Rim brakes on a touring bike
#101
Newbie
Rim Brakes on a touring bike
I swapped the cantis on my Surly LHT for V brakes.
While the cantis did a good job the V brakes require far less pressure on the levers.
Mike
While the cantis did a good job the V brakes require far less pressure on the levers.
Mike
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#102
Senior Member
Personally I much preferred a cheap heavy shimano mini vee to the avid shorty ultimate. The mini vee has the advantage in all but one aspect, which is cable management. With the Vee I was always struggling with how to route the brake housing so it wouldn't interfere with panniers / other stuff on the rack. The avid cantilever solves that problem, but it's just overall a bad brake. More so in fact because it doesn't properly fit for the Kool Stop pads I use. It kinda does, but it's a massive hassle to get a new pad mounted.
A new touring rig with discs front and back cannot come fast enough.
A new touring rig with discs front and back cannot come fast enough.
#103
Senior Member
Because pads were post mount in the canti era that was another variable that, combined with the straddle cable, could affect the performance of canti brakes, more or less pad projection changed the leverage ratio, plus posts made it more difficult to adjust them, you needed to be an octopus if you didn't know what you were doing.
#104
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Cheers
#105
Senior Member
Like Stae, my "new" cantis from about 10 years ago are way easier to set up and change pads than the 1990 era ones on my Caravan, specifically because each side had it's own little spring thing, the old cantis tended to have them only on one side.
The new ones use those cartridge holders which is nice, pull out safety pin and slide out old pad , forcefully push in new pad and put back safety pin thing.
The new ones use those cartridge holders which is nice, pull out safety pin and slide out old pad , forcefully push in new pad and put back safety pin thing.
#106
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Not sure this is a fair statement. Early cantis had unthreaded post style pads and so did early v-brakes. I'd think the choice of style of pad had more to do with the vintage of the brake than the style of the brake. so mentioning it as a problem of cantis isn't really fair. I do agree that the pads were s super huge pain to adjust on my early cantis and they were high end MTB stuff, but I'd think I'd have had the same issues with a similar vintage v-brake if they were out at the time (not sure if they were yet). I did learn a few tricks over time that made it easier, but never did grow to like the design when it came to the pad adjustment. Later cantis that I have owned or worked on didn't have those problems and adjustment was easy peasy.
Technically, Cantis should be exactly the same in power and feel as V-Brakes but often aren't because setting them up is too damn hard with all the different parameters. That's been eased by the switch to bolt mount pads, but the set up of the straddle cable still affects things. That's one of the reasons Shimano introduced the Y Link straddle, with fixed lengths. But even then, you need to get the right one, as they come in different lengths. Sheldon Brown had a lot to say about this! https://www.sheldonbrown.com/cantile...tml#definition
https://www.sheldonbrown.com/canti-trad.html
I guess the upshot is... if you want to start touring and have a bike with Cantis, learn about them, set them up properly and go. Eventually upgraditist may hit, so change them then....
#107
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I changed 1 bike from cantis to BMX V brakes - they have a shorter arm length than MTB V brakes, so you get a bit more control, but the cable does hang lower so might not work with bigger tires
The bite was incredible, and took some getting used to, but its about the best brake I've ever had on a rim brake road bike.
The bite was incredible, and took some getting used to, but its about the best brake I've ever had on a rim brake road bike.
#108
Senior Member
My v brake bike always seemed more "on-off like" compared to my better cantis. Have to be more delicate with hard applications of front unloaded. But loaded it's nice with stronger braking with less finger pressure.
my take kinda fits with the accepted take on v brake feel vs cantis.
my take kinda fits with the accepted take on v brake feel vs cantis.
#109
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I've done some heavy tours on old bikes with caliper brakes. People have been touring on cantis since the dawn of bike touring, I would say you're fine, but if you're going for a new build, disc brakes are definitely the way to go.
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#110
Senior Member
If I already had a frame I liked with rim brakes I doubt I'd go through the expense and trouble of getting another bike just for disc brakes, but when shopping of a new or recent used bike they're the way to go.
#111
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On my Alaska to Argentina ride I had to replace a brake cable on my mechanical disc brakes. In a small town in Ecuador there was one bike mechanic, obviously without a lot of experience. He insisted on changing the cable himself... took him two hours. When he finished he cleaned up by spraying the rotor with WD40. Possibly even worse than chain lube.
#112
Senior Member
On my Alaska to Argentina ride I had to replace a brake cable on my mechanical disc brakes. In a small town in Ecuador there was one bike mechanic, obviously without a lot of experience. He insisted on changing the cable himself... took him two hours. When he finished he cleaned up by spraying the rotor with WD40. Possibly even worse than chain lube.
that's really funny.
