Brake pad mess all over my bike..advice please

[Crankarm]

If you don't clean your brake pads and bike rims regularly, if it has rim brakes, then the brake dust from the pads turns to sludge mixed with mud and crud when wet which will act as an abrasive grinding paste prematurely wearing down the braking surface of the wheel rims as you continue to use the brakes meaning you will need new rims a lot sooner. This is why I prefer to use a disc brake bike for every day commuting. So much easier to maintain and keep clean. The weather in the UK is so crap.

 

[Crankarm]

There are probably some riders with hub brakes reading this thread, feeling very smug.

Yeah, but crap themselves if they have to stop quickly if for instance some one pulls out on them and they can't stop in time ............ as hub brakes are not the best.

 

[Eribiste]

Yeah, but crap themselves if they have to stop quickly if for instance some one pulls out on them and they can't stop in time ............ as hub brakes are not the best.

Yes, but I had these on my Pashley, and if anyone was fool enough to open car doors, step out in front, or otherwise generally get in the way, that bike was so heavy they were toast!

 

[Poacher]

+1 for the koolstops, I get mine from here
http://www.simpsoncycles.co.uk/product.php/954/kool_stop_continental

Hi Dave,
£6.30 a pair and free postage from Simpsoncycles, £4 a pair from Spa http://www.spacycles.co.uk/products.php?plid=m2b0s104p1591 but £4 postage (free if > £50 order). So slightly cheaper from Spa if you want front and rear brakes.

Last time I ordered from Spa, I got 8 pairs, for various bikes, and some other bits and pieces such as obsolescent 86mm BCD chainrings and paid nowt for postage. I like Spa, can you tell? Even occasionally had discount when visiting the shop; haven't been to Harrogate since they moved, though. Only problem I've had with koolstops (apart from small amounts of the OP's grey sludge) is that they still squeal months after fitting them - must get out more on the Holdsworth and find excuses for braking!

 

[Deleted member 1258]

Hi Dave,
£6.30 a pair and free postage from Simpsoncycles, £4 a pair from Spa http://www.spacycles.co.uk/products.php?plid=m2b0s104p1591 but £4 postage (free if > £50 order). So slightly cheaper from Spa if you want front and rear brakes.

Last time I ordered from Spa, I got 8 pairs, for various bikes, and some other bits and pieces such as obsolescent 86mm BCD chainrings and paid nowt for postage. I like Spa, can you tell? Even occasionally had discount when visiting the shop; haven't been to Harrogate since they moved, though. Only problem I've had with koolstops (apart from small amounts of the OP's grey sludge) is that they still squeal months after fitting them - must get out more on the Holdsworth and find excuses for braking!

The squealing is a nuisance, but I've usually managed to stop it by cleaning the rims, it can be useful at times though, once or twice its saved me from shouting at the pedestrian who's just stepped in the road.

 

[snailracer]

Yes, but I had these on my Pashley, and if anyone was fool enough to open car doors, step out in front, or otherwise generally get in the way, that bike was so heavy they were toast!

Is that a front hub brake? How do you find it for emergency stops? Wet vs dry?

 

[mrandmrspoves]

Brake squeal usually can be sorted on rim brakes by toeing them in so the front of the pad hits the rim first. I do this by wedging a doubled bit of thin cardboard from a cereal packet between the back of the pad and the rim when fitting the pad- then squeezing the brake lever tight while I tighten the brake block in rhe right position. Take the cardboard away and job done.

 

[Eribiste]

Is that a front hub brake? How do you find it for emergency stops? Wet vs dry?

All joking aside, Roadster Sovereigns have hub brakes at both ends. Hub brakes are plainly of modest radius, while the 28" wheels are of a much larger radius. The leverage that the contact patch has over the brakes is therefore considerable. I found that the brakes were nevertheless very effective, and I did have to USE them on one or two occasions, stopping without drama. They don't have what one might call initial bite, and if I was going from rim braked lightweight hot-shot to hub braked town bike, I would probably have some initial misgivings. The brakes are very progressive though, just don't expect to be able to lock the wheels up, because that doesn't happen. I found no difference between wet or dry performance, with the brakes feeling very consistent.

 

[Globalti]

This is the reason why I think all but the lightest summer-use racing bikes will eventually end up with disc brakes.

 

[Boris Bajic]

This is the reason why I think all but the lightest summer-use racing bikes will eventually end up with disc brakes.

This is just witchcraft, sorcery and treason.

You only get away with it because it's the Internet.