Review on 🚴 Black Shimano R451 Front Mid-Reach Road Brake Caliper by Craig Kimball

These calipers are amazingly strong, they were on my 1970's suburban car and replaced the crappy center pull brakes that were common at the time. The reach is long enough for 27" rims, and when closed they clear my 32mm tires with ease. Unfortunately, these calipers are mounted slightly differently than the older models, which at the rear was a bolt through a steel frame and acorn nut. Bikes with rim brakes now have a flat-bottomed notch at the back of the front fork. The caliper bolt comes out of the front hole and you connect it with a "pivot nut" inserted from the back. To go all the way you can replace it with a longer one as you need a long bolt that can go all the way through your front fork. I have been using Dia Comp brake pads for a number of years. TLDR: If you have an older bike, buy two front calipers as the only difference is that the front calipers have a longer bolt.