Screeching Brakes on Vintage MTB
 

Hey everyone -

So my 1987 Bridgestone MB-3 recently starting howling like crazy when I brake. The pads are Kool Stop Eagle 2s Salmon Compound which I put on 4 months ago and maybe 300 miles. They were a little squeaky when I first installed them, but quieted down. Recently, they got really really bad. I have the pads toed in which helped a bit but it is still rather loud. Especially after a section of more frequent braking, like a 3-5 minute downhill section, they are unbearably loud.

My wheels are a bit out of true, but they always were on this bike and have not gotten any worse in that regard, while the brake squeal has.

Is this likely an alignment / toe issue? I don't know how much more I can toe them in. Or are these specific pads just prone to this? If so, what pads should I look at instead?

Thanks!

First guess, especially given that it's nearly May, is humidity. The brakes of one of my bikes squeal when the weather turns humid. Second is that the pads may have worn to the point where they're again more or less flat against the rim. Either way, toeing them in a bit more might be your only course of action.

Old cantilever brakes need to be setup with a “toe-in” brake pad. Most people use a coin... dime, penny, nickel, or a washer or anything that will hold the rear of the brake pad further from the rim than the front.

I’ve never found that one setup lasts the life of the brake pads. When they start to squeal, you have to re-visit the setup.

Sometimes cleaning the pads and rim will help, but it has always required tweaks as the pads wear.

John

Awesome, I'll look into that. Is it possible that the salmon Kool Stop pads are meant for wet conditions and as such as squeaky in the dry? I know their road salmon pads are meant for wet conditions, but there is no indication on the box for the MTB ones I bought.

I believe all Kool Stop Salmon are for wet conditions and are made with a different compound and not just a different color.

I don’t think black or salmon are any more squeaky, but you might get more responses swearing one or the other is.

John