My rear brakes feel mushy and requires a lot of effort to stop.
07-26-09, 12:52 AM
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My rear brakes feel mushy and requires a lot of effort to stop.
Maybe it's because one of the pads is toe out, I'm just not sure. The brakes do feel real mushy and on a workstand, the brakes will stop a spinning wheel. But under load and going downhill, the brakes are downright scary. Any ideas? Thanks.
07-26-09, 01:44 AM
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What type of brakes?
Too much mechanical advantage and/or not enough cable pull is my vote.
Too much mechanical advantage and/or not enough cable pull is my vote.
07-26-09, 01:52 AM
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Nope - too much cable and old brake-pads. The brakes need cleaning and lubricating. The brake-pads need replacing (should have been done long ago). New cable-housing (what's your favorite color?). And we need more information and - please - photos to show us the BIG picture.
07-26-09, 01:57 AM
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Sorry for not providing enough info.
The shifters are generic Shimano. What's below Sora? The calipers are dual pivot 105s with about 500 miles on them. I don't have a digital camera, unfortunately.
The shifters are generic Shimano. What's below Sora? The calipers are dual pivot 105s with about 500 miles on them. I don't have a digital camera, unfortunately.
07-26-09, 02:06 AM
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If the travel of the cable is such that you need to pull hard on the levers for the brake-pads to engage on the rim - put a strap on the the brake-calipers while squeezing them down hard on the rims. Now release the cable from it's pinch-bolt and pull it tight. Then tighten the pinch-bolt down to 50 - 60 inch-pounds of torque - pretty tight without stripping the bolt. Do this adjustment over again as needed.
Absolutely!
07-26-09, 07:27 PM
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When it no longer slides smoothly. under poor conditions with non-sealed cables, they can go bad in a month. Higher-quality cables on bikes stored indoors can last for decades.
Do a test. Disconnect the inner cable from the brake-caliper. Then pull on that inner-cable as you squeeze the lever. Then release the lever and pull out the inner cable. You should be able to floss the inner cable through the housing smoothly with no friction or binding felt.
I really like dia-compe's cable that have the inner wire drawn through a die so that the outer-surface is perfectly smooth rather than braided. Sliding that through teflon-lined housing gives incredibly crisp and solid braking feel. Perfect for modulating the brakes right at the edge of lockup & going-over-the-bars with perfect control.
Do a test. Disconnect the inner cable from the brake-caliper. Then pull on that inner-cable as you squeeze the lever. Then release the lever and pull out the inner cable. You should be able to floss the inner cable through the housing smoothly with no friction or binding felt.
I really like dia-compe's cable that have the inner wire drawn through a die so that the outer-surface is perfectly smooth rather than braided. Sliding that through teflon-lined housing gives incredibly crisp and solid braking feel. Perfect for modulating the brakes right at the edge of lockup & going-over-the-bars with perfect control.
07-26-09, 10:03 PM
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