Installing brakes and brake cables... How to and which lube?

[l4dva]

Hi guys I am about to fit a new set of bars/levers/cables to my new (second hand) single speed langster.

I have been watching you tube videos and the process seems straight forward.. I just wanted to check if I needed any special tools to fit the actual brake calipers to the rear fork.. I cudnt find many videos on this particular part. I have the normal Allen keys that tighten the bolt do I need anything else.. I have all tr wire cutters etc for the cable.

Dose anyone have any tips for measuring the length of the cable housing.. Again I found a video on this seems pretty straight forward too but just want to make sure I don't miss anything..

Finally cable lube.. The video that I saw mentions lube for the cable. I have a tube of tf2 grease, a spray can of tf2 lube that contains Teflon, and a small selection of chain lubes. Which one of these should I use to lube the cable before I fit them. I used to use the spray and squirt a small amount into the ends of the cable housing when ever I cleaned my bike... Not sure where I got this advise from or if it actually benefits my cables but your input would be appreciated...

Going to attempt to fit the bars/levers/cables & rear brake on Sunday... Looking forward to this!!

 

[Smokin Joe]

Modern cables don't need lubing, in fact lube can gum up the works a bit. You have all the tools you need, and to get the correct length of housing attach it the lever and run the front to the caliper and the rear to the cable stop on the tube making sure you have a nice curve without it being pulled tight as you turn the bars.

 

[l4dva]

Ahh ok, I was originally going to put some grease on the cable before feeding it through the housing. But make sense not to now you say that.

Should I not bother squirting the lube into the opening of the cable housing when I clean my bike then?

 

[black'n'yellow]

It won't do any harm, but it won't do any good either. I usually spray some WD or GT into the cable ends after washing the bike, just to chase the water out, but as Joe says, modern cable materials are pretty much self-reliant..

 

[l4dva]

So I've just spent about two hours fitting the new bars/brake levers & cables... Finished and I'm feeling very pleased with myself!!

I havent got any bar tape yet so that still needs to go on, but I think I've done a pretty good job of it!

One thing that I've stuggled with was getting the tension right on the rear brake, the lever doesn't spring back into place fully when you let go of the lever... What would I have done wrong to cause this? And how can I fix it?

Ps I didn't lube the cables just put them straight on as they came

 

[Hawk]

So I've just spent about two hours fitting the new bars/brake levers & cables... Finished and I'm feeling very pleased with myself!!

I havent got any bar tape yet so that still needs to go on, but I think I've done a pretty good job of it!

One thing that I've stuggled with was getting the tension right on the rear brake, the lever doesn't spring back into place fully when you let go of the lever... What would I have done wrong to cause this? And how can I fix it?

Ps I didn't lube the cables just put them straight on as they came

Do your brake pads swing back firmly when the cables aren't attached?

I had a similar problem - turns out I had a tonne of gunk where my brake arms are screwed in to my frame, so their rotating movement was restricted. A quick clean and regreasing solved it nicely

 

[MrJamie]

Do your brake pads swing back firmly when the cables aren't attached?

I had a similar problem - turns out I had a tonne of gunk where my brake arms are screwed in to my frame, so their rotating movement was restricted. A quick clean and regreasing solved it nicely

Sorry to hijack, but how did you do this, take the brake arms off and clean it all down? Ive got a similar issue with a rear brake, the arms seem to have plenty of springiness, but the left rear is a bit reluctant *sometimes* and lags behind the right in both opening and closing (regardless of the tensioning screw) resulting in the left pad not pulling off the rim completely, so would seem like a little friction issue to me. I dont think its helped that the cable feels a bit spongy and unresponsive, so have one on order too.

Also last winter I left a different bike outside a pub while a few inches of snow fell and for a few days after living in the garage, the brake cables were seizing up, but went back to being perfect once the weather warmed up, so ive been tempted to grease the cable ends but I wont if thats a bad idea.

 

[l4dva]

Ahh there might be some gunk in there... But I'm wondering now if I over tightened that bolt which holds the calliper into the frame? Dose that effect the swing of the arms?

 

[black'n'yellow]

could well be that the cable run is a bit tight somewhere between the lever and the caliper - because it has such a long run, the rear cable can sometimes be quite sentitive to overly-short - or even overly-long outers....

 

[Hawk]

Sorry to hijack, but how did you do this, take the brake arms off and clean it all down? Ive got a similar issue with a rear brake, the arms seem to have plenty of springiness, but the left rear is a bit reluctant *sometimes* and lags behind the right in both opening and closing (regardless of the tensioning screw) resulting in the left pad not pulling off the rim completely, so would seem like a little friction issue to me. I dont think its helped that the cable feels a bit spongy and unresponsive, so have one on order too.

Also last winter I left a different bike outside a pub while a few inches of snow fell and for a few days after living in the garage, the brake cables were seizing up, but went back to being perfect once the weather warmed up, so ive been tempted to grease the cable ends but I wont if thats a bad idea.

No worries mate

I still put grease on my brake cables. Can accumulate dirt but not that much of a problem. See if you can find something to cover the inner cable where dirt might be a problem (at junctions with the frame etc).


I had cantilever brakes. The "pin" or point where my brake arm pivots was held together with a screw with an allen bolt, like this

http://recklesscognition.files.wordpress.com/2008/08/shimanor550brake2.jpg

So I could unscrew both of these, disengage the springs (not applicable on non-cantilevers) and slide it out.

The brake arms have a cylindrical hole in them where they attach to the frame. The frame has a corresponding cylindrical piece of metal extending from the frame outwards. It is this interface (between arm and frame) that caused me problems.

These screws are obviously a safety-critical part of the brake assembly and had threadlocker on them when I pulled them out - I put some more on (amazon, not expensive) before screwing everything back together.

 

[Hawk]

Ahh there might be some gunk in there... But I'm wondering now if I over tightened that bolt which holds the calliper into the frame? Dose that effect the swing of the arms?

In my limited experience, no. The screws on my cantilevers will become impossible to tighten whilst there is still a small gap between the bolt end and the brake arm.

You can check this by seeing if you can wiggle the brake arm back and forth along the axis round which it rotates. If there is any movement then I guess your system, like mine, is not possible to overtighten in this way

 

[MrJamie]

...
These screws are obviously a safety-critical part of the brake assembly and had threadlocker on them when I pulled them out - I put some more on (amazon, not expensive) before screwing everything back together.

Ordered a tiny tube of the stuff, will hopefully get everything working well, thanks

 

[Hawk]

Ordered a tiny tube of the stuff, will hopefully get everything working well, thanks

Yup, you don't need much of it at all!

 

[l4dva]

In my limited experience, no. The screws on my cantilevers will become impossible to tighten whilst there is still a small gap between the bolt end and the brake arm.

You can check this by seeing if you can wiggle the brake arm back and forth along the axis round which it rotates. If there is any movement then I guess your system, like mine, is not possible to overtighten in this way

Sorry i should of clarified im using normal short drop road caliper brakes, there is only one bolt that holds the brake to the frame, this one isn't the problem (at least i think it isnt)

With out the cables attached they seem to swing out freely, once i attach the cables it seems to be stiffer swinging out, but i can't see a problem with the way ive installed the cable? when i pull them in and out by hand they move freely.... I must be missing something?!

Is there a way that i can increase the spring tension on the brakes themselves so that they swing back firmer? or should i re assess my cable?

I rode the bike into work this morning, the front brake is perfect, the rear works i just have to make sure i push the lever out the final section where it becomes stuck.

Thanks