hhk25

Most older touring bikes I've seen have cantilever brakes. What's the logic behind this? Fender clearance?

The reason I ask is that I own a 1992-ish Trek 520. I came equipped with cantis originally but a previous owner converted to v-brakes. I'm going to modernize the bike with a 3x10 drivetrain and I'm wondering if I should go back to cantis. I know I have to switch the levers to short pull but I have those available as well.

Thoughts?

Tourist in MSN

You ask the logic behind canti brakes, they were considered a better brake than side pull or center pull brakes decades ago. I worked in a bike shop in the 70s, almost all brakes were sidepull or centerpull. The first time I ever saw canti brakes, they were on a tandem bike.

V brakes came along later.

If what you have works well, no reason to change it in my opinion. If you have a reason other than it used to have different brakes, you could clarify your thinking.

hhk25

I do have a good reason. I have a set of Gevenalle shifters on my gravel bike. I'm considering converting the gravel bike to hydraulic and moving the shifters over to the Trek. They would not work with the V brakes but would work with canti because they are short pull.

I also prefer working on cantis as opposed to V brakes.

BikeWonder

There is a whole thread about this same question.

https://www.bikeforums.net/touring/1...s-touring.html

saddlesores

i am confused.

why the need to crowdsource?

just do it.

Tourist in MSN

Then I think you have your answer.

***

But, if you want to use those shifters and short pull brake levers on V brakes, you can. You used to be able to buy Travel Agents, described here:
https://www.parktool.com/blog/repair...and-adjustment

Travel Agents are no longer appearing on the Problem Solvers web page, thus appear to be out of production. But, you can find on Ebay copies of them from asia. Shipping can take a month.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/1pcs-Black-...e/273706014859

I bought one as a spare. Appears to be just as good as the original.

I am using V brakes with Travel Agents on two bikes. You have to avoid getting dirt in them, that can cause more friction. But otherwise they appear to work well for me.

3speed

The previous owner probably just changed them because they stop better than cantilevers and they're easier to adjust. But as said, if you have levers you want to use and you prefer cantilevers(Because you're nuts? ), what are you asking about? Change them to what you want. And I say go for the hydraulic disks. I held out for a long time because cable disks work great, but once I got hydraulic disks(Avid Juicy 5), they are superior. The lever feel is fantastic and the stopping power is even better than cable disks. I'd Never recommend them on a touring bike, but they're nice on a bike where you can deal with the maintenance needs.

staehpj1

I've said this before and I'll say it again. I really don't get it when I read this part about the maintenance. I see it again and again. What maintenance needs? I have found them to need less maintenance than rim brakes which tend to at the very least need pad adjustment tweaked now and then. Not that rim brakes are a big maintenance nightmare or anything, but they do require somewhat frequent attention IME.

I have been living with hydraulic disc brakes on one of my bikes for a few years now and one of the things I love about them is that they have been almost completely maintenance free. Pretty much all I have had to do is replace the pads when they wear out. I have been maintaining the mechanical discs on my daughter's ebike and I did have to straighten a bent rotor, but otherwise they have been trouble free and maintenance as well.

hhk25

Correct me if I'm wrong but didn't companies like Surly and Dawes equip their touring bikes with cantilever brakes long after the advent of v-brakes? I can swear I saw brand new Long Haul Truckers with cantilever brakes only a few years ago.

hhk25

I love hydraulic disc brakes which is why I'm putting them on my gravel bike. But, would you want them on a touring bike? Fluid leaks are not uncommon and dealing with them in a some countries would be difficult.

staehpj1

Yes based on my personal experience I would. Mine have always just worked as have those of family members. For me they have a pretty good track record and there are options for repairs or worst case bail out options.

I see catastrophic unfixable failure as one of those things that are possible but really pretty unlikely. On the order of things like a broken frame, but with more ability to limp along or find a work around. Absolute worst case I could see limping along with just a front or just a rear brake until a fix was available. That fix just might be a cable operated disc brake or in an extreme case a rim brake of some type, but I really don't see that happening for me since my touring has all been in the continental US and is unlikely to be in third world countries in the future since I am probably getting less adventurous at my advancing age.

