Brake Question
 

I have an old mountain frame, and I am interested in fitting it with 700cm wheels. I know the wheels will fit with plenty of clearance for tires, etc. My problem is brakes. The frame and fork are not disk compatible. They have cantilever posts, but I can't get enought reach from my current cantilever set up to reach a 700cm rim. Does anyone know of a solution?

Do linear pull brakes have a larger range on where you can set the pads?

Can I mount a road style caliper? The frame and fork are drilled where you would expect a caliper to mount. I think reflectors were mounted there when I purchased the bike.

Thanks in advance for any info.

The frame: a 1992 scott 4130 frame with horizontal drops, 130mm rear spacing, and a 1" headtube.

Here's the solution:

Take it to a frame builder, and have the posts moved. Then have the frame repainted. Should cost you about $250.

V-brakes are easier to adjust, but they have much less adjustability than cantilevers.

Have you tried to angle the brake pads down? Braking efficiency shouldn't matter if you angle them down a few degrees.

You could try a sidepull caliper. There are several aftermarket brakes available that work quite well. I even used a cheap ($12) BMX alloy sidepull and am impressed with the performance. There are some nice dual pivot sidepulls that'll probably suffice. Brake reach will have to be determined, however, since you're changing rim diameter.

I suspect going this route would be cheaper than having the cantilever posts moved.

I think that those holes drilled are for fenders. I could be wrong though, but it seems really strange to have a frame and fork drilled for V-brakes and sidepulls.

Yeah, that bridge is gonna break if you install a caliper on it. The only real solution is the one I mentioned.

Thanks for the information and advice. I suspected that this was the only solution. This project may need to be put aside for now until I get some $$$. It was meant to be a relatively cheap build of a commuter using spare/abandoned parts.

Thanks again.

Sounds like a Chenango, maybe a Boulder. I miss my Chenango. Personallt, I would just put some super-narrow 26" rims on it if it was me. The frame probably isnt worth sinking an additional $250 into it just to build up as a cheap commuter.

Yeah I agree.

I was curious about brakes and the 700cm rims, because I was interested in trying out fixed gear riding, and it is not easy to find cheap 26" fixed gear wheels. I am not really intersted in riding brakeless even if the drivetrain is fixed.

As for the Scott, I think the model was the peak. It had low end components on it, alivio riveted crank, alivio shifters. etc., but it was my first real bike shop bike, and the frame is still very solid. I now have a road bike (my second bike shop bike), and I have built up another mountain bike from an old abandoned Trek and the salvageable parts from the Scott. I will probably just move the parts back from the Trek onto the Scott, and upgrade the mountain bike.

Can you find a wheel with a hub brake instead?