Schwinn Fairhaven rear brake arm hits frame
 

I just bought a used but like new Schwinn Fairhaven for my fiancés daughter. Making some adjustments on it i noticed back brakes were not working at all. Looking for what was wrong I noticed the top of the right brake arm at the rear wheel was hitting the rear rack that's welded to the frame and not letting it travel so the pad could contact the rim. Nothing is bent and there is no adjustment i see that can correct this. It looks to be from the factory like this. After fiddling with the cable and the pad adjusters I see no way this can be corrected. the left side arm just barley clears. The pads do not appear to have excessive wear that would make difference. And thoughts on how to get rear brakes functional?

QUOTE
please post a couple of pictures so I can help assess the issue

I tried but "not allowed" since I'm a newbie until after 10 posts :foo:

New members need 10 posts before they can post a picture,...🤷🏽‍♂️

Post 10 BS posts here.I won't tell. (ask 10 questions about your bike. They can all be related, just different postings.

You weren't supposed to quote me,...

Post 10 BS posts here.I won't tell. (ask 10 questions about your bike. They can all be related, just different postings.

You should be able to upload your pictures to your gallery and then one of us can post it to this thread. The link is at the top left of the forum screen. We can only guess without seeing pictures. I've looked at some stock photos of the bike and they all show the rack sufficiently higher than the brake arms. Perhaps the rack is bent, though you describe it as "like new" so that probably is not likely. I thought maybe the cable routing was done wrong, but the right brake arm only anchors the cable, so again not likely. The stock pictures show that the brake arms are rather long in order to clear the fat tire and fender. Are the arms for the front brake shorter? If so, perhaps the assembler installed them backwards, though I can't see Schwinn specifying different brakes front vs. rear.

I hope you are able to provide pictures soon.

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...eb5d7bde86.jpg
This stock pic shows the cable and "noodle" wrapping on the outside of the rack. Is the noodle in the inside of the rack on yours. If that is the case, you will need to release the cable from the clamp and re-route it.

Moe Zhoost, I like your thoughts on front and rear, but they are identical. It's terrible to try and describe something like this without pics. I'll post 10 posts or load to gallery! No apparent bends or any cracks in paint indicating such a thing, slightly puzzling. Thank you.

restlesswind, Boy, it looks like they modified the rear rack on this version for the clearance I'm lacking. I'll post the pic to my gallery and hopefully one of you can please post it here. Thank you.

Well maybe I will get my ten posts here . . . The pic is in my photos, can someone access that and post? Thank you.

2 more.

I'll do it! I tried yesterday and I was limited to only 5 posts per day... hopefully al that goes away after probation period.

Okay, 10 posts, yeesh... lets try this pic posting!
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...ad0118df35.jpg

That picture definitely helps, There may be one or two brake pad spacers/washers that can be moved from the outside of the arm to the inside. Hope so.

are you able to ride the bike?

Crazy design flaw that should have been caught and resolved prior to sale, and certainly during assembly. As mentioned by Trakhak , you may be able to space the pads in order to move the brake levers outwards for more clearance. I that doesn't work the other options are to: 1) replace the pads with thicker ones that would require the arms to move outwards, 2) replace the brake arms with shorter ones. It looks like you have as much as 10 mm clearance above the fender or 3) replace the V-Brake with cantilever arms, though this would probably require a different bake lever as cantilevers use short-pull levers.

Also, it would be worth a call to Schwinn. Even though you are not the original owner, this is a significant safety issue that they should attend to. If they resist, you should nudge them a bit by mentioning reporting the issue to the CPSC

Thank you Trakhak, loved666 and Moe Zhoost. Longer threaded stud on the pads would definitely help as there was no room for additional washers to space it out. Existing washer are special cupped self centering type so they don't mix and match well. I guess thicker pads and shorter arms would work. I hope to tinker with it a little more today or tomorrow. I like the idea of contacting Schwinn! They may have the shorter arms or a fix as the newer pic of this model that was posted on this thread shows no interference whatsoever. Thank you:)

I am certain they put on the wrong brake calipers. Even if you were to space them, the Quick-release part is still too close to the rack tube. The calipers need to be shorter.

This set has the dimensions on them. See if they will work.

Thank you for the link to a shorter set, it looks like those will be a perfect fit for proper clearance. I'm going to order those (very affordable too!). For the time being I moved the cable to the bottom of the clamp bolt and ground the top of the interfering caliper arm down to clear the rack frame, but left enough metal for the clamp bolt to still be strong and hold the cable tight.
Thank you again.

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...6ff56c3c31.jpg
Brakes released
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...7460ecf83d.jpg
Brakes applied

Sure thing....It is very close to crushing the edge of the fender as well. If that set on amazon doesn't work, it is fully returnable.

Have you checked if the brake pad spacers have the thicker spacer on the rubber side? That may offer some clearance to the fender. Or see if you can find brake pad that has thicker front spacer.