Urgently need cantilever upgrade!

[Panter]

Brakes working fine (it's a new bike) but they're utter Carp.
I've been getting used to them, but a car cut across me this morning and all I could do was crush the levers and hope I didn't hit it.
Brakes are Tektro canti's, are these Kool stop Eagles the easiest upgrade?

EDIT: Actually, I think I need these? (Tektro CR-720's)

 

[John the Monkey]

Definitely try new pads, especially if you've been using the stock Tektros, which I don't think are up to much. If you don't have an adjustable straddle hanger, or haven't tried repositioning it, that's worth trying too - experiment with lowering the straddle for more power/less clearance.

Pad wise, I got best results from Kool Stop Salmons & Fibrax Xtreme, although I never tried Swiss-Stops.

I had CR720s on my Long Haul Trucker (with Tiagra 9 speed levers) for a bit - my experience is that they didn't work great for the geometry of that bike - if I could have lowered the straddle a bit more, they might have been better.

I found Oryx to be overly "grabby" - very much an "on or off" experience, and needing to be gapped very close to the rim, and frequently adjusted.

The best fit for me were (are) IRD CAFAMs.

Some useful tips;
http://www.cyclechat.net/threads/upgrading-touring-bike-cantilever-brakes.177482/

http://www.circleacycles.com/cantilevers/

 

[Panter]

Fantastic, thanks John, very helpful.
I'm new to cantilevers, but the saddle can be lowered easily by the looks of things. It probably won't drop by much though, it's quite close to the tyre as it is but it could definitely go down by a few mm's.
I've ordered the Kool stop mountain pads, based on the reviews, hopefully they will make enough of a difference on their own.
I've never been a fan of stock pads in general, I've always used Salmons on the road bikes after seeing big improvements over the original ones and everything I've read about the Tektro ones seems to indicate that they're just too hard to be effective.

I'll report back when they're fitted.