The front brakes on my bike are squealing and I've read that the problem is the pads need to be toed-in. Several sites recommend using a dime or penny behind the rear of the pad while you tighten the bolt to help with it however the rear of my pads are behind the fork and there's no room to get my fingers in there.

Any thoughts on how I might accomplish this? So far it's been an exercise in frustration. Thanks in advance.

We may need some more information. What kind of brakes? Canitlever or V brakes? some road bike brakes can't have their pads toed in this manner with a different style of pad.

You can use anything. Fold a piece of cardboard long enough to reach, tie a rubber band on the pad, etc. You also don't need to do this. You can just hold the pad in place and tighten down.

From Jamis' site, they're Tektro direct-pull brakes with front power modulator and Tektro alloy levers. 2011 Jamis Coda Sport

Long piece of cardboard or rubber band sounds like a good idea. The forks are carbon and there's very little clearance for the pads or for working with them.

I usually will put something under the pad on linear pull brakes. I don't on road caliper brakes. The easiest way for me to get the correct adjustment is to unhook the brake spring on the side you want to adjust. This causes the other spring to pull the pad up against the rim. Having a spacer under the pad, I will gently pull on the brake arm a couple of times while loosely holding onto the pad. This allows the pad and conical washers to adjust themselves to the rim and the spacer. When I am satisfied, I tighten the pad and engage the spring, then move to the other side.

This works well for me, but for some reason others have a hard time with this method. I have tried to teach a few people at the shop and they just don't get how to do it.

Thanks for the sound advice. I'll give it another go and hopefully keep my patience. Cheers!

A business card is typically .5mm and slides in easily. Use 2 or fold it in half if you want more toe-in. If you've got an extra set of hands (a helper), slide the card under the rear of the pad and have the 'helper' squeeze the brake lever lightly. The just adjust the pad accordingly. If there are no 'helpers' available, a small strap or rubber band around the lever works well . . . and no one to yell at for not doing it right.

The card for the last set of pads I used recommended using the card as the shim.

THe other way to do it is (1) set the pads perfectly flat against the rim, (2) lightly tighten the pad adjustment nut so it just barely holds the pad in place, (3) toe the pad in slightly by hand, then (4) fully tighten the nut. Repeat for other side.

Okay, I used a piece of cardboard to toe-in the pads, visually confirmed they were toe'd-in and I'm still getting squealing. Any thoughts on what I should try next? They do function as a an early warning system for any peds that step out in front of me but I prefer a stealthier approach.

Squealing can be caused by other things other than the toe in. Also, the angle of the toe in can affect squealing. Too much or too little can be bad. Sometimes just playing around with the angle you will find the sweet spot.

What I'd do is clean the braking surface of the rim, remove all traces of rubber left by the pad. Go around the rim with some sandpaper, then clean again with alcohol. Check the pads, if they are glazed, sand them also. While you're at it, remove any aluminum that is in the pad. Also remove the power modulator. All that does is weaken the brakes.

is the Rim Clean, and the pads free of glazing and grit?

Yea +1, get a plain Noodle for the front.,
just don't fling yourself over the bars, after that.

DCB0 has got it! After years of struggling with credit cards, rubber bands, etc, I figured out that tightening them slightly and then adjsting the toe-in by hand before cranking the bolt down is the way to go!

Nobody else has one of these?

K, thanks for the ideas. It'll be a week or so before I can give them a try but I'll report back if I solve it.