Originally Posted by
Phil_gretz
Yes. Probably a terminology error on my part. The edge forward most, that makes contact first when toed in properly. My bad...
Think of the pad as a boot. The “toe” is the part of the brake that points in the direction of travel and hits the brake first. “Toe in” means that the toe is closer to the rim.
Originally Posted by
BoraxKid
OTOH, I could see why having the rear-most edge of the pad contact the rim first might be preferable: it could clear away any debris and effectively clean-off the rim before the rest of the pad makes contact. Has anyone tried this?
Heel in isn’t a good idea. As the rim passes through the brakes, it pulls the brakes forward. If the toe is set in so that it hits first, the entire pad is pulled down onto the rim. If the heel hits first, the toe of the pad is lifted off the rim and can flutter or vibrate. Squealing brakes are the result of the fluttering brake pad.
A secondary problem is weak brake arms. If the arms aren’t strong enough, the brakes can flutter as well. Shimano made a linear brake in their higher line that was a marvel of engineering with a parallelogram system that move the brake pads straight into the rim rather than in an arc like most brakes do. Unfortunately, The parallelogram was too flexible and the brakes squealed more than any other brake I have ever used. I was relegated to riding a quarter of a mile from everyone in my bike club because of the squeal. On the plus side, they knew exactly where I was almost all the time.