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I have an old 1981 SR185 and I can't seem to get the front brake to work properly. When I got it safetied, the mechanic told me that the brake cable was worn out.. ok. So I got a new cable.. it didn't help at all. I still had to adjust the cable to the max, and it still doesn't brake well enough. The problem is that I can pull the brake lever all the way until it touches the handlebar. I doubt the problem is the drum because the gage shows it as still being ok. Does anyone know what the problem could be, and if there's something I can do about it? Please e-mail any solutions to this e-mail: julietcoy@hotmail.com or post them here. Thanks!

If the cable is adjusted to the max, then the shoes may be worn out, or the cams and piviots may be sticky and need cleaning and lube. But first make sure you have both ends of the cable adjusted all the way out. The 'guage' on the drum should not be trusted as accurate. Mass produced casting marks tend to be less than trustworthy.

but since I seem to be able to pull the brake lever all the way to the handlebar, what would that represent? could that still be the fact that the brake drum is worn out?

If anything is worn out, it is probably the shoes, not the drum. If by some fluke of happenstance the drum is worn that badly, you need to replace the entire hub or wheel. Chances are, your hub is o.k. The pads are the sacraficial parts.