Adjusting brakes

On Wed, 22 Jul 2020 05:41:48 +0700, John B. wrote:

On Tue, 21 Jul 2020 07:24:02 -0500, AMuzi wrote:


How special? Cone (thin) wrench and a 17mm or adjustable wrench. Hardly
a burden.


Well, to be picky, isn't that cone wrench a special tool :-?

err, nope, jst a few square notches in an axle bolt wrench.
OTOH, I do have a circular 'special tool' for the job as well.
Although I have done the work with a standard adjustable wrench in the
past.

John B. wrote:
On Tue, 21 Jul 2020 15:13:18 -0700 (PDT), AK
wrote:

On Monday, July 20, 2020 at 8:59:59 AM UTC-5, AK wrote:
On Sunday, July 19, 2020 at 6:37:22 PM UTC-5, AMuzi wrote:
On 7/19/2020 1:44 PM, AK wrote:
On Saturday, July 18, 2020 at 7:59:12 AM UTC-5, AMuzi wrote:
On 7/18/2020 2:39 AM, AK wrote:
I am having a very hard time adjusting my rear brakes.

I have a mountain bike. Low end. :-)

If I adjust it to where it grabs the rim tightly, it slows my bike
down due to the resistance from the brake touching the rim.

It's very frustrating.

Thanks,
Andy


First off, does your rim run straight without dents ? Any
bearing slop?
Secondly are there kinks or other impedimanta to your cable?

Do your brake pads meet the rim squarely and fully or are
they askew?

Is everything original? Mismatch of standard lever with
long pull linear brake would give that symptom.

--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org/
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

Yes to all your questions.

https://imgur.com/a/e61C1L5

https://imgur.com/a/nXBEr1Q


I don't see anything unusual.

Are the cables and brake pivots free moving and lubricated,
tat is, does the brake snap open when you release the lever?

--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org/
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

I just found a broken spoke on my rear wheel.

I think my bike is plain wore out.

I need a better bike, but everyone is out except those bikes costing $800+.

Does anyone have any mountain bikes in stock?

Andy

I pick up my rim tomorrow which had one spoke replaced and it was trued.

$11

And a Park Tool truing stand is only $299.95 :-)
--
Cheers,

John B.



I built mine out of leftover plywood and angle aluminum.

On Tue, 21 Jul 2020 23:26:26 -0000 (UTC), news18
wrote:

On Wed, 22 Jul 2020 05:41:48 +0700, John B. wrote:

On Tue, 21 Jul 2020 07:24:02 -0500, AMuzi wrote:


How special? Cone (thin) wrench and a 17mm or adjustable wrench. Hardly
a burden.


Well, to be picky, isn't that cone wrench a special tool :-?

err, nope, jst a few square notches in an axle bolt wrench.
OTOH, I do have a circular 'special tool' for the job as well.
Although I have done the work with a standard adjustable wrench in the
past.

How did you squeeze a "standard adjustable wrench" in between the lock
nut and the side of the hub? see
https://sheldonbrown.com/cone-adjustment.html
--
Cheers,

John B.

On Tue, 21 Jul 2020 23:51:19 +0000 (UTC), Ralph Barone
wrote:

John B. wrote:
On Tue, 21 Jul 2020 15:13:18 -0700 (PDT), AK
wrote:

On Monday, July 20, 2020 at 8:59:59 AM UTC-5, AK wrote:
On Sunday, July 19, 2020 at 6:37:22 PM UTC-5, AMuzi wrote:
On 7/19/2020 1:44 PM, AK wrote:
On Saturday, July 18, 2020 at 7:59:12 AM UTC-5, AMuzi wrote:
On 7/18/2020 2:39 AM, AK wrote:
I am having a very hard time adjusting my rear brakes.

I have a mountain bike. Low end. :-)

If I adjust it to where it grabs the rim tightly, it slows my bike
down due to the resistance from the brake touching the rim.

It's very frustrating.

Thanks,
Andy


First off, does your rim run straight without dents ? Any
bearing slop?
Secondly are there kinks or other impedimanta to your cable?

