What do you call this brake component?
 

Hi There,

I've got an ole Cannondale T700 circa 1990-something.

I love it but the brakes are unique and I think are due for an overhaul. I'm actually not sure what you call these things, but there's an aluminum disk that sits in the cable set about where a yoke would be<see attached>. I've researched a bit but am not finding much to clue me in.

Can someone tell me what you call these things?

Jack

It's a Travel Agent (or similar). Allows you to run long-pull V-brakes with short pull brake levers.

https://www.parktool.com/en-us/blog/...and-adjustment

Thanks a million, glad I joined this forum, that's my first question and you're prompt response is exactly what I needed!

OK, so I assume the brake set is called a V-Brake. There's a spring wire that retracts away from the rim.

Does it make sense to replace just those springs or should the whole set just be replaced together?

It's a clown device. LOL.
Like L shaped crank arms that were supposed to improve power. LOL.

It is technically a Linear Pull brake. V-Brake is the registered trademark of the Shimano Corporation so if Shimano brakes then yes if not Linear Pull.

If your springs are worn out and the brakes are not functional then yes replace the brakes, if you want to keep the Travel Agents I would probably look at the Deore T610s which are easily available and not super expensive but decent quality and then replace the pads/shoes with the Kool Stop Tectonics and improve your braking quite a bit. If you don't want to use the travel agents but want a similar linear pull brake the TRP CX8.4 are a great option and again would replace the pads with Kool Stop but in this case the S-group road size so probably a Dura or Dura2 in that triple compound or double compound since it is a smaller pad. If you really love the bike and have the money Paul Components MotoLItes for linear pull brakes are the best (though I swapped from the Kool Stop integrated shoes and pads to replaceable ones because a stiff shoe will provide better braking then the one piece stuff) and their MiniMoto is great for a short pull linear pull brake again same sort of pad and shoe swapping.

If everything works fine just clean it up lubricate it correctly as needed and get yourself some Kool Stop shoes with replaceable pads as I have been saying a lot in the past thread. That and some new cables and housing of high quality so uncoated polished stainless steel and a good compresisonless housing and you will improve your braking significantly without a lot of money spent.

Unfortunately GamblerGORD53 is incorrect it is not a clown device it is as discussed a device to allow you to run short pull levers with long pull brakes. It may not be pretty but it does the job and if they could find a product that does it better I am game to see it. There are not a ton of levers that are long pull road brake levers and the one or two I have seen are not ones I would want to use and the short pull linear pull brakes are slightly newer and not bad but they are not standard linear pull brakes.
The L shape crank arms however were pretty silly though.

Brake return springs rarely need replacing, other than due to rust.

If the brake action is poor, th e likely cause is friction either at the pivots or the cable.

Don't spend money yet. Take little apart, clean, then reassemble with lube. If anything needs replacing, it's likely the cable.

BTW if this is old, the shoes are likely dried out and will produce less braking friction and more rim wear.

Is this the bike?
https://www.bikepedia.com/Quickbike/...%20&model=T700

Yup, that's it.
 

You even got the color,...:speedy:

Don't worry, even if not Shimano every one else will still call them "V Brakes" and know what you're talking about and Shimano lawyers aren't coming after you.

Typically there are 3 holes where the spring can be located and major spring tension can be adjusted by which hole is used. Adjusting screws used for fine adjustment. But as said first clean and lube pivots and address any cable issues

If the spring isn’t returning the brake calipers to the open position, it is likely due to friction in the housing which is usually caused by corrosion of the inner cable. Start with replacing the cable and housing. If the spring is still too weak, you can physically bend the the spring outward a little. The spring is the long wire piece that runs up the brake arm on both sides. When you are done, use the screws at the bottom of the arm to balance the spring action on each arm.

All that said, the brake is set up a little funky. The Travel Agent should be outside of that rack bracket on the left side of the bike. Being inside that bracket may keep the brake from working properly. The cable routing is normally on the left of the seat post rather than the right like yours. You might also check the orientation of the spherical orbit washers on the pads. Your arms look very close together which may mean that the pervious owner put the narrow orbit washer (green arrow below) on the inside (towards the wheel) of the brake caliper. If you put the wide washer on the inside, the arms will be pushed out a bit and the Travel Agent will be easier to mount on the outside of that bracket.
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...be82a89ca.jpeg

So, I've decided to take this approach;

..."just clean it up lubricate it correctly as needed and get yourself some Kool Stop shoes with replaceable pads as I have been saying a lot in the past thread. That and some new cables and housing of high quality so ...uncoated polished stainless steel and a good compresisonless housing..."

