SuperLJ

My all time favorite canti is IRD's CAFAM.

Cold forged and highly polished with nice understated graphics. They come with Kool-Stop salmon pads in fancy holders right out of the box. I replaced the Paul Neo-retros (the most over-rated brake ever IMO) on my loaded tourer with these and couldn't have been more pleased. Lots of power, great linear modulation, super easy setup - really pleasant to use.

It looks like you can till find them for around $40/wheel, but I see on IRD's website that they're being redesigned. I don't know why, they seem pretty perfect to me.

icepick_trotsky 

Hey, looking cool is half the battle. The guy who installed my headset on this frame told me that I needed to keep the build "super sexy," so I can't let him down.

The Golden Boy 

This is a good excuse to post some more pix of that beauty!

The Golden Boy 

The only V-Brakes I've seen that I like are the the XTR V-Brakes.





Of course, some of that has to do with it being "XTR."

dddd

Remember the Avid Arch Supreme and Arch Rival V-brakes? They used a hinged, drillium-style arch link around the tire to similarly keep the pads level.
Now those were sexy!
I think they were the product that put Avid on the map so to speak.

The Golden Boy 

What's the porpoise of the arch?

Chrome Molly

I like to keep it simple. Never had any issues with my many sets of these, and the price is right. They also have a large adjustment range and can make 650b wheels work on MTB frames in many cases.

TEKTRO 992AG ORYX Cantilever Cyclocross Road Bike Brake Front or Rear | Crosslake Sales

orangeology

Paul Touring Cantis being put on the current build, in await for Kool Stop Thinline pads.
for the rear, i have a new set of CR 720. going modern twist on vintage.

dddd

As I mentioned, the arch kept the pads level with the rim surface as the canti arms tilted in toward the rim.

The trick to it was that the hinge in the middle of the arch was far enough (above the tire actually) from the point of attachment with the pad carriers (black pieces) that there was almost no tilt change as the pads moved inward by the usual 5mm or so.
By comparison, the pads are only about an inch above the canti arm's pivots, perhaps just a third of the distance that the arch pivot is above the pad carriers, so the pads would otherwise tilt about three times as much as they do when the carriers are held near vertical by the arms of the arch.
Not only is the pad tilt greatly reduced, but the pad's "dive" trajectory is effectively both reversed and compensated by the arch's separate angulation independent of the canti arms, so adjustments to the pad's anchoring and angle are not needed over the entire service life of the pads.

Bikedued

I saw with my own eyes on a "stiff" aluminum Trek 4300, that the seat stays visibly flexed outwards when the V brakes were applied. The exact opposite of what you want. with that said...

Big fan of the CR-720's.. Great feel, and stopping power only improves when you ditch the stock pads and install the Koolstop salmons.

TRP, is Tektro in case no one else knew. It doesn't say it on the pkg, but the box they come in is exactly the same as Tektro. The Tektro mini V brakes are brutally powerful though. They will actually hurt a certain part of the anatomy if you grab them too hard in a panic stop. I installed a set on a Motobecane Fantom cross pro and test rode it. You could stop literally on a dime, or however fast the tires would grip. It was actually kind of scary how powerful they were. The modulation seemed touchy though.,,,,BD

They are not cheap either...

TRP CX8.4 V-Brake Set from BikeBling.com

kimpw

I've only used Shimano V Brakes and they work very well. Has anyone used Paul Motolites? Hard to find reviews online.

I've had Paul Touring cantis, and I feel like Paul's are a bit overrated (not overpriced), but I do like the MIUSA factor.

rico_mack

TRP --> Tektro Racing Products, kind of like toyota racing products. In any event I'm running a pair of TRP CX8.4 on my cyclocross and love them. They replaced some TRP Euros cantis which came on the bike and were great brakes, but the Vs were better and soooooooo much easier to set up.

Barrettscv 

I use the Tektro CR 720 on two bikes with excellent results.