Do your brake pads meet the rim squarely and fully or are
they askew?

Is everything original? Mismatch of standard lever with
long pull linear brake would give that symptom.

--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org/
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

Yes to all your questions.

https://imgur.com/a/e61C1L5

https://imgur.com/a/nXBEr1Q


I don't see anything unusual.

Are the cables and brake pivots free moving and lubricated,
tat is, does the brake snap open when you release the lever?

--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org/
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

I just found a broken spoke on my rear wheel.

I think my bike is plain wore out.

I need a better bike, but everyone is out except those bikes costing $800+.

Does anyone have any mountain bikes in stock?

Andy

I pick up my rim tomorrow which had one spoke replaced and it was trued.

$11

And a Park Tool truing stand is only $299.95 :-)
--
Cheers,

John B.



I built mine out of leftover plywood and angle aluminum.

Errr... I was replying to a guy who had problems adjusting a Vee brake
and you are asking him to build a truing stand?

Horses for courses, as the British say.

--
Cheers,

John B.

John B. wrote:
On Tue, 21 Jul 2020 23:51:19 +0000 (UTC), Ralph Barone
wrote:

John B. wrote:
On Tue, 21 Jul 2020 15:13:18 -0700 (PDT), AK
wrote:

On Monday, July 20, 2020 at 8:59:59 AM UTC-5, AK wrote:
On Sunday, July 19, 2020 at 6:37:22 PM UTC-5, AMuzi wrote:
On 7/19/2020 1:44 PM, AK wrote:
On Saturday, July 18, 2020 at 7:59:12 AM UTC-5, AMuzi wrote:
On 7/18/2020 2:39 AM, AK wrote:
I am having a very hard time adjusting my rear brakes.

I have a mountain bike. Low end. :-)

If I adjust it to where it grabs the rim tightly, it slows my bike
down due to the resistance from the brake touching the rim.

It's very frustrating.

Thanks,
Andy


First off, does your rim run straight without dents ? Any
bearing slop?
Secondly are there kinks or other impedimanta to your cable?

Do your brake pads meet the rim squarely and fully or are
they askew?

Is everything original? Mismatch of standard lever with
long pull linear brake would give that symptom.

--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org/
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

Yes to all your questions.

https://imgur.com/a/e61C1L5

https://imgur.com/a/nXBEr1Q


I don't see anything unusual.

Are the cables and brake pivots free moving and lubricated,
tat is, does the brake snap open when you release the lever?

--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org/
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

I just found a broken spoke on my rear wheel.

I think my bike is plain wore out.

I need a better bike, but everyone is out except those bikes costing $800+.

Does anyone have any mountain bikes in stock?

Andy

I pick up my rim tomorrow which had one spoke replaced and it was trued.

$11

And a Park Tool truing stand is only $299.95 :-)
--
Cheers,

John B.



I built mine out of leftover plywood and angle aluminum.

Errr... I was replying to a guy who had problems adjusting a Vee brake
and you are asking him to build a truing stand?

Horses for courses, as the British say.

--
Cheers,

John B.



No worse than you recommending a $300 trying stand to a guy who’s not
willing to spend $800 on an entire bike :-)

On 7/21/2020 11:42 AM, Sir Ridesalot wrote:
On Tuesday, 21 July 2020 11:20:11 UTC-4, Frank Krygowski wrote:
On 7/21/2020 2:31 AM, Ralph Barone wrote:
AK wrote:
On Monday, July 20, 2020 at 10:49:43 AM UTC-5, Stephen Bauman wrote:
On Monday, July 20, 2020 at 9:59:59 AM UTC-4, AK wrote:

I just found a broken spoke on my rear wheel.

I think my bike is plain wore out.

I need a better bike, but everyone is out except those bikes costing $800+.

Does anyone have any mountain bikes in stock?

Andy

The broken spoke probably means the wheel is wobbling from side to side,
when it is spun. This means you had to increase the brake clearance to
make sure the brakes did not rub. The increased clearance meant that the
brakes did not lock onto the rim, when you applied the brakes.

