For the road version if it makes any difference.

I can’t get the front ones to bite at all, new pads clean rotor etc.

I use wind the inner pad until it’s just touching and then back it off a fraction and then do the same for the outer pad but it’s not working for this bike!

What am I doing wrong

This is going to sound obvious, but you are using road levers with the road brakes?

Also, check for broken/corroded cable outers between the lever and caliper, and (again, obviously – sorry) smooth running inner cables.

You mean they contact OK but no power?

Suggest cables etc as above.

Thanks – yes they’re the road version. Cables look fine and move smoothly

Yes they contact but no power. With them fully on I can still force the wheel round by hand!

If you’re SURE the pads and disc are not contaminated and are bedded in….. then my money is still on the cable/routing.

I assume you have a similar back brake and this works fine? Swap the rotor and pads from the rear brake to the front and try it – if it still has no power then it’s prob not the discs/pads.

Do check for a broken outer (I had this and spent ages wondering why the rear brake in that case had no power). Also check the cable outer is firmly up against the stops at both the lever and caliper before you pull the brake on (so you are not compressing free air for the first part of the stroke) – I’ve done this before as well 😳

Show us a pic of your levers.

As mentioned, cables are important. Some outers compress more than others so your effort goes into squeezing the outer rather than the brake. With BB7s top quality cables are critical.

Epicyclo, what would you recommend cable wise?

I’m not keen on spending loads on fiddly liner style cables a la Gore, have just set my new BB7s up with shimano outers, but haven’t got rotors yet so can’t test them! 😕

I like Avid cables, but there’s other good ones.

I really like these

So is the actual flexible housing less compressible than Shimano?

Can’t say I like the idea of the stainless steel tubes, what happens if you try to shoulder the bike and bend it? Does the one on the fork leg protrude noticeably when the fork compresses (say, above the line of the seal?).

Cheers

IMO/E BB&s work great with shimano cabling, though I bet the full metal jackets are good.

EDIT **** me at £40 they ought to be! Only needed on the front anyway unless you have full length outer-routing.

I run road BB7’s on my Fargo with basic shimano cabling (full length cables though) and have had no problems at all. Plenty of bite on the original 160mm rotors and even more now i swapped to a 185mm up front. Did you fit the inline adjusters that came in the box?

My road BB7’s are OK with Shimano cables – even full length routign to the rear has worked fine (once the break was identified!!!)

Those FMJ’s would tidy up the front end nicely….. but £40?????

I’ve got road BB7’s on the >X< and they work fine with standard shimano outer I think some linear outer would give a firmer feel though.

I have Shimano outers on the bike I used in the ‘Puffer. It’s got road BB7s because I use drop bars.

The Shimano outers work ok, but there is more sponginess in them than I get from the Avid cables I use on another bike with BB7s. They are not bad cables otherwise they wouldn’t be on the bike.

Thanks for the comments. Had a look this morning and the cable is ‘Stupidly Long’ ™ and flexes when I pull on the lever.

So it looks like it’s out with the cutters when I get a free weekend

I once had a front (first gen) BB7 that would not grab/bite no matter what..
never actually got to the bottom of it. the rear one was if anything too powerful with just a 165 rotor)
messed about with set-up cantilever angles and lever pull.
checked function of caliper/lever and cables independently.
changed disc & pads
changed levers
changed to expensive cable.
poured coke over it!
still never managed to get it to lock up easily.

When you say “fully on” do you mean that the brake lever pulls all the way to the bar, or that the caliper arm is hitting its end stop? If the former, the cable may be too slack, if the latter, it may be too tight. You should adjust the cable tension adjuster to the point that the caliper arm just starts to move off the stop with the brake lever released. Also, try turning the caliper arm tension up all the way and retensioning the cable – this might help take some of the slack out of the outers.

Also bear in mind that the termination of the outers just as important as overall length. Make sure you’ve got a nice clean cut at both ends.