Mountain Biking - inconsistently rubbing brake pads

my bike's got v-brakes front and back, and i've kept them pretty well adjusted (good and close, front end slightly closer in). on my ride today i noticed rubbing sounds on the front end that happen when i turn left, or when the fork compresses going over bumps. any ideas what may be causing this?

btw - also on this ride i was cruelly ejected from the bike on a tech downhill. after picking myself up i gave everything a once over and saw no change in the pads' alignment, so i doubt that the crash has anything to do with the sounds

Sounds like you need to tighten the front spokes. They have become loose and the wheel is "warping" under pressure.

The crash probably fubarred your wheel...

What fork do you have? It could just be some good ole flex.

I'm having the exact same problem, except with BB7 disc brakes.

*Refer to my recently posted thread*

What fork do you have? It could just be some good ole flex.

It didn't happen before but happens now, with no change in equipment...so ya it could be th fork if the bushings are blown as well.

I'm having the exact same problem, except with BB7 disc brakes.

*Refer to my recently posted thread*

MASSIVE difference in symptoms. Disc brakes react to forces in different areas. Disc brake rubbing is usually a warped disc. Rarely anything else.

the fork is an old rockshox jett...2000 or 01 not sure. even though it's a pretty low end (and maybe even recalled??) fork, it's been good to me ever since i got it...although lately i've become more aware of some pretty significant bucking

btw - it was rubbing before the crash, but now seems more significant

Thats a lot of symptoms to be honest. Sounds like you need a rebuild, the bushings might not be hold the fork true and the front wheel likely needs tightening. Both would help a lot.

If you have always had a bit of rubbing in those conditions then the fork is to laterally loose for you and you need something a little stronger

yeah that's crossed my mind. the thing is that this bike started out as an '99 gt outpost (don't hate i got it when i was 14 ;) ) has low end shimano components (alivio/acera) and is quite heavy...so the idea of just getting a new bike has been rolling around my head for sometime. how much could i expect a rebuild to cost?

Wow, didn't realize you were in Richmond too. Were you doing some of the crazy freeride stuff at Powhite when you messed it up? :p

But yeah, as far as a rebuild goes, shops will typically charge 40-70 bucks depending on the fork. Your best bet for shops would be Cobblestone in Ashland (http://www.cobblestonebikes.com), 3Sports near UR (http://www.threesports.com), or Pibby's on West Marshall in the VCU area. 3Sports and Cobblestone will both give you great fast service. Pibby's has just opened, so I'd think it'd be the cheapest. I haven't been to that shop yet but the guy that runs it is good people.

By the way, check out www.cyclingcentralva.org/forums for some good local group rides and such.

gwhunt--nah i was out on some of the switchbacks out at poor farm

i think i'm going to take it over to goodly's on broad, it's where the bike and fork came from and he said he'd have a look at it (and would true the wheels) for free. i didn't expect them to mean it when they said "lifetime warranty on all parts and services"...would've thought 6 or 7 years of abuse would void that

Ah yeah, Duc at Goodly's is a real good guy. Can't believe I didn't name that shop, guess we've just got too many around here!