However, the Planet X Frogs Bollox of are even better performers with a highly sculpted aesthetic that looks great on most bikes. The $50 price for the pair is a steal.

https://www.planet-x-usa.com:80/product-p/bcpxfrbo.htm=]Planet X Frogs Bollox Cantilever Brakeset[/url]

fettsvenska 

I like the CR 720s. One good benefit of these brakes is that I was able to adjust them up far enough for a 650B conversion.

Tektro front cantilever by FatSwede, on Flickr

JohnDThompson 

Nice.

I'll keep those in mind if/when I convert my Trek 720 from 27" to 700C.

Lazyass

I've had countless ones and the Dia Compe 987's are hands down the best I ever had. I have a set on my Axis TR with black Eagle Claw pads and have the firmest lever you'll ever feel with canti's and they stop as well as v brakes. Very easy to set toe in and center. May not be the hippest brake but they freaking work.


BikePro.com / Buyer's Guide / Dia-Compe Cantilever Brakes - Bicycle Parts at discount prices / the Buyer's Guide / Bicycle Parts at their finest! / Professional Bicycle Source / Bike Pro

fettsvenska 

I should have been more specific. The bike that I converted was a Trek 930. So the original tire size was 26".

Barrettscv 

What size tire are you able to fit? What tire are you using?

gomango

I have not used a canti brake system that outperforms these beasts.

Especially in mud, silt and mashed potatoes.

I use a wide range of cantis on my bikes currently including Pauls, a nice set of Campys and various Shimano's.

They all work pretty well when set up properly and equipped with Swiss Stops or Kool Stops.

However, the TRPs will pop your fillings out slowing from 25 mph. I will certainly use them on my next cross/off road build.

Super easy to set up and cheaper than the listed price here if you are savvy with Google.

dddd

I find this sort of flexing particularly annoying since the pivot studs not only move outward away from the rim but also cause the pads to rock back and forth, toe-in then toe-out, which makes for troublesome setup compromises and noisy brakes.

I eventually just took some 3/32" sheet aluminum and fab'd a brace for my worst-offender Pro-Flex hybrid, which stiffens up the lever feel and keeps the pads level with the rims.
Had some "drillium" fun while I was at it, which I thought was a nice touch for this modest, vintage off-roader:

nlerner

One more plug for v-brakes. Avert your eyes if you're faint of heart:

fettsvenska 

I'm using Panaracer 38mm wide tires currently but I think that I could fit something much wider. Maybe up to 2".

The Golden Boy 

I commented, but I didn't put in my two cents...

Aside from the XT BR MC-70 brakes- I LOVE the old Suntour XC Pro cantilevers. They're so graceful and beautiful with that champagne/titanium finish.

Bicycle Addict

Very nice, very nice action.


The Canti - V brake debate is a waste of time, they both have their own merits.

Cantilever's set up properly are just as good as V Brakes if not better, why else would would companies like Rock Mountain, Jamis, Raleigh, Marin, Cannondale, Surly manufacture their touring bikes in Cantilever config, in some cases until a couple of years ago until the full shift to disc, Surly and Soma and countless others still offer Canti config?

Kool stop sticking pads and proper set up and pad alignment they are very efficient indeed.

dddd

V-brakes solved many problems that plagued canti's, like the steerer-flex chatter problem (can be cured with a crown-mounter cable housing hanger).

Canti's also could allow a straddle cable to snag on the front tire and throw the rider if the cable lost tension above the straddle carrier for any reason (can be remedied with a reflector bracket).

Canti's have lower leverage, so induce more cable flex that is felt at the lever, and the cable housing hangers are also often prone to flex.

Canti's are generally more work to set up.

Advantages would include that canti's usually work fine with road brake levers providing a proper amount of leverage, and that some straddle arrangements do a good job of keeping the pads centered with the rim at all times.

But V-brakes ultimately seem to have a performance advantage in terms of providing good leverage (thus power) without inducing too much of a squishy feel at the brake lever, and not just because of the longer pads that they are usually fitted with.

Canti's and V-brakes should respond equally well to the addition of a brake booster arch across the pivots, though longer offset pads, oriented properly, can negate some of the need for pivot post flex reduction measures such as provided by boosters.