The first order of business is to replace the broken spoke and true the
wheel. You may find there are more than one broken spoke. This is best
done by a bike shop.

Once the wheel is fixed, the brakes should be easy to adjust.

Bike is at the shop for spoke replacement and truing.

I saw some material on truing, but it was confusing at best.

Andy


If you know the right hand rule and have patience and common sense, you can
true a wheel.

Agreed. Or at least, some people can true a wheel. Bike books from the
1970s had illustrations on how to do it with the wheel in the bike,
watching for the wobble at the brake shoes. No tools but a spoke wrench
are really necessary. (And I remember making minor adjustments with a
little adjustable wrench.)

But it does get tricky for many people. There are those who get confused
about which way to spin the nipple to tighten a spoke. There are those
who don't grasp the idea that to move the rim to (say) the right, you
could tighten a right spoke or loosen a left one - or perhaps both.

I recall riding along one day and seeing a beginning cyclists I'd
recently met; he was walking toward a bike shop, carrying a wheel shaped
like a potato chip. I thought he must have had a bad crash, but no.

He said his wheel was a little out of true, so he bought a spoke wrench.
He inflicted the rest of the damage himself.


--
- Frank Krygowski

When I worked in bike shops some of the words we hated to hear when someone brought in a wheel to be trued were, "Can you straighten this heel? I tried to do it myself."

A lot of the times we'd just back all the spokes off so that it was like a newly laced wheel and start from there. That worked if the customer was honest in how the wheel got it of shape and it hadn't bent the wheel in an accident.

Cheers


Old car shop sign:
Hourly Rate $20
If you already bought the parts $40
If you started it for us $60

--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org/
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

On 7/21/2020 12:57 PM, Sir Ridesalot wrote:
On Tuesday, 21 July 2020 12:54:06 UTC-4, sms wrote:
On 7/20/2020 10:40 PM, AK wrote:

snip

That is mostly true.

But as a retired scientist, I love to learn new things.

I will at some point learn how to true a wheel.

It takes a truing stand, patience, and the realization that you will
probably never achieve a perfectly true wheel. Tightening and loosening
spokes on alternate sides by only a small amount in each iteration of
truing. Remember that not only does the wheel need to be true side to
side, it also has to remain round. And you can really screw things up if
you over-tighten spokes.

Many people have trued many wheels without having to use a truing stand. They do it with the wheel still on the bike. It's a good skill to have if touring. Then you can true a wheel on tour or on a long ride if needed.

Cheers


I do it all day long. For minor problems, enough to make a
brake adjustment better on a cheap bike, there's no reason
to remove the wheel.

--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org/
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

On 7/21/2020 2:30 PM, Ralph Barone wrote:
Frank Krygowski wrote:
On 7/21/2020 2:31 AM, Ralph Barone wrote:
AK wrote:
On Monday, July 20, 2020 at 10:49:43 AM UTC-5, Stephen Bauman wrote:
On Monday, July 20, 2020 at 9:59:59 AM UTC-4, AK wrote:

I just found a broken spoke on my rear wheel.

I think my bike is plain wore out.

I need a better bike, but everyone is out except those bikes costing $800+.

Does anyone have any mountain bikes in stock?

Andy

The broken spoke probably means the wheel is wobbling from side to side,
when it is spun. This means you had to increase the brake clearance to
make sure the brakes did not rub. The increased clearance meant that the
brakes did not lock onto the rim, when you applied the brakes.

The first order of business is to replace the broken spoke and true the
wheel. You may find there are more than one broken spoke. This is best
done by a bike shop.

Once the wheel is fixed, the brakes should be easy to adjust.

Bike is at the shop for spoke replacement and truing.

I saw some material on truing, but it was confusing at best.

Andy


If you know the right hand rule and have patience and common sense, you can
true a wheel.

Agreed. Or at least, some people can true a wheel. Bike books from the
1970s had illustrations on how to do it with the wheel in the bike,
watching for the wobble at the brake shoes. No tools but a spoke wrench
are really necessary. (And I remember making minor adjustments with a
little adjustable wrench.)