I'm looking at my setup and at the Kool Stop products. Are Linear Pull or V Type pads all the same size? Also, my pad appears to be one piece with the threaded post built into the pad. Is the post built into the pad or is that supposed to be removable or is it one piece?

I install these all the time when v-brakes are used to replace cantis but we keep the stock canti pull levers on the bar.

Actually it's not. It's a means of changing the cable-pull ratio. There is no comparison to L-shaped crank arms.
I had direct-pull brakes on my road bike which also had drop bars with Shimano STI shifters. The bike came from the factory with Travel Agents installed to make the short-travel levers compatible with the long-travel brakes.
When I changed from drop bars to trekking bars, I used the TA to avoid having the cable to the front brake sticking out to the side.

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...44f606391d.jpg
It's a bit of a weird cable arrangement, but it works. The Travel Agent is not changing the cable pull ratio here; it's acting as a simple pulley.


https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...166d27c6cf.jpg
Here's the top view FWIW.

You should look at the pictures that soyabean and sweeks posted with regard to the orientation of the Travel Agent. Yours is installed at an angle that it shouldn’t be. It should come into the noodle receiver at close to a 90° angle like in the picture below. No noodle or Travel Agent should come into the brake at an angle like yours does.
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...817bcabe2.jpeg

That's a frayed brake cable waiting to happen!

Advice taken
 

I took off the front hardware, have it soaking in solvent. The rear Travel Agent fits better on the left of the post, just like you said. I think I was worried about it getting hung up on that frame bracket, but it's good. It's also easier to tune. Got out for a real nice ride with just the rear brake today. I've got cables and Kool Stops on order and will get those installed after Amazon brings them. Thanks again!

good choice on the Koolstop pads! and Do Not apply thick grease to the posts.. make sure the Spring and adjuster are free to move related to the brake arms.... i put the v-brake arms onto the posts dry, or maybe some silicone spray... the brass insert in the arm and the steel post are dissimilar metal bushings... Any grease applied will eventually collect dirt, and the grease hardens, making the brakes stick closed when operated.
that old spool piece can be replaced by a much lighter teflon lined part called a "brake noodle".
this one is 90 deg. and used for front V-brakes... and a 135 deg. is used for Rear V-brakes.
https://www.jensonusa.com/Jagwire-90-Degree-Noodle

Good. Now make the bike happy by getting rid of the electrical tape. Vintage Cannondale sells the cable guides you need.

The “spool piece” (Travel Agent) is necessary for the short pull road levers to work with the linear pull brake. Do not replace it with a regular brake noodle unless using long pull levers.

ahh, so the bike should have canti brakes and the spools are "conversion" patch jobs.... i'd convert back to cantis, if possible.

This looks like whoever swapped the original cantilevers for v-brakes routed the rear brake cable through the existing cable stop on the frame. Probably because that's how it looked before, so they thought it would look like that afterward.

Which is all wrong, because v-brakes are sidepull cantilever brakes, where traditional cantilever brakes are centerpulls.

You want, indeed, you need that housing to loop of to the left side of the bike and hit the Travel Agent as close to vertical as you can get it. You're looking for a 90 degree angle between the end of the housing and the cable anchor bolt. (You usually can't get that, even with just a noodle, but that's the goal.)

--Shannon

PS: I wonder if whoever did the swap tried to re-use the existing housing loop, which would have been too short with the new brakes?

Usually that is the case, but some new bikes, including Cannondale, have been spec’d this way for some reason. Either way they do work well for the purpose.

The green bracket (blue arrow below) is a rack mount. It wasn’t used as an anchor point for a cantilever brake cable. Cannondale has used anchors on the seatpost clamp for cantilever brakes for many years like the one on the white bike below (red arrow). It’s not usual to run the cable housing on the right side of the seatpost even when using cantilevers, however. The routing of the cable and the funky set up may be the result of losing the cable guides on the frame.
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...9974af697.jpeg

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...b6f3a1d84.jpeg

It's drilled for a barrel adjuster cable stop on my t700: (catalogs show the same)

https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...c60aa8f6de.jpg

Hmm it appears my rack struts are on the wrong side :)