felipe.m

I have a 1977 Raleigh Super Record and its brakes are killing the joy of an old road bike. I'd be able to ignore the noise and let it eventually go away, but now it comes with a tremor that shakes the whole bike and my arms along with it. And when it gets wet it's like I'm riding on ice... The rims are the original old slick/smooth surfaced silver, without the usual textures that seem to help brakes do their job properly.
Any hints on this? If I change the pads and rims will it get better?
Many thanks in advance!

Andrew R Stewart 

For brakes pad refreshing is the #1 way to change the feel. Replacement cables are #2. The real issue is your steel rims (if they are still OEM wheels). The chrome plating has a well known lack of grip when wet. For steel rims and wet weather a leather brake pad works quite well. Andy

SurferRosa

If the rims are steel, replace with aluminum. True 'em well and remove any bulges by filing/sanding. Overhaul and adjust the headset. Ensure the brakes are perfectly adjusted and the pads are toe'd in exactly the same on each side.

Iride01 

Squeaky brakes sometimes will fix themselves after about 300 miles and lots of stops with firm braking.

The old single pivot rim brakes of the vintage days always were a PIA both for noise and stopping power when wet. Modern double pivot rim brakes like the Shimano 105 5800 brakes that I put on my Paramount are much better stopping than the original Weinman's on my '78 Raleigh Competition GS.

New pads if you can find some that you can make fit might help. Keeping pads and rim braking surface wax free, grease and oil free might help. Wipe the pads and rim down with some isopropyl alcohol if you think you might have got some cleaners or lube you used on your frame, chain or elsewhere.

Ditto on chromed steel rims being more prone to lack of stopping power when wet and maybe even more prone to noise.

cranky old road 

Tremor suggests that the pads are incorrectly toed in. The distance from the rim should be slightly larger at the back of the pad than toward the front of the bike.

reconnaissance

This gap should be approximately 2mm (the thickness of a spoke) when the front of the pad is barely touching the rim. If the brake doesn’t have dome washers adjust by flexing the slotted part of the brake arm with a crescent wrench. Park makes a handy tool for this as well. In fact, there might be a video on the park website showing this procedure, or Sheldon Brown’s site.

ARider2

Over time rubber brake pads get hard and the surface gets glazed. Replace with soft new pads and this should help a lot. For an older road bike like yours I like Kool Stop salmon colored Continental brake pads. Also, make sure your pads are toed in and your head set is properly adjusted.

cranky old road 

A good way to check the head set is to stand beside the bike, apply the front brake hard, and try to rock the bike forward and back with your other hand on the headset. There shouldn't be play there.

felipe.m

thank you all very much! super helpful!

FTB

This and this. Unless your brake pads are down to the 'totally f*cked' wear point, nothing else should really be causing shuddering when braking. Anything else would have been screaming obvious.

I use a small zip tie to get consistent toe-in results.
By squeezing the brake lever with a zip tie sandwiched between the rim and the pad at the rear of the pad, you can loosen the pad/brake shoe bolt and then retighten it (keep pressure on lever). assuming you have the appropriate convex and concave washers, toe-in should be sweet

Luke

felipe.m

ok. so I brought the bike to a couple of places, trying to check the possibility of switching brakes and rims. new brakes will not fit my frame, they are much smaller than the old central pull caliper brakes. and I'm in Brazil, where I can't find the aluminum or carbon rims with the same width as my original (a little over an inch, maybe?) steel chrome ones. so I'm stuck... and it's starting to rain cats and dogs here : /

Geepig

On my old 1973 Carlton Continental with Weinmann centre-pull used to squeal sometimes, but back in those days we just used to pull harder and ignored any noise and judder we couldn't get rid of. In fact I thought brake squeal in the wet was a norm for bikes

Do all the things listed above, such as checking for play in the fork bearings and replacing the pads if they are hard or worn. I live in Poland and it is difficult to find more modern parts to fit my vintage Polish bikes, and the pressed steel side caliper front brakes on one of them shakes the front end, mostly because the front wheel bearings are shot and the wheel needs its spokes reset. I am seriously considering buying a cheap secondhand child's bike for its aluminium wheels, because I need 20" rims.

dabac

Tektro makes a range of brakes with different reach. Not entirely surprising if a shop doesn’t have any in stock, but it should be entirely possible to order some.
Tire/rim width is a very tolerant interface. Don’t worry if you can’t find an exact match.