quick tip when changing cartridge rim brake pads

[alecstilleyedye]

having previously used a combination of pliers and bad language to remove the inserts from cartridge brakes, the stubbornness of the campag brake cartridges forced me to rethink.

solution? a tiny flat-head screwdriver (like you get in a watch-maker's set) used gently under the old cartridge at the open end will prise the cartridge out with remarkable ease. the little screwdriver has earned itself an upgrade to the bike toolkit…

and one more tip, if you buy new cartridges that have a little bolt on the back, remove the bolt immediately (unless installed on a fixed-wheel bike) as they inevitably either seize or strip the head bolt, making brake pad changes very difficult…

 

[si_c]

I am not seeing the reason to make an exception.

I assume he means that the cartridge will stop the pad from being pulled out in a normal direction of travel, but a fixed can rotate the other way pulling the pad out.

 

[Fab Foodie]

You don't normally travel backwards on a fixed wheel bike, and use the brakes.

Now you tell me ....

 

[Tim Hall]

I once rode most of a hilly Audax (Mad Jack) without a rear brake, as I'd fitted new brake blocks the night before and dropped one of the locking screws. Somewhere along the ride a combination of events (holding the brake on and rocking the bike I guess) resulted in the pad being ejected. Standard practice for me now is to grease the locking screws each time I change the pads.