Bicycle Mechanics - noob has more brake questions

alright i know these threads have been made a hundred times. i did some forum searches and found a few topics, but most people use brands, specs, and technical terms in their replies and i can never tell if what is being said also applies to my problem. actually, i have four questions. first i'll describe my bike.

i'm a total noob who knows nothing of the bike scene, who ended up with his dad's old 70's model schwinn continental road bike. the thing is totally sweet and in decent condition. i've had it for a couple months, and got it refurbished at a bike shop right when i got it so it's all greased up with new tires and brake pads and tightened joints all that jazz. but it's still really old. the chrome parts of the bike show spotted bits of rust, but other than that it's in pretty good shape. oh i should also add, and this is quite embarrassing, that in attempting to put the front wheel back on when i got it home from the shop [i drove], i had no idea that you had to free the brake so it would fit, so i'm all like WTF IS GOING ON IT WON'T FIT IN HERE and as i was realizing this attempted to force it [i know, i've punished myself you don't have to reprimand me here] and managed to pop one of the pads out of its.. holder.. thing. okay so by this point i've had the bike for a full week but just got home with the chance to ride it, and i'm FIENDING for this ride because i'm so stoked on it, and now this. so rather than getting the problem professionally corrected, i pulled out some pliers and pried the little metal brake-pad-holder-thing open so i could put the pad back in. i bent it a little in the process but would say i did a good job, and being that it's been two months since then and the brake is still stopping me great, i'd say it's not that big of a deal, but i figured it was worth a mention as my first question is

HOLY CRAP MY FRONT BRAKE IS SO SQUEAKY what do you do to remedy this??? it has been squeeky since the first time i rode it, but i haven't addressed the problem yet.

next question:

i think i'm going to catch some more slack for this too. i understand that i'm being silly in not taking care of this stuff sooner but college is annoying and i don't have a lot of free time. so. the back brake, while completely quiet [thank god], does this thing, where it kind of catches the wheel at one point and rubs more intensely, causing slowing down to feel like i'm rolling over little bumps in the road. you know, quick changes in friction. in the past week i've further inspected this and found to my horror that there's a spot on the rim where the chrome has been wearing off and there's rust underneath. i know for a fact that this spot was not worn and rusted at first, but i'm thinking that it's this spot that is the source of the weird braking. so i'm left wondering, what the hell is it? is my rim bent? i can't tell at a glance.. what do you think? and is there any way i can remedy this rust spot on my rim before/after i fix the braking problem? it's wearing down on my what-was-relatively-new brake pad.

one more question about the brakes:

my bike has two sets of brakes, you know, the ones on the outside of the handlebars and the ones on the inside. the ones on the inside don't really brake as well as the outer ones, is there any way to remedy this?

and the last question:

the bike is a 10 speed, but the gears are crap. the shifters are pretty old and stuff, and shifting takes way more work than it should. it's just that i have to line up the shifters perfectly for them to shift properly and not make all kinds of noise, and shifting takes so much work and is so dangerous that i can't really do it when i need to, say, when i'm coming to a stop at a traffic light. further on this subject, though i think i may have remedied this while playing with my bike yesterday: while riding in a.. higher? gear-- a gear that makes it easier to pedal-- if i hit a bump or something, it will shift back down. now like i said i think i MAY have remedied this as i was tightening screws and whatnot here and there and tightened the part holding the gear shifter things, and while i was out riding yesterday i was able to ride around in 7th gear [i usually leave it in 6th because it's where both of the shifters are in sort of a 'neutral' upright position and won't change on me] for quite some time without it shifting involuntarily of its own accord. so i'm wondering if maybe this problem is solved, but not certain. regardless, i still have to deal with the crappy shifting all together and this is leading me to want to convert to fixed-gear. anyway. that's a question.. sort of.

sorry for the overexplanation of these problems, but it's stressing me out. thanks.

my bike, for reference being that i sound like a complete noob

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y44/jacob_thm/bike.gif

HOLY CRAP MY FRONT BRAKE IS SO SQUEAKY what do you do to remedy this??? it has been squeeky since the first time i rode it, but i haven't addressed the problem yet.

Clean the rim, replace the 12,000 year old brake pads.



my bike has two sets of brakes, you know, the ones on the outside of the handlebars and the ones on the inside. the ones on the inside don't really brake as well as the outer ones, is there any way to remedy this?


Remove the suicide levers. Yes, that's what we used to call those goofy inside levers back in the 70s.



shifting takes way more work than it should. it's just that i have to line up the shifters perfectly for them to shift properly and not make all kinds of noise, and shifting takes so much work and is so dangerous that i can't really do it when i need to, say, when i'm coming to a stop at a traffic light.


Start with lubing the cables, the shifters, and the deraillueurs. See if that helps. These parts are so old it's possible that they're simply worn out.

