bleumeon

Hi,

Recently I purchased a budget road bike as I will be moving to an apartment from my university where walking to classes will not be an option. From what I've read the brakes on the tuono are crap. I'd like to replace them with kool stop brakes but from looking at pictures there is no fixture on the stock tuono to slide in the brake inserts. That said what kind of brake fixture will fit the vilano tuono? I'm looking at this one from amazon, will it fit?
Amazon.com: Kool Stop Supra 2 Bicycle Brake Shoes (Threaded, Black)

I'm very much new to cycling but I'd like to be able to tune and upgrade my bike myself. I've been watching a lot of videos and guides and I'm pretty sure I can teach myself. Any help or advice will be well appreciated.

Thanks,
Julian

fietsbob

Have to cough up the information on the specific brakes the company bought to stick on their Bikes

Brand is just a label on the frame. everything else is parts they buy.

bleumeon

Thanks for the reply. Unfortunately the brakes as described on the website are "alloy caliper" brakes. Just a generic no name part--the reason why I am unsure of what kind of brake to buy.
Vilano TUONO 21 Speed Aluminum Frame Shimano component Road Bike

fietsbob

High school or college ?, if the university many have a Bike Co Op in the student services .

then they can show you how to fix stuff or at least take pictures of it.

rmfnla

The bike shown in the second link has road brakes. The pads in the first link are not your best choice.

Odds ar very good your bikes brakes will use Shimano-compatible pads like these:

https://www.amazon.com/Kool-Stop-Bicy...847881&sr=1-14

HillRider

Kool Stop doesn't make brakes, they only make pads and pad holders. You could buy two sets (front and rear) of Kool Stop holders with the salmon pads like the ones rmfnla linked to and use those to replace the pads on your current brakes. They won't improve the quality of the brakes themselves but should greatly improve the power and stopping distances compared to the OEM pads.

bleumeon

College. Thanks for the replies all. By brakes I meant the pads, not the whole mechanism. On another note can anyone recommend a good book explaining common and fundamental bike repairs?

fietsbob

What you linked to is actually a MTB V brake Pad ..

If its fixed with a nut you can get another one fixed with a nut , But I have no clue as to the exact model you need .

and you are not able to Narrow it down... In general Kool stop Brake shoes are Good, I use them .

https://www.koolstop.com/english/rim_pads.html a bike shop will help you pick a compatible product.

even their basic non replaceable insert pads work good https://www.koolstop.com/english/continental.html



Have you gone to the Public Library and checked out any Bike Repair books from there?

bleumeon

I haven't, but that's probably a good idea. Thanks for the link rmfnla. I read many reviews that replacing brakes on this model was common so I'm hoping someone here on this forum owns/owned the same bike and could tell me the exact model to use. Maybe I'll buy those from amazon and see if they are the appropriate size and if not just return them.

mconlonx

I'd be tempted to go with the cheaper Shimano 105 brakes, but they don't come with replacement pads like the Kool Stop ones first posted.

fietsbob

Yours worn out already?

bleumeon

No, but I will be riding on a daily basis as my main means of transportation so I want to replace the OEM part with a better quality one. And I might as well learn how to install and adjust brakes while I'm at it.

Also is it okay to have 2 different set of brakes for the front and rear. If I am replacing the brakes would I have to replace both the front and rear with the same set?

HillRider

The 105 holder/pad sets you linked to certainly do accept replacement pads, including Kool Stop's "Dura Type". The OEM Shimano pads they come with are adequate but not as good as Kool Stops.

alcjphil

Generally speaking, if you are looking at upgrading components of a bike you are planning on buying, you are looking at the wrong bike. If there is one part that you think isn't good enough before you buy there will be others you will discover afterwards. the cheapest upgrades are done before your purchase

bleumeon

I was able to get this bike new greatly discounted which is why I purchased it. Also I don't want anything too nice as bike theft is common at my university. It is just a purchase for commuting and for me to try out road bikes before I make a more serious purchase in the future. The OEM parts aren't great by any measure but should work fine for my purpose as a method of transportation for the next 3-4 years or so. Plus noisy brakes are a bit annoying and better stopping power is a plus.

alcjphil

most of the time,"discounts"on bikes like this reflect the price they should sell for in the first place. Unless the discounted price was well under $200 you pais pretty much what the bike is worth on the open market

Bezalel

Add me the list of people who say don't bother changing them until you need to, but when you need to the ones linked to in post #5 should be correct.

bleumeon

And that I don't mind. The bike is usually around $275+ new from most dealers and shops. I got it for around $230 which fits in my price range. Yes, it can be argued that purchasing a bike with quality OEM components is cheaper than building one from aftermarket parts. That said, I'm not sure why this is relevant towards my questions. I don't intend to swap out all the components: had that been the case it would have been from buying a used bike or from building one from scratch. While I may tackle a build in the future I just want something that will get me through for the time being--of which new brakes that stop well and are quiet help.

I will see how the long the stock brakes will last and work for me. At some point depending on how they function I will be replacing them.

Thanks for the replies all!

bleumeon

Just another question. Are the front and rear brake pads the same? If I were to replace the pads would the linked pads in post #5 be good for front and rear? Thanks.

altondavis2

Best book on repairs that I know of:
Park Tool Co. » BBB-3 : Big Blue Book of Bicycle Repair ? 3rd Edition : Books

mconlonx

Yes, I know all this -- just that the amazon link to the Kool Stop pads indicated that they ship with a holder and dual-compound pads, plus additional red-only inserts at $20/pr. The Shimano pads are holder with pads for $10/pr, and would be miles better than the hockey pucks that come stock as brake pads on bargain calipers...

So: pay $40 for a pair of Kool Stop dual compound holder/pads with an additional set of red-only pads to play around with, or $20 for the 105 Shimano pads which will still be a substantial upgrade over stock even if they are not as good as Kool Stop, but at half the price.

All about the options...

Spld cyclist

I don't disagree, but brake pads are definitely an exception to this rule. Spending say $20 - 25 for two sets of upgraded brake pads is easily worth it, in my opinion. If OP had spent an extra $25 on the bike in the first place, it's likely that the stock brakes and brake pads wouldn't have been any better.