Mountain Biking - Suggestions for good V Brakes?

Hi Guys,

I have some pretty crappy V Brakes [Tektro 839AL] on my folding tourer [Bike Friday].

http://www.jensonusa.com/!j43ky9pSfwTETa8wub0aYA!/Tektro-839Al-Linear-Pull-Brakes

I need to repeatedly adjust it, and it somehow does not 'snap' back when the lever is released, so to compensate, I need to just keep the pads far from the rim. Didn't have any issues like this when I used to own a Trek MTB many years ago. So, looking to change the brakes. Any suggestions?


Edit: No issues with stopping power which is fantastic compared to my cantis on my other tourer. Just that they somehow keep needing to be adjusted. Maybe the springs are not strong enough, so ever so often I find one or the other pad closer to the rim or touching a rim. Wheel is true though.

Quick question.


Have these levers:


Tektro RL520 Silver/Black Linear pull Ergo Aero L


Looking at these brakes: Shimano XT T780 V-Brake


http://www.evanscycles.com/products/shimano/xt-t780-v-brake-ec031641


Are they compatible?

Are they compatible?

Yes

You need to adjust the cable. Here is a video how to adjust.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGgidUE8drE&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Yes

Thanks


You need to adjust the cable. Here is a video how to adjust.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGgidUE8drE&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Thanks. I know all that. Been working on my bikes for years now. Issue is that keeping it centered is an issue, and the springs are very weak I think. They don't snap back when the lever is released.

Are the arms moving freely if you disconnect the spring and the noodle? Quite often, problems like yours are caused by lack of grease around the canti bosses (or V-brake bosses in your case).
I've been running cheap tektro Vees for nearly a decade, and every other winter they would suffer from alignment issues. Taking them apart, re-greasing the entire bottom end of the arms and setting them up again always solved it for me.

I'd suggest taking them apart completely and putting some grease on the coiled section of the spring and the axle. As my earlier question may suggest, the arms should move freely.
If your frame and/or forks have multiple holes for the spring to fit in to, try using the topmost ones to increase spring tension.
If even that doesn't solve it, there might be an issue with the springs indeed.

I'm sure you'll be fine with most any v-brake from a reputable company. Even the generic Shimano and Tektros have more than enough stopping power. Those XTs you posted will be really nice. If you want the most possible out of your brakes, I used to have some Shimano XTR v-brakes that were awesome. I think they were the M950 model. The way they're made, they keep the pad pressing completely flat against the rim with equal pressure from top to bottom, and the pads also wear evenly. As I'm sure you know, most v-brakes push more at the top due to their design and also have uneven pad wear. I think due to the design, they provided great modulation(better than any other v-brakes I've used) and were plenty powerful enough. I'm sure you could find them on ebay or something.

Replace your cables with teflon- or fluorine-coated stainless and your housing with lubed low compression or compressionless varieties and you'll probably be happier than if you replaced the arms. Also take a look at the posts. Like someone said, they may need to be regreased.

Thanks guys. Will try the re greasing and if that doesn't work maybe recabling, though the cabling is just 8 months and 2000km old. It is full length housing though and I think that adds to friction etc.

Any suggestions for housing and cables?

Full length housing can have a bit more friction, but then again open cables are much more likely to suffer from rain etc. So in the long term full housing is the better solution.

One thing I always do with new cables, is to put grease on them before I install them. Just a thin layer over the entire length will make the cable run a lot smoother and gives it much more protection against rust etc.

As for which cables to buy, any outer cable with a plastic sleeve on the inside is perfect.
I usually go to my LBS and buy a few dozen feet of generic outer brake cable and outer gear cable, some ferrules and regular inox cables. Works brilliant, no friction whatsoever and a lot cheaper than the full sets.

I'm sure you'll be fine with most any v-brake from a reputable company. Even the generic Shimano and Tektros have more than enough stopping power. Those XTs you posted will be really nice. If you want the most possible out of your brakes, I used to have some Shimano XTR v-brakes that were awesome. I think they were the M950 model. The way they're made, they keep the pad pressing completely flat against the rim with equal pressure from top to bottom, and the pads also wear evenly. As I'm sure you know, most v-brakes push more at the top due to their design and also have uneven pad wear. I think due to the design, they provided great modulation(better than any other v-brakes I've used) and were plenty powerful enough. I'm sure you could find them on ebay or something.
I had the Shimano XT brakes 3speed describes. Took them off just this year and replaced with BB7 discs. If you go with the older XT model with the floating head, try some Koolstop, salmon colored brake pads. The stopping power of that combination is absolutely awesome. You might find it can rival some lower end disc setups.