Are cantilevers obsolete?
#26
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: NWNJ
Posts: 3,704
Bikes: Road bike is a Carbon Bianchi C2C & Grandis (1980's), Gary Fisher Mt Bike, Trek Tandem & Mongoose SS MTB circa 1992.
Mentioned: 9 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 722 Post(s)
Liked 353 Times
in
226 Posts
I hope not as I just bought new front and rear Avids?
I hope they can slow me down?
What if they stop working?
What to do?
I hope they can slow me down?
What if they stop working?
What to do?
#27
Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: The banks of the River Charles
Posts: 2,018
Bikes: 2022 Salsa Beargrease, 2020 Seven Evergreen, 2019 Honey Allroads Ti, 2018 Seven Redsky XX, 2017 Trek Boon 7, 2014 Trek 520
Mentioned: 19 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 691 Post(s)
Liked 900 Times
in
483 Posts
I have a bike with mechanical disks, V brakes, road caliper with carbon wheels, road calipers with alloy wheels, and hydraulic disk, I just bought a 2017 Trek cross bike with canti's. They stop me better than road calipers with carbon rims, as good as all the others except the hydraulic disks.
#28
Senior Member
I might be the wrong guy to talk to but I say no. I have a set of Paul Neo Retros on one bike and lots of Old School Shimano Deore, read 1980’s, and they all stop great. I really believe hydraulic disc brakes perform better. But cantilever brakes work well. Plus I’m a Luddite so canti’s get extra credit points.
#29
Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Beaverton, OR
Posts: 14,785
Bikes: Yes
Mentioned: 522 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3228 Post(s)
Liked 3,848 Times
in
1,435 Posts
I just bought a bike with Tektro Oryx cantilevers (2007 Fuji Cross Comp). I was just looking for something cheap to keep in my dad's garage so I'd have something to ride when I visit family on the opposite coast. For $200, this bike knocked it out of the park. A previous owner had replaced the Z-link wire with a proper yoke and straddle cable, so I was able to get the brakes dialed in pretty easily. Honestly, I was surprised how well they worked. I've been using cantilevers on cross bikes for 10 years so I knew they could be made to work well, but I had heard such bad things about the Oryx that I thought the arms must be flexy or something. With a low yoke, the braking was great without requiring an excessive amount of hand force.
On this topic, I'll share an anecdote. When I bought my first CX bike in 2008 I was very disappointed with the braking (Avid Shorty 4's). I was new to bike maintenance at the time, so I was the stereotypical guy who reads a bunch of stuff on the internet and thinks he knows what he's doing. My conclusion was that I needed to replace the Z-link wire with a shorter version. After studying Sheldon Brown's page on the topic, I decided that I needed the 63 mm 'S' version. So I went down to my local bike shop and told one of the mechanics there what I wanted. He kind of acted like what I was asking for didn't exist (though I may just have misunderstood what he was saying) and said that what I needed was a yoke and straddle cable set up. Around that time I was having interactions like this with this particular mechanic pretty regularly. He was old school and never agreed with what I wanted to do. So I left the store a bit frustrated, found my Z-link wire online, bought it, and it worked exactly as I hoped it would. Score one for the internet, right? Well, not exactly. What I did worked, but what the experienced mechanic was trying to explain to me was honestly a better solution because of the extra degrees of adjustability it allowed. I just couldn't see that at the time, and he either didn't have the time to explain it to me or lacked the patience on that day. Eventually, I saw this pattern play out enough that instead of trying to avoid this guy when I went into that shop (which generally has three or more mechanics working on a given day) I started seeking him out. We didn't always see eye to eye, but he his stuff and was somebody I could learn from.
On this topic, I'll share an anecdote. When I bought my first CX bike in 2008 I was very disappointed with the braking (Avid Shorty 4's). I was new to bike maintenance at the time, so I was the stereotypical guy who reads a bunch of stuff on the internet and thinks he knows what he's doing. My conclusion was that I needed to replace the Z-link wire with a shorter version. After studying Sheldon Brown's page on the topic, I decided that I needed the 63 mm 'S' version. So I went down to my local bike shop and told one of the mechanics there what I wanted. He kind of acted like what I was asking for didn't exist (though I may just have misunderstood what he was saying) and said that what I needed was a yoke and straddle cable set up. Around that time I was having interactions like this with this particular mechanic pretty regularly. He was old school and never agreed with what I wanted to do. So I left the store a bit frustrated, found my Z-link wire online, bought it, and it worked exactly as I hoped it would. Score one for the internet, right? Well, not exactly. What I did worked, but what the experienced mechanic was trying to explain to me was honestly a better solution because of the extra degrees of adjustability it allowed. I just couldn't see that at the time, and he either didn't have the time to explain it to me or lacked the patience on that day. Eventually, I saw this pattern play out enough that instead of trying to avoid this guy when I went into that shop (which generally has three or more mechanics working on a given day) I started seeking him out. We didn't always see eye to eye, but he his stuff and was somebody I could learn from.
__________________
My Bikes
My Bikes
#30
With a mighty wind
Thread Starter
Join Date: May 2015
Posts: 2,546
Mentioned: 12 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1070 Post(s)
Liked 837 Times
in
472 Posts
Lots of useful information here. It put my mind at ease in shopping around. I got something that will be modestly capable off road, great on gravel, and capable of packing trips if I so desire.
I ended up getting an older steel Voodoo CX frame. Ive got most of the parts, it even came with shimano cantis and modern pads. I'll be rebuilding old SLX hubs onto something tubeless, probably DT swiss R460 but am open to suggestions.
It'll start as a 1x10 with 11-42 and a 38 tooth narrow wide. I may change depending on what my needs are.
I ended up getting an older steel Voodoo CX frame. Ive got most of the parts, it even came with shimano cantis and modern pads. I'll be rebuilding old SLX hubs onto something tubeless, probably DT swiss R460 but am open to suggestions.
It'll start as a 1x10 with 11-42 and a 38 tooth narrow wide. I may change depending on what my needs are.