But it does get tricky for many people. There are those who get confused
about which way to spin the nipple to tighten a spoke. There are those
who don't grasp the idea that to move the rim to (say) the right, you
could tighten a right spoke or loosen a left one - or perhaps both.

I recall riding along one day and seeing a beginning cyclists I'd
recently met; he was walking toward a bike shop, carrying a wheel shaped
like a potato chip. I thought he must have had a bad crash, but no.

He said his wheel was a little out of true, so he bought a spoke wrench.
He inflicted the rest of the damage himself.



If things are getting worse, consider not doing what you’re currently
doing.


Good advice for mechanical and management problems generally.

Doesn't apply to politics in any way whatsoever.

--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org/
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

On 7/21/2020 6:22 PM, news18 wrote:
On Tue, 21 Jul 2020 10:57:44 -0700, Sir Ridesalot wrote:

On Tuesday, 21 July 2020 12:54:06 UTC-4, sms wrote:

It takes a truing stand, patience, and the realization that you will
probably never achieve a perfectly true wheel. Tightening and loosening
spokes on alternate sides by only a small amount in each iteration of
truing. Remember that not only does the wheel need to be true side to
side, it also has to remain round. And you can really screw things up
if you over-tighten spokes.

Many people have trued many wheels without having to use a truing stand.
They do it with the wheel still on the bike. It's a good skill to have
if touring. Then you can true a wheel on tour or on a long ride if
needed.

Err, my 'truing stand' is an old set of (28"?) forks.


Hmm that sounds very familiar:

https://image.slidesharecdn.com/09-1...?cb=1380096121

--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org/
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

On Wed, 22 Jul 2020 00:55:27 +0000 (UTC), Ralph Barone
wrote:

John B. wrote:
On Tue, 21 Jul 2020 23:51:19 +0000 (UTC), Ralph Barone
wrote:

John B. wrote:
On Tue, 21 Jul 2020 15:13:18 -0700 (PDT), AK
wrote:

On Monday, July 20, 2020 at 8:59:59 AM UTC-5, AK wrote:
On Sunday, July 19, 2020 at 6:37:22 PM UTC-5, AMuzi wrote:
On 7/19/2020 1:44 PM, AK wrote:
On Saturday, July 18, 2020 at 7:59:12 AM UTC-5, AMuzi wrote:
On 7/18/2020 2:39 AM, AK wrote:
I am having a very hard time adjusting my rear brakes.

I have a mountain bike. Low end. :-)

If I adjust it to where it grabs the rim tightly, it slows my bike
down due to the resistance from the brake touching the rim.

It's very frustrating.

Thanks,
Andy


First off, does your rim run straight without dents ? Any
bearing slop?
Secondly are there kinks or other impedimanta to your cable?

Do your brake pads meet the rim squarely and fully or are
they askew?

Is everything original? Mismatch of standard lever with
long pull linear brake would give that symptom.

--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org/
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

Yes to all your questions.

https://imgur.com/a/e61C1L5

https://imgur.com/a/nXBEr1Q


I don't see anything unusual.

Are the cables and brake pivots free moving and lubricated,
tat is, does the brake snap open when you release the lever?

--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org/
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

I just found a broken spoke on my rear wheel.

I think my bike is plain wore out.

I need a better bike, but everyone is out except those bikes costing $800+.

Does anyone have any mountain bikes in stock?

Andy

I pick up my rim tomorrow which had one spoke replaced and it was trued.

$11

And a Park Tool truing stand is only $299.95 :-)
--
Cheers,

John B.



I built mine out of leftover plywood and angle aluminum.

Errr... I was replying to a guy who had problems adjusting a Vee brake
and you are asking him to build a truing stand?

Horses for courses, as the British say.

--
Cheers,

John B.



No worse than you recommending a $300 trying stand to a guy who’s not
willing to spend $800 on an entire bike :-)

Ah but I wasn't recommending, I was comparing the $11 he paid to fix
and true his wheel to the $300 (actually $299.95) he might pay for a
stand to do it himself.
--
Cheers,

John B.