The popularity and growth of bike commuting has had several great effects on the world of cycling. First, more people are on bikes! Second, there are clear health benefits to daily exercise. Third, better for the environment than driving. Fourth, many people are re-purposing older bikes, especially steel road designs as cool and cost effective way to get around town. The Shimano BL-550 Brake Levers enable you safely and properly set-up a flat bar townie on a frame and fork that require road dual caliper, cantilever, or road-specific mechanical disc brakes. The BL-550 delivers the proper Super SLR (non-EV) cable pull ratio to deliver optimal leverage for powerful and controlled braking. The lever shape itself carries forward shape and braking principles from years of mountain bike design, so you can brake comfortably with 1-2 fingers.

The BL-550's features reach adjustment set-up from a single bolt on each lever, as well as cable tension adjustment with the easy to use threaded barrel and lock system. Almost all flat bars today have a 22.2mm brake clamp interface diameter, and that is what the BL-55's are spec'ed for. The lightweight aluminum levers are anodized in silver or black, and weight just 175 grams for the pair. Do your homework on brake compatibility to ensure the best performance. If you are building the aforementioned flat bar townie and need a great lever and caliper match with mid-reach (47-57mm) capability, we highly recommend you run BL-550 Brake Levers and the BR-650 Brake Calipers for Ultegra-level braking performance. For mechanical disc brake users, we suggest Avid BB7 ROAD, or Shimano's road-only versions. Do not use the BL-550's with mountain rim brake calipers, as the cable ratio is different, leading to safety issues.