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V brakes with no screw tension adjuster?

(9 posts)
  • Started 8 years ago by Claire
  • Latest reply from remberbuck
  • This topic is not resolved

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  1. Claire
    Member

    Hello folks, Google is coming up blank with respect to my brake query... maybe someone can help?

    I have a mid-1990s Giant MTB that's been in the garage for two decades. Took it out today to practise tinkering and amazingly everything seems to work except I cant get the v brakes to centre. I aligned the brake pads but there is no spring tension adjuster on the brakes....... so I cant for the life of me figure out how to centre the brakes so the pads don't rub the wheel rim. Does anyone know how I can fix this bizarre malady??

    Posted 8 years ago #

  2. chdot
    Admin

    You sure there's no adjuster?

    Many brakes only have one.

    Whether or not, best thing to do is undo bolts at front then clean. Pivots can be done quickly with sandpaper or steel wool (Brillo if that's all you have).

    With luck you'll also find that there are three holes for the springs to go in. Usually these are assembled in the factory in the middle ones but you could use the hole that gives the strongest springiness. Also they don't have to be in equivalent holes. If one spring is weaker, middle and 'top' holes might give you the balance.

    BUT

    First make the wheel is actually centred.

    Also if the blocks have been badly adjusted and are 'diving under' the rim this might be adding to the problem.

    However, if the bike has been lying for a long time, get new blocks.

    And use the Brillo pads to clean the rims.

    Posted 8 years ago #

  3. Claire
    Member

    Thanks chdot! I will look at them tomorrow again but I swear there is no spring tension adjuster. No screw anywhere. Totally bizarre. I am wondering if they were really cheap brakes and just didn't have any. Does that ever happen?

    I adjusted the pads so they are correctly aligned with the wheel rim, so it's not the pads. The brakes proper need centred. But I will check the wheels also.

    Yeah the bike has been lying for forever. The brake pads will have perished so need replaced but I don't have any spare brake pads in my house. They are in my desk drawer at work, haha.

    I can take the brakes off the bike completely and give them a proper scrub and see where I am at... Having never done this before it should be an adventure! :D

    Posted 8 years ago #

  4. chdot
    Admin

    "I am wondering if they were really cheap brakes and just didn't have any. Does that ever happen?"

    Yes.

    See how they are after the clean, you may choose to replace. Plenty in the drawer at the Bike Station - but not always with all the bits attached...

    Posted 8 years ago #

  5. chdot
    Admin

    "No screw anywhere."

    You're not overlooking tiny holes with Allen bolts?

    Posted 8 years ago #

  6. crowriver
    Member

    Even a new set of v-brakes not expensive if you shop around online. Maybe worth doing as they'e crucial safety components, and worth getting brakes that can be adjusted properly.

    Posted 8 years ago #

  7. Claire
    Member

    That's a good suggestion re Bike Station. I had been to see them a few weeks ago and learned of the fix your own bike nights on a Wednesday. The old MTB would be a prime project.

    I took a brakeless spin on the bike earlier today. The frame is 19.5 inches and might just about fit me still (it was my teenage bike) so it could be a good tinkering project.

    There may be tiny holes but I haven't seen them or felt them with my fingertips. I will take the brakes off the frame tomorrow...

    Posted 8 years ago #

  8. gkgk
    Member

    If it were me, and the brake repairs were heading above £20, I'd splurge on Magura hydraulic rim brakes. Used to be super dear but now £65 incl postage (for 2 x levers, cables, brakes, ready assembled, just bolt them on), over at bike-discount.de.

    I'm hoping that if you buy them I'll stop being tempted. That's how it works, isn't it?

    Posted 8 years ago #

  9. remberbuck
    Member

    Clean your rims with white spirits on a rag followed by soap and water.

    Never use steel wool or brillo, you'll just give road grime a place to find a home.

    Posted 8 years ago #

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