Originally Posted by
Emgee
Great advice all - I had someone look over the bike at the weekend and you are spot on - the 'play' is not in the headset but in the roller brake. There is similar play on the bake brake as well. Can this play be lessened at all or is it just a symptom of these type of brake? How do these brakes actually work - is there a pad that will need changing eventually and if so is it a bugger to change it?
The only way to lessen the play is to reduce the free movement in the reaction arm. If it is the type that fits into a slot on the fork, you could try wrapping a piece of old inner tube around the end before fitting it in the slot. Might help a bit.
Other than greasing, there is no serviceability on these brakes. If you live long enough to actually wear them out, you will need to replace the whole unit.