Originally Posted by gcasillo
Okay, if you read the thread title, you probably know what I'm talking about. I've got a set of Shorty 6 cantilever brakes on my Volpe. I noticed the other day that my rear rim's braking surface was considerably darker, more worn than my front rim. I know well enough to apply the front brake primarily, so this made me conscientious about checking how I'm braking when I'm out on my Volpe.
Sure enough, I'm apply the rear brake much more than I realized. Why? Because when I use the front brake as I should, the brake pads announce my intent to stop with AUTHORITY. SQUEEEEEEEL! Almost louder than metro buses.
How can I alleviate this ghastly noise? The pads are lightly to moderately worn. I would not otherwise be in a hurry to chuck them.
I recently changed my pads from cartridge to a solid pad on my Avids. The squeal went away for now but I don't know about the long run. The pads I changed to were Koolstop Eagle Claws. I think the thin cartridge pads may not have enough "beef" to keep from chattering.