A band brake, common in Japan and occasionally seen in the USA, is an inside-out drum brake. Instead of brake shoes which press outward against the inside of a brake drum, a band brake has a flexible band which wraps around the outside of the drum. A band brake is easy to install and adjust, and we show how. While a band brake can be very effective for flatland cycling, it is not good for downhills and should never be used on a front wheel. Read why in our new article.
Please follow and like us:
Interesting! I still have a Sturmey-Archer 5-speed hub with a drum brake – built into a 700C wheel at Harris Cyclery, no less! Can’t say it does the greatest job stopping the bike, but it kinda worked. I always felt that the hub didn’t roll as well as a regular SA hub.
Thanks for keeping Sheldon’s site going.
Cool article!
We’ll be working on a page about drum brakes soon.
And that page is now online — https://sheldonbrown.com/drum-brakes.html