kit comes with cable and lever also.

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Here it is on my 'Razesa' lo-pro, but it also fits on my 'Romani' as they both feature round profile fork blades......


Another option, if you have enough tyre to fork crown clearance (many track bikes don't have much more than 1 or 2 millimetres!) is this beautifully crafted little piece of very, very expensive aluminium.....
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...these are also (occasionally) available from Japan, but sell out almost instantaneously everytime a new batch are made.
Obviously it's basically a mini upside-down quill stem with a specialised shape for bolting on a brake caliper of your choice.
 
@Gordon, this is the ad I remembered, with the bike at the lower right. You can see it has your frame, a two speed rear hub and a front brake, but the picture is too small to make out much detail.
It still doesn't prove that Monark was using these brakes in production, but if they weren't, it's an unusual coincidence. Does anybody else have a Monark with a front brake?

Monark Ad 1955.jpg


Monark Ad Cropped.jpg
 
@Gordon, this is the ad I remembered, with the bike at the lower right. You can see it has your frame, a two speed rear hub and a front brake, but the picture is too small to make out much detail.
It still doesn't prove that Monark was using these brakes in production, but if they weren't, it's an unusual coincidence. Does anybody else have a Monark with a front brake?

View attachment 1502444

View attachment 1502445
Thanks! It certainly looks like you can see the clamp around the fork leg. I think my bike is a 1957, it has a different chain guard and no emblem on the front fender.
 
Thanks! It certainly looks like you can see the clamp around the fork leg. I think my bike is a 1957, it has a different chain guard and no emblem on the front fender.
You're right, it does look like there's a clamp. On the other hand, the Bearcat ad shows a completely different style of brake, but when there's a difference between the ads and what shows up on the bikes, I tend to go with the bikes. Your bike has survived in nice shape, and it's one you're not going to see very often. Thanks for posting!
 
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