Because I do all my mechanical work (nearly all) I'm pretty picky of who I let touch my bike. Last time in Mexico a nice old guy did an adjustment on my front hub, but I could tell he knew what he was doing and I watched him do it and felt the cones myself by hand to be sure. Really nice fellow who took the time before heading off to his mid day meal.
I'd love to do Columbia and Ecuador one day.
#113
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A lot of people feel that you do not need to bring spare cables, but I always carry a spare brake and shifter cable on tour. I can't remember the last time I needed to replace a brake cable, last bad shifter cable was about eight years ago, so unlikely that they will be needed on a tour, but they weigh almost nothing so there is no reason to leave them out. Most trips I do not open my first aid kit either, but still carry one.
I have only had one tour with a disc brake, but I pack spare pads for the brake.
I have only had one tour with a disc brake, but I pack spare pads for the brake.
#114
Banned
Hello all!
I wanted to get some opinions on what brakes work for the bike you're riding. I have an older bicycle that uses canti's to stop. Is this enough or should I at least upgrade to V brakes? I've got new Kool Stop pads on my cantis and they're fairly well set so I think it should be decent for loaded touring. I would consider disk brakes for a bikepacking rig but I don't know if they're a good upgrade for the road...
I wanted to get some opinions on what brakes work for the bike you're riding. I have an older bicycle that uses canti's to stop. Is this enough or should I at least upgrade to V brakes? I've got new Kool Stop pads on my cantis and they're fairly well set so I think it should be decent for loaded touring. I would consider disk brakes for a bikepacking rig but I don't know if they're a good upgrade for the road...
My purchase of a Koga Trekking bike made me understand why the Magura Hydraulic rim brakes have been popular for 25 years ..
they go on cantilever/V brake posts.. but dont offer the drop bar masters.. (figure 8 bend trekking bars use MTB type levers , so its all good,)
#115
Banned
Yea disc brake pads dont work well if the R'off oil leaks out.. now I know next oil change put less in.. 15 rather than 25ml.
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#116
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I have not seen you post anything in months, welcome back.
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#119
Senior Member
A lot of people feel that you do not need to bring spare cables, but I always carry a spare brake and shifter cable on tour. I can't remember the last time I needed to replace a brake cable, last bad shifter cable was about eight years ago, so unlikely that they will be needed on a tour, but they weigh almost nothing so there is no reason to leave them out. Most trips I do not open my first aid kit either, but still carry one.
I have only had one tour with a disc brake, but I pack spare pads for the brake.
I have only had one tour with a disc brake, but I pack spare pads for the brake.
#120
Senior Member
#122
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A lot of people feel that you do not need to bring spare cables, but I always carry a spare brake and shifter cable on tour. I can't remember the last time I needed to replace a brake cable, last bad shifter cable was about eight years ago, so unlikely that they will be needed on a tour, but they weigh almost nothing so there is no reason to leave them out. Most trips I do not open my first aid kit either, but still carry one.
I have only had one tour with a disc brake, but I pack spare pads for the brake.
I have only had one tour with a disc brake, but I pack spare pads for the brake.
Back around 1986 I was riding across the Danforth Street Viaduct in Toronto Canada and my front wheel hit a glancing blow to a piece of metal debris on the road. the metal piece flipped up and hit a rivet on a chain link just perfectly so as to drive the rivet out just far enough that the chain would no longer go through the front derailleur cage. No chain tool that day. I've carried one ever since and the only time I've needed it was... wait for it... the one time I forgot to move it to the bike i was riding that day. Fortunately I did have a small vice-grip and a small washer and was able to push the chain pin back in and ride slowly home that day.
Cheers
Edit. that was a 7-speed chain with slightly protruding rivets. The odds of that happening must be astronomical.
Last edited by Miele Man; 05-30-20 at 06:39 AM. Reason: Added comment
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#123
Senior Member
Hello all!
I wanted to get some opinions on what brakes work for the bike you're riding. I have an older bicycle that uses canti's to stop. Is this enough or should I at least upgrade to V brakes? I've got new Kool Stop pads on my cantis and they're fairly well set so I think it should be decent for loaded touring. I would consider disk brakes for a bikepacking rig but I don't know if they're a good upgrade for the road...
I wanted to get some opinions on what brakes work for the bike you're riding. I have an older bicycle that uses canti's to stop. Is this enough or should I at least upgrade to V brakes? I've got new Kool Stop pads on my cantis and they're fairly well set so I think it should be decent for loaded touring. I would consider disk brakes for a bikepacking rig but I don't know if they're a good upgrade for the road...