hub-brake effectiveness - cautionary tale, greasy?

[Andrew Steer]

A relative newbie, I went over the handlebars on the road having made a sharp-ish stop a few weeks
back. I wasn't going that fast, but it did seem somewhat "out of character". Anyhow the dodgey left
wrist and right shoulder left me out of cycling-action for 2-3 weeks. :-( I've confirmed since that
the rear (hub/rim) brake has not been very effective - near-impossible to do a rear-wheel skid
compared to easy- peasy the day before my accident... yet mechanically everything is working nicely.

Last night I tried cleaning my wheel rim and brake-pads with washing-up liquid water (degrease)...
and the previous performance has been restored Rear-skids possible at 2mph!

...I had a puncture the day before my accident, and a bike shop sold me a new inner-tube and
replaced it for me. Is it a coincidence, or is likely some kind of grease got on the hub in the
process...? I have no intention of pursuing them, but it might serve as a useful warning to someone.

I thought maybe residual detergent might not be good for the rubber, so rinsed off the wheel in
clean water... but now when dry again, the effectiveness is not as good.

What's going on? It's a practically new bike BTW and the brakes were very effective until around the
time of the tyre-change.

Andrew

PS. In the unlikely event you need to reply by email, remove the Electronic Black Hole from
my address!

 

[Tony Raven]

In news:[email protected], Andrew Steer <[email protected]> typed:
> A relative newbie, I went over the handlebars on the road having made a sharp-ish stop a few weeks
> back. I wasn't going that fast, but it did seem somewhat "out of character". Anyhow the dodgey
> left wrist and right shoulder left me out of cycling-action for 2-3 weeks. :-( I've confirmed
> since that the rear (hub/rim) brake has not been very effective - near-impossible to do a
> rear-wheel skid compared to easy- peasy the day before my accident... yet mechanically everything
> is working nicely.
>

To be honest the rear brake is unimportant on the road. Its only really the front you need to worry
about. For the reasons behind this its best to read http://www.sheldonbrown.com/brakturn.html

Tony

--
http://www.raven-family.com

"All truth goes through three steps: First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed.
Finally, it is accepted as self-evident." Arthur Schopenhauer

 

[Just Zis Guy]

On Wed, 30 Apr 2003 18:10:33 +0100, Michael MacClancy <[email protected]> wrote:

>>http://www.sheldonbrown.com/brakturn.html

>Instinct and bad experience tells a lot of people that you're wrong,

Sheldon is *never* wrong, and this is no exception

Guy
===
** WARNING ** This posting may contain traces of irony. http://www.chapmancentral.com (BT ADSL and
dynamic DNS permitting)
NOTE: BT Openworld have now blocked port 25 (without notice), so old mail addresses may no longer
work. Apologies.

 

[Pete Biggs]

Andrew Steer wrote:
> A relative newbie, I went over the handlebars on the road having made a sharp-ish stop a few weeks
> back. I wasn't going that fast, but it did seem somewhat "out of character".

Get used to relying on the front brake for all normal hard braking. I personally don't go quite as
far as SB in hardly ever using the rear brake on any bike - but the principle is good.

> Anyhow the dodgey left wrist and right shoulder left me out of cycling-action for 2-3 weeks. :-(
> I've confirmed since that the rear (hub/rim) brake has not been very effective - near-impossible
> to do a rear-wheel skid compared to easy- peasy the day before my accident... yet mechanically
> everything is working nicely.

I deliberately fitted a weaker rear brake partly to make it harder to skid the rear wheel ....but I
know what you mean.

> Last night I tried cleaning my wheel rim and brake-pads with washing-up liquid water (degrease)...
> and the previous performance has been restored Rear-skids possible at 2mph!
>
> ...I had a puncture the day before my accident, and a bike shop sold me a new inner-tube and
> replaced it for me. Is it a coincidence, or is likely some kind of grease got on the hub in the
> process...? I have no intention of pursuing them, but it might serve as a useful warning to
> someone.
>
> I thought maybe residual detergent might not be good for the rubber

Most tyres are not rubber nowdays - but I suppose it's reasonable to rinse them.......

> so rinsed off the wheel in clean water... but now when dry again, the effectiveness is not
> as good.
>
> What's going on? It's a practically new bike BTW and the brakes were very effective until around
> the time of the tyre-change.

I'm confused over whether you've got hub or rim brakes (or if both, which is on the front). For rim
brakes, cleaning with meths is more effective than detergent. The brakes can then actually be /too/
"grabby" for a while afterwards but they'll soon normalise after some use. Also check brake block
condition. Clean and remove any embedded specks of metal and lightly sand if they have a glazed
appearance.

~PB

 

[Tony Raven]

In news:[email protected], Just zis Guy, you know?
<[email protected]> typed:
>
> Sheldon is *never* wrong, and this is no exception
>

Arrange the following words into a well known phrase or saying:

Words my took mouth of out the

Tony

--
http://www.raven-family.com

"All truth goes through three steps: First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed.
Finally, it is accepted as self-evident." Arthur Schopenhauer

 

[David Damerell]

Pete Biggs <[email protected]> wrote:
>Andrew Steer wrote:
>>A relative newbie, I went over the handlebars on the road having made a sharp-ish stop a few weeks
>>back. I wasn't going that fast, but it did seem somewhat "out of character".
>Get used to relying on the front brake for all normal hard braking. I personally don't go quite as
>far as SB in hardly ever using the rear brake on any bike - but the principle is good.

For one thing, you've got to use the rear brake often enough to be reasonably confident it
still works.
--
David Damerell <[email protected]> flcl?