creacha

Hi, I assembled my first disc brake bike at work today. got both brakes dialled quite nicely, but the guy who was helping me could only give me a vague answer to this question: when installing a disc brake, should the 'fixed' pad be...

• screwed all the way in
• screwed all the way out
• bang in the middle to allow adjustment either way
• left alone and adjusting left up to the mounting bolts

ok, so he gave me the last answer which isn't totally vague. Intuition told me to go all the way in then pull out 1/2 turn or so. Now thinking bang in the middle is the way

Cheers

Svr

What brand of disc brake? Did you read the instructions? Most have very specific method for adjusting the fixed pad position.

If we're talking about Avid BB7 brakes, - none of the above.

creacha

They were shimano cable pull type. Yeah, I read the manual and it was clearly marked how to adjust the fixed pad, just nothing about fixed pad starting position. wondering how others went about installing them.
guess I can't give anyone a hard time about vague speech
Will keep in mind that many models are different, and to always start with the service manual.

maddmaxx 

Position the fixed pad per the instructions with the understanding that the rotor needs to be far enough toward the moveable pad on new pads so that it will not strike the caliper as the fixed pad wears down.

Avid for one is pretty clear that the initial position of the fixed pad will place the rotor about 1/3 of the gap in from the moveable pad. This leaves 2/3rds of the gap for wear.