Az

hmm 'suicide levers' eh? why are they called that? i tend to use them a lot as i'm still adjusting to the crazy idea of handlebars shaped like... boomerangs [any explanation of that concept?], and i only use the levers on the front when i'm, you know, bent into it and going fast. i notice a lot of bikes don't have 'suicide levers,' and i wonder how people are okay with that. but i will go with your suggestion and take them off and get used to it.

also, as i stated in that really long post which i'm sure is tl;dr material for most, i got the bike refurbished when i brought it to richmond. they cleaned everything, greased everything, tightened everything, replaced the brake pads, etc. so i don't see how these things would be the problem. BUT! again i am going to take your advice because right now any advice is good advice. so, again, thanks.

Most, if not all, of your questions could be answered by reading/searching Sheldon Brown's site at http://www.sheldonbrown.com/.

Brake squeal is pretty common. Toeing in your front brake pads can help. Squeal can also be aggravated by dirty rims, or brake caliper arms that are too loose.

As for your rusty rim, you could probably try a combination of light sanding and steel wool to get the rust off. If you want to see if your wheel is even remotely true, turn the bike upside down. Center your rear brake calipers so they are the same distance from each side of the tire. Now spin the rear wheel, and watch the distance between the brake pads and the rim. It shouldn't change much at all, less than a mm. If you've got rust on your rim, though, in general, you might just need a new rear wheel.

On suicide levers: http://sheldonbrown.com/gloss_e-f.html#extensionlevers

Mostly the extension levers aren't very effective. You can learn to brake "from the hoods", i.e., grabbing the brakes when your hands are on the top of the handlebar. You don't get as much braking force, but it's more comfortable than always being in the drops (the parts of the bars that curve forward in a "c" shape on the right and left). You will always get the most braking power with your hands in the drops.

As for the automatic shifting, it sounds like you did the right things tightening up the shift lever. If this bike uses friction shifting, and you're not used to it, then give it some time, it'll get easier. It does take a little work to learn how to get both levers in the correct position when changing. Try practicing on some non-dangerous flat turf for a while. If it's indexed shifting (with a click stop at each gear as you push/pull the lever), and shifting poorly, then clean+lube cables/housing, and checking your derailer alignment are all things to do.

wow, thanks for the extremely informative post. i did find sheldon brown's website earlier today (google <3) and am extremely impressed with his vast expanse of knowledge. did a lot of reading there, have already learned a lot.

i have a couple more questions.

first of all, earlier i removed one of the suicide levers only to find that this made the standard lever stick out a bit more, being that it was then missing a quarter inch space where the suicide insert rested. also, there's a pretty obnoxious little piece of metal where the suicide lever installs that is left exposed and sticking out. i'm finding these things entirely too complicated to describe, so i'm sorry if i'm not getting the image across. all i'm saying is that removing the suicide levers seems like it could be a bad idea. thoughts?

secondly, i notice on a lot of bikes around school that most people position their drop handlebars differently from each other. is there any standard for how they should sit?

i'm going to go attempt to toe in my brakes and see if that makes a difference in the squealing. i'm still a bit worried about that back brake though. i hope i don't need a new wheel. :\

Suicide levers have that name for two reasons:

1. They provide a false sense of security to riders using them - they're really not effective enough to provide good braking. Don't use 'em, is my advice, even if you don't remove them.
2. Prejudice against the non "serious" cyclists who would purchase a bike with those levers. They're also called "turkey wings." This is kind of silly - ten speeds were practically all you could buy, back in the 70s.

Anyway, removing the suicide levers shouldn't pose a problem. It might slightly change the way the levers sit, but that's no big deal. The levers are actually very simple mechanisms. The suicide levers have a small lever bit that rests on a teeny metal tab on the side of the main brake lever. When you use them, they actually work by applying the main brake lever. This is why they suck. You're trying to move two levers at once, neither one of which is particularly good anyway.

As for the position of the bars/levers, it's mostly personal preference, but your handlebars look like they're tilted way back. Most people position their bars so that the bottom part (the parts facing to the back of the bike) are either level with the ground or sloped slightly downwards. You do it however you like - I'm not really sure how the position affects your potential braking power. You can try different angles and see how they work for you. To do this, loosen the bolt on the clamp that holds the handlebars on. Make sure to tighten it again once you have them where you want them!

You shouldn't need a new wheel. Chances are good that you can get it trued. If you can't, for whatever reason, it's not really a big deal if you don't have the money for a new wheel. Unless it's really out of true, it won't cause any problems, aside from the occasional brake pad rubbing on it. You should be aware that, if the bike spends much time outside that the rims WILL rust a little bit. Modern, quality bicycles use aluminum rims. Yours are steel. Also, be careful if you ride in the rain. It is a well-known fact that braking on steel rims goes from adequate when dry to practically non-existent when wet.