sunburst

I don't work on mtn bikes much, but have adjusted V-brakes a few times. Someone gave me an old Kona Cinder Cone frame that I'm building up. I see a brake cable stop near the headset, but not at the rear brake. I'm baffled. Did they use a clamp-on cable stop? No cable stop? And if no stop, do I run a bare wire directly to the rear V-brake noodle? Doesn't seem right.

dedhed

You can see where the paint is brighter under the seat post clamp. Likely had a hanger mounted there and originally ran canti lever brakes.

Steve B.

You can zip tie a full length brake cable housing right to the rear brake.

dsbrantjr

V-brakes do not use cable stops, you run the housing all the way to the noodle.

Andrew R Stewart 

Many bikes (with V brakes) do have a rear of TT casing stop because they have a front of TT one. First thing, besides the very obvious full length casing, is a backstop or other clamp on stop. From the TT weld beads it looks to be a round tube. So a clamp on stop like this might do. This is an Origin 8 part #14469 . They are made in different tube diameters. Andy

freeranger

I found some photos online and it does appear there was some type of hanger there: https://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/dow....php?id=156388
If you don't have the hanger tho, you could certainly run full length housing, as prev. mentioned. Could use zip ties or clamps similar to these: https://www.modernbike.com/product-2126195207

dedhed

This thread shows a pretty clean set up with a post clamp mount.

Cantilever to V Brakes Swap?

https://www.greggscycles.com/product...hoCDoAQAvD_BwE

https://www.google.com/search?q=seat...CAKVPC_enUS837

wesmamyke 

kona called it a dog collar. It's less of a cable stop and more of a guide for a bare cable, meant for canti brakes only. Can be modified to use is as a housing stop though. I have a bunch if anybody needs one.

They all got removed/replaced with the style of clamp on stop posted above when the owners converted to V-brakes. I also have some of the nicer old machined V-brake stops, probably all huge sizes for aluminum bikes though.

Trevtassie

I'd just run full length outer, keeps the inner clean and will save you some money.

sunburst

You are right. Kona did have a clamp-on cable stop right there. Someone took it off, but I still have it, so will install tomorrow and post a photo.
Thx everyone!

Steve B.

Well.... nitpicking, but this very frame dependent. My ‘04 Specialized has cable stops on the bottom of the top tube, front and rear. It had housing from the rear stop to the noodle on the rear brake. My ‘91 Fuji has a hand made steel tube welded in place around the seat and top tube junction that routed the rear brake cable to the center position on canti brakes. When I upgraded that to V, I couldn’t use that nice noodle and ran brake housing right from the lever, zip tied

sweeks

I have cable stops on my Trek 6000 mountain bike, which has V-brakes. That said, the OP's frame ornament doesn't look like a proper cable stop... the housing could pass right through it, as wesmamyke pointed out.

dsbrantjr

I should have been clearer, V-brakes have a run of housing going to the noodle, unlike cantilever brakes which have a cable hanger where the housing stops and then a bare inner wire goes to the brake's straddle cable carrier or link wire. Either may have intermediate stops for bare cable runs such as along the top tube.

Steve B.

And there's nothing wrong with full length housing either. My '98 Miyata tourer has internal routing in the top tube for a full length housing, could have been either Canti or V.

wesmamyke 

These are two different generations of the same thing, so they look a little different.

Here is one modified to work with V-brakes:




Here is the stock setup:

sunburst

OK, found the part, and found an original pic of the bike. This cable guide/stop has an indent that fixes the position. I first tried to defeat this because I did not like the curve in the cable, and this orientation just seems wrong, but this is what Kona designed. And it works.

Here are pix of the finished bike.

sunburst

Maiden voyage last night. Today I changed the saddle. Next up is a better crank and bar-ends. Most of these parts came from a wreaked hybrid I bought for parts.

It fits and rides beautifully. I've wanted a rigid fork mtn bike ever since I gave my brother my old purple Rockhopper.
Thx 2cam!

Andrew R Stewart 

Given that the first photo shows a cable casing end that isn't seated in the frame clamp stop fully I don't think this is a solution that Kona , or experienced wrenches, would have hoped for. Then there's the extremely curvy casing path... Andy

sunburst

That cable casing was not an original part (which I don't have). Just something in my box.

Yeah, I don't like the curve, so I don't know what Kona was thinking. The brake pull doesn't feel like there is any restriction however. The cable guide has a top tube indent that forces the guide into this position. I tried getting around it but, in my opinion, this is just bad/strange design. I could be wrong.

wesmamyke 

Again. this is the stock setup:

sunburst

duh, I get it now - the bike originally came with canti-levers. Someone, at some point, replaced them with V-brakes, so I assumed that was the factory design. Thx for the photo.