Originally Posted by
grizzly59
If you see plastic pieces, they’re going to break in a year or two. Lower end shimano canti brakes had built in self-destruct.
If you limit the discussion to the one model, CT-90, then your are right. Not that I think Shimano did this on purpose. They spent thousands (many thousands) of $ to offer free replacements for many years and after that sold replacement covers for real cheap. This is pretty well known in the LBS world. The next generation (like the current CT-91) still has plastic spring covers but they don't crack over time. So it's not that plastic is the bad thing just the particular formulation that the CT-90s had. I'll also note that the CT-90s still functioned as a reliable stopping device even after the covers cracked, it's just that the pads would tend to rub. There are many CT90s still on bikes that are working properly after the free/minimal cost replacement covers were installed. I've probably replaced more then a hundred pairs of these covers over the years. We still see them come in on old service jobs and you know what? The rider rarely knows there's even a problem as the bike still stops. So much for self destruction claims. Andy