Newbie brake question

Hi, I guess that this is a pretty basic question, but I'm a novice and only just starting to get
informed around doing my own maintainence.

My bike has just had a service to check that everything is ok for the summer. The front brake blocks
were worn and so were replaced.

There is an occassional scuffing of a brake block against the rim of the front wheel. The wheel is
aligned and the problem seems to be more about one of the brake callipers not fully returning to
position after the brakes are applied. This was a problem that occassionally occured with the old
blocks so I don't think that the change of blocks is a cause.

I've tried tightening the adjustment screw on the calliper to move it away from the rim a bit, my
main question really (showing my lack of confidence I guess) is to ask whether I can cause any harm
experimenting with the adjustment screws.

Thanks in advance to any experts out there who can help.

Kind Regards, Paul

 

In article <[email protected]>, [email protected] says...
>
>
>Hi, I guess that this is a pretty basic question, but I'm a novice and only just starting to get
>informed around doing my own maintainence. My bike has just had a service to check that everything
>is ok for the summer. The front brake blocks were worn and so were replaced. There is an
>occassional scuffing of a brake block against the rim of the front wheel. The wheel is aligned and
>the problem seems to be more about one of the brake callipers not fully returning to position after
>the brakes are applied. This was a problem that occassionally occured with the old blocks so I
>don't think that the change of blocks is a cause. I've tried tightening the adjustment screw on the
>calliper to move it away from the rim a bit, my main question really (showing my lack of confidence
>I guess) is to ask whether I can cause any harm experimenting with the adjustment screws.

If this is a bike with dual pivot brakes, yes you can do harm. The reason is that when you adjust
the screw on the brakes, it opens up the caliper. With dual pivots you need to have the pads very
close to the rim to keep the brake levers from bottoming out when you apply the brakes. If you move
the pads away from the rims, it is possible that you run out of brake lever travel before you get
all the braking you need. It is quite possible that your front wheel needs to be trued.
-----------------
Alex __O _-\<,_ (_)/ (_)

 

Paul wrote:

> I've tried tightening the adjustment screw on the calliper to move it away from the rim a bit, my
> main question really (showing my lack of confidence I guess) is to ask whether I can cause any
> harm experimenting with the adjustment screws.

Perhaps a centering problem? Check the instruction manual for your brakes and look for a procedure
to center the pads.

--
Jerry Gardner [email protected]