How to get rid of squeaky brakes

I really want to ride my bike but I can't because of squeaky rear brakes -
not just a bit squeaky but deafening, unbearable. I put it in to the local
bike shop with this as the main thing I wanted fixed (there were some other
more minor things as well), and when I got it back after a week they said
there might still be a little bit of a squeak because it can be hard to get
rid of completely. But it is still there, just as bad as before, and it
makes the bike unusable.

I have spent the last few hours experimenting. I found that if I pressed the
left brake pad against the wheel and pushed the bike I got the squeak. If I
did this with the right brake pad I got nothing. I swapped the brake pads
around and still got the squeak on the left. So it seems like it isn't the
brake pad - it must be either the wheel or the geometry of the left brake
mechanism.

The left brake pad was hitting the wheel at a slight but visible angle, with
the back touching first. There is nothing on the brake mechanism to adjust
this angle, so I got some pliers and bent the brake arm very slightly so as
to eliminate this angle (as best I could judge using eyesight). This made no
difference to the squeak.

This is really frustrating me so I'd be very grateful if anyone has any
ideas.

Thanks,
Neil

Neil wrote:

The left brake pad was hitting the wheel at a slight but visible angle, with
the back touching first.

Yes, thats your problem. You want the front of pad to touch first.

There is nothing on the brake mechanism to adjust
this angle,

What sort of bike & brakes?
The modern 'V' brakes are much easier to adjust than older cantilevers.

so I got some pliers and bent the brake arm very slightly so as
to eliminate this angle (as best I could judge using eyesight). This made no
difference to the squeak.

Try bending it a bit further so the front touches first. That has worked
for me.

"Mike" wrote in message
...
Neil wrote:

The left brake pad was hitting the wheel at a slight but visible angle,
with
the back touching first.

Yes, thats your problem. You want the front of pad to touch first.

There is nothing on the brake mechanism to adjust
this angle,

What sort of bike & brakes?
The modern 'V' brakes are much easier to adjust than older cantilevers.

so I got some pliers and bent the brake arm very slightly so as
to eliminate this angle (as best I could judge using eyesight). This
made no
difference to the squeak.

Try bending it a bit further so the front touches first. That has worked
for me.

Thanks Mike.

I found a web page which described how to adjust the angle using the concave
and convex washers, and I adjusted it until the front touched first. This
seems to have fixed the problem.

toes dem suckers in

try putting something approx 1-1.5mm thick underneath the rear edge/s o
the pads when loose and then tighten them up again so you ca
concentrate on the alighnment, etc and the toe-in will be taken care o


-

"Neil" wrote in message

..com.au...
I really want to ride my bike but I can't because of squeaky rear
brakes -
not just a bit squeaky but deafening, unbearable. I put it in to the
local
bike shop with this as the main thing I wanted fixed (there were some
other
more minor things as well), and when I got it back after a week they
said
there might still be a little bit of a squeak because it can be hard
to get
rid of completely. But it is still there, just as bad as before, and
it
makes the bike unusable.

You took it to your LBS and THEY couldn't fix the squeel?!
I know some brakes have a reputation for unsolvable noise
(XT Vee's?) but they should have at least toed the pads in!

hippy

rid of completely. But it is still there, just as bad as before, and
it
makes the bike unusable.

You took it to your LBS and THEY couldn't fix the squeel?!
I know some brakes have a reputation for unsolvable noise
(XT Vee's?) but they should have at least toed the pads in!

hippy



Got to wonder which LBS it was hey. Sounds like they might not have even
tried and just said they did. Cant believe they would not have seen that
the pad was heel in.

Yes, thats your problem. You want the front of pad to touch first.

Excuse my ignorance (I"m also about to tackle the same problem) but what is
the "front" of the pad?
The end closest to the FRONT OF THE BIKE or the FIRST part of the pad to
touch the rim (IE. the back of the bike)?...thanks

Yes, thats your problem. You want the front of pad to touch first.

Excuse my ignorance (I"m also about to tackle the same problem) but what
is
the "front" of the pad?
The end closest to the FRONT OF THE BIKE or the FIRST part of the pad to
touch the rim (IE. the back of the bike)?...thanks

The end closest to the FRONT OF THE BIKE

http://www.parktool.com/repair_help/...arbrakes.shtml
good pic about halfway down the page
(most of the pics on this page are right over on the righthand side for some
reason, never used to be like that, maybe Ineed a reboot)

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/cantilever-adjustment.html

Toe in to reduce squeal, but not too much or the brakes will become too
spongy.
It will also wear a curve into the front of the pad.
Greasing the pivots can help to.
If you pads arent the same length either side of the mounting post, the long
side goes to the back(if it will clear the fork, but dont worry about it if
you have to put them in backwards, I cant tell the difference. Its to try
and even out wear, toe helps that anyway)
hope this helps

On Tue, 17 Feb 2004 00:17:47 +1000, Neil wrote:

I really want to ride my bike but I can't because of squeaky rear brakes -
not just a bit squeaky but deafening, unbearable.

You could try some more up-market brake pads.
Supposedly Kool-Stop 'Salmon' brake pads are good at stopping brake
squeal. If you go have a read at mtbreview.com, lookup Shimano XT
V-brakes. These are infamous for squealing, but reading alot of the
posts, it's common to solve this problem with better brake pads.
They also mention setting the pad a little off-flat so the head(?)
touches the rim ever-so-slightly first.

Give your rims a good clean, and then try to wear-in the pads.
I think the reason one side squeals and the other doesn't, is that you're
getting less (or more) pressure from the calliper/arm on one side.

good luck,
-kt

If I haven't used my bike for a week or so I find that the brakes sometimes
squeak. My solution last time was to check the toe in (this didn't help).
Then I cleaned the rims with methylated spirits and I also rubbed down the
rims with a soft brass bristles brush. This stopped the squeak and now
everything is quiet.
Joseph
"Neil" wrote in message
...
I really want to ride my bike but I can't because of squeaky rear brakes -
not just a bit squeaky but deafening, unbearable. I put it in to the local
bike shop with this as the main thing I wanted fixed (there were some
other
more minor things as well), and when I got it back after a week they said
there might still be a little bit of a squeak because it can be hard to
get
rid of completely. But it is still there, just as bad as before, and it
makes the bike unusable.

I have spent the last few hours experimenting. I found that if I pressed
the
left brake pad against the wheel and pushed the bike I got the squeak. If
I
did this with the right brake pad I got nothing. I swapped the brake pads
around and still got the squeak on the left. So it seems like it isn't the
brake pad - it must be either the wheel or the geometry of the left brake
mechanism.

The left brake pad was hitting the wheel at a slight but visible angle,
with
the back touching first. There is nothing on the brake mechanism to adjust
this angle, so I got some pliers and bent the brake arm very slightly so
as
to eliminate this angle (as best I could judge using eyesight). This made
no
difference to the squeak.

This is really frustrating me so I'd be very grateful if anyone has any
ideas.

Thanks,
Neil