As a result, I see it as an almost complete non issue for me. I guess it may be a different deal for someone else who tours in different settings or in different ways.

BTW:
My previous comments were more about comments that I have often read that seemed to imply that hydraulic brakes required a lot of effort in adjustment, setup, and routine maintenance of which I have seen the need for almost none. I took your comments to be in that category since you referenced "maintenance needs". If you are referring to a problem with fluid leakage that might be difficult to deal with in some countries, I confess that I have no experience either with that problem or with those countries. Still I think I personally would be willing to take my chances. If someone was really worried they might carry some spare parts, but I don't think I'd be that concerned. Just me though, and talk is cheap, especially since I am not heading off into some third world rainforest tomorrow.

bikemig 

I recently converted a vintage Trek mountain bike, a 1992 Trek 950, from v brakes to cantilevers. I bought the bike 2d hand. The v brakes that came on the bike were not very good; they were origin 8 brakes. I replaced them with Tektro CR 720, which are probably dollar for dollar the best cantilevers you can buy, and kool stop pads. The brakes work great.

Cantilevers are more fiddly to set up than v brakes which is why a lot of people like them. The Tektro CR 720s are easier than most cantilevers to set up and the price is good on them.

Tourist in MSN

The LHT originally came out in 2004, but you could only buy the frame for first several years. I think that teh complete LHT came out in 2007 but I might be off a year or two, yes that had canti brakes. I think they were Tektro Oryx.

Part of the switch from canti brakes to V brakes was that if your brake cable broke and your straddle cable on a canti brake got caught in the tread of the tire (think knobby tires) on a front wheel, a canti brake could cause the wheel to lock up. Not an issue with V brakes. So, part of the switch by manufacturers to switch from canti brakes to V brakes was to reduce lawsuits. I suspect that was part of the reason that Surly switched to V brakes.

If you have fenders, the straddle cable would not catch on a tire, so I never worry about my canti brakes catching on a tire if I snapped a cable.

hhk25

Nice. Your bike looks like my bike's cousin. Thanks for the advice on the brakes. I will look into them.

Wilfred Laurier

V brakes are superior to cantis - better and more linear stopping power, much easier to set up. Also, many bikes with cantis on the front and a headset-mounted cable hanger get terrible fork juddering under hard braking, and Vs do not do this.

The disadvantages, and likely reason why cantis are included on touring bikes, are better clearance for fenders and wider tires (and mud and stones and hay), and compatibility with most road-style brake levers. You can get mini-Vs that work with road levers, but then the clearance for tires and fenders is even tighter. And when set up properly, cantis are generally perfectly acceptable and stop the bike well.

Discs are better than both those. No tire clearance problems possible (maybe rack mounting issues, though), no effect on rims or problems caused by out-of-true rims, less maintenance (practically no maintenance for hydraulic discs), and better stopping in bad weather. Also generally easier to set up.

3speed

I'd guess the fact that you've seen it again and again is a sign. It sounds like you've been really lucky. Also, what brakes are you using? I'll take a serious look at them for my next build. I, and Maaaany others, have experienced a greater maintenance need with hydraulics. I've owned two different sets now. Both had their issues. Common issues that are commonly talked about with hydraulic disks. The stuff you said you see again and again... I still used them because they're great, but the trade-off was needing to bleed the brakes somewhat often on one set(kept getting a squishy lever and would have some air bubbles in the line) and uneven pad wear on the other set. I will say that on both sets, only one brake had an issue. The other was hassle free. The front brake needed the bleeding, and the rear on the other set wore unevenly. And again, this isn't something weird and crazy with my brakes. Maaaany people have the exact same experiences. Go post a thread in the mechanic sub-forum and ask them. Plenty of mechanics working in shops right now will say the same thing. One good thing is that they are getting better and more reliable(I've read). Both sets I've owned were ~4-5yrs old. Are yours fairly new?

Mechanical disks are my choice for a touring bike. They're almost as good as hydraulic disks with practically zero maintenance other than an occasional pad adjustment as they wear. I like BB7s.

Miele Man

I see a real difference in stopping distance in winter on snow or in slush between V-brakes (better stopping power) and cantilever brakes. That's just my experience with both.

I also like that V-brakes don't protrude and get in the way of my panniers.

Cheers