ksisler

Building up the 62cm Nashbar touring frame for heavy loaded touring with 700C x 37/43mm Pasela tires...

I became more than a bit frustrated with being unable to easily remove the wheels due to interference between the fat tires and the brake pads.

Basically, for the easily obtainable cable stops/hangers like here:

https://www.amazon.com/Nashbar-Rear-B...s=brake+hanger

and here:

https://www.amazon.com/Tektro-Hangar-...im_sbs_sg_cy_5
to support cantilever brakes on bikes (with 1 1/8" threadless headsets); well they no longer have quick releases as they did in the old days...

I proceeded to find a set of the oldie retro cable hangers (originally for Canti's or centerpulls) for the front and rear.

Here is how it looks now for the front:

As the original items were for a 1" steerer, I had to hit the inside with a round file to open it up to 1 1/8". Easy to do and it leaves plenty of material strength. They were a bit loose of a fit onto 1" so I filed for a snug fit onto 1 1/8". I put a 5mm spacer on before the hanger opn the front to ensure it didn't interfere with the headset (FSA "Pig" w/ 1/4" balls).

Here is how it looks now for the rear:

As shown, this frame uses an add-on external seatpost clamp. Originally I had a stop that hung in the midddle off the clamp's bolt like here:

https://www.amazon.com/Nashbar-Rear-B...s=brake+hanger ;It was really too short and was wobbly.

The replacement fits nicely over top of the clamp and under the clamping Q/R handle. However adding twice the thickness of the metal left the clamps bolt too short and it would have stripped out. I measured and found that a 5mm x 45mm bolt would do the job. Local stores had nothing in right lengths or at acceptable special order price. Found them here cheap (about $6 for bag of 10):

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Now circling back to sourcing of the Q/R hangers themselves; Searching for these items on Amazon was unsuccessful. But on eBay it resulted in several finds. Apparently Dia-Compe branded ones are C&V gold given sellers asking minimum of $30 each for them. Expanding the search to include the Shimano branded versions finds them for $4.95 each (plus $2.25 if combine shipping for more than one). Same vendor in Minnisota has both front and rear ones to match. Comparing them, the Shimano ones are much nicer finished. Beautiful is my assessment.

Now I can pop my wheels on and off easily and total cost about $15 to make it happen. Total time spent was about 45 minutes.

Hope that helps anyone else in need of same

/K

dsbrantjr

It looks as if your rear brake wire has begun to fray where it comes out of the adjuster.

fietsbob

I just let the air out of the tire, but, I rarely remove an Un Punctured wheel..

coupster

You don't specify what type, brand or model of brake you're working with. But if they're older style cantilevers the straddle cable should have a big molded tab on one end. To release the brakes, squeeze the both calipers toward the rim with one hand and unhook the metal tab on the straddle cable out of the caliper with the other. Release the calipers. Voila. Quick released brakes. Reassembly is the opposite.

New fangled Shimano straddle cables are the same, but the big tab is missing. You just need a little more finesse to release.

CACycling

This is what I was thinking when I read the OP. The bikes I've seen outfitted with the QR hangers had centerpull brakes.

gyozadude

+1. I do the same thing on my commuter since my med-reach caliper brakes can't spread wide enough for 32c tires to slide through. But I just have to remember not to inflate the tire until I put it back in.

ksisler

Not frayed. Just one wire got giggly when I had to pull it out of the straddle cable. One wire didn't make it back in the hole. Will nick it off next convenient time.
/K

ksisler

Coupster; The brakes are Tektro CR720's. The front straddle cable is the one that came with the kit and it has the extra metal tab, but I found it was pretty hard to get hold of on a bike with fully tour load of panniers, rakpack, sleeping bag, and handlebar bag. There is a lot of stuff in the way of the brakes as well as the balance issue.

On the rear, the stock straddle cable was too short to make it up over the rack's mounting bars, so I substituted a spare heavy duty Shimano brake cable and thus no extra tab. In the pix of the rear, you can see the rack mount bars somewhat below the transverse saddle. Running the transverse cable really close to the rear fender would have worked but I wanted the cable angle to be less severe.

Any wheels now come off easy as apple pie with no fuss and no knicked fingers.
\
/K

ksisler

Ditto here also... once I get the bike fully righted.

- But at the current stage of the build, still doing a lot of on's and off's. And was also thinking from the start that I would like max convenience and easy floating at this life stage. Thus the fat "650B-like" tires (Panasonic Pasela's), SunUp alternator, battery pack, L&M LED lighting, a wide softy saddle, 180mm cranks, mirrors, ding/ding bell, etc., and Q-R's.

- So far I have gone out for 5 short trips (18-25 miles each) over last 7 days as an aid to dialing it in.

- It look rather promising...the AL Nashbar frame with Chromo fork actually climbs well out of the saddle fully loaded which I had not expected at all. On the flats, it floats like a cruise boat with nice reliable, nimble steering. I will have to wait until the first real tour westward to test the wide range gearing (24/39/50 triple FSA crank with 9spd 11-34T SRAM cogs) under stress although it shifts well enough...

/K

pmt

Or just get this which makes it easy to release the brake. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008USE9LU/..._M3T1_ST1_dp_1

Ronno6

Just gitcha some Tektro levers with the quick release in the lever.
Like RL340's

ksisler

pmt; That looks like a decent solution also. Have never seen it before and for some reason it did get picked up by the search. At least someone this decade agrees with the need for such a capability.

ksisler

Ronno; Agreed if doing drop bars they would be a good solution, but the back no longer bends well or that far, so this bike is upright bar bike with about a 2.5" rise. I should have gotten a bit more of the bike in the pix to show that. My bad there.

/K

Ronno6

Oh...........Well, in that case........................NEVERMIND !!! ;-)

Flying Merkel

My old Univega touring bike has quick release levers on the brake levers. Much nicer than dicking with the straddle cables. Thanks for the info; knowledge is power.

pmt

It's brand-new! I saw it in a Velonews article and then immediately tracked down and ordered one.

RubeRad

I have the same CR720, and to do that you need a lot of pad/rim clearance in order for there to be enough room to do this. I do what I can to keep my rims true and my pads close, so for me the brakes are clamped tight to the rim WAY before I can get the straddle cable out of its pocket. So I have to set them so that I can loosen a good bit with the barrel adjuster, in order to ever open up the brakes, and then tighten it back down on reassembly. Not very "quick" release, and it annoys me every time.

ksisler, thanks for the post, I had no idea these gadgets existed, I'll probably be getting myself a pair! (I just wonder if I can get the rear one to play with my seatpost collar the way that the existing cable hanger does -- I'm using the Surly hangar & collar that came with my crosscheck frame)