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Currently using some old Shimano RSX calipers with one piece blocks.
They're pretty scary in the dry on steep stuff, they slow me down to a certain extent but seem to reach a certain level of power and just give up, no matter how hard I pull the lever. Swearing doesn't help.
Just bought some new wheels about 500 miles ago, Shimano RS30's and it's just got worse, despite the braking surfaces seeming to have bedded in ok.
Can you recommend any decent blocks to try or should I just bite the bullet & buy some new 105's?
Partners Tiagras are better, though the plastic qr cam failed on the front one, replaced by the dealer.
Degrease and clean everything, new cables, new pads, new brakes. In that order.
Done that, apart from the blocks.
No improvement.
Get new blocks. Softer compound ones. Can't recommend because i dunno what's out there.
The Koolstop salmon pads are good, or the dual compounds they do with black at the front of the pad and salmon at the rear.
Have you filed the pads down a little?
What levers are you using?
Ease off the caliper/frame bolt. Thoroughly clean and dry the lot. Lube moving parts with light oil. Re fit but don't overtighten. As long as your wheels are true you should be able to obtain fag paper clearances, keep re centering and testing until you have tight clearances after pulling the levers.
Just re fit with new Shimano shoe/pads, their pads are ideal for all conditions.
Another thing. When you pull the levers there shouldn't be any lag before the stirrup moves. If there is, there's your problem and your cables do need sorting. Or if they are new check your runs.
New pads. Some swear by Swisstop Greens but I've not found them to be any better than standard Shimano.
All of the above and Shimano pads are pretty much as good as it gets in stopping v's outlay.
Hi,
I have 105 on my Ghost road bike, even in the wet they work very well from the Col de Colombiere huge descents to my local 'tough wee steep' descent of the 'Tak me Doon' climb.
Agree with the poster mentioning tight clearence off the rim, gives more power.
clean your rims every month with IPA, I have found swissstop green to be excellent both dry and wet and mine are still going strong after 4000 miles.
planet x brakes offer excellent stopping power and usually come with swisstop green and are often seen for sale 2nd hand, I got my cnc'd ones for £40 with the swisstops 🙂
The Tak ma Doon is a bit of a brake tester. Well on the way down ! More of a max heart rate job on the way up.
Using Ashima things myself just now. Got them free and they are not too bad. Do miss my 8" rotors when out on the road bike !
stucol,
I find my 105s pretty good, very responsive. Mavic Aksium rims.
Just don't touch the front brakes on that top hairpin !
TBH I'd say the RSX calipers are shiite. I had a set of 'Ultegra' grade deep drop brakes on my old winter bike and they were useless.
Assuming you need 49mm std drop brakes, 105 and above will be noticeably better. I just got a pair of 2ndhand Dura Ace 7800 calipers for £60 on fleabay and if you're happy to hunt / spend some more money, you'll get [i]much[/i] better braking.
105's and blocks will be great. As above, roadie rims can get a lot of grease on there so cleaning is sometimes worth it. You usually know by the noise they make though.
Ta for the advice.
Oldgit, the levers are original 8 speed 105 sti's.
Will try another strip & clean with some Avid cartridge blocks I've just found in the spares box.
If that doesn't work I'll buy some Shimano blocks.
New pads. Some swear by Swisstop Greens but I've not found them to be any better than standard Shimano.
i found that swisstop work better in the wet than dura ace inserts and they also last a lot longer and with less/no black dust crap
Koolstop salmon, couldn't believe how much better the perform than shimano pads..... and they don't eat you rims like shimano. Lots of shimano sponsored pros use Koolstop as they don't like the shimano pads in the wet.
Grind the rims, or smear bitumen on the side walls.
Some older Shimano brake blocks used to be pants (current ones seem good though) so given yours sound old (certainly will be if original to the calipers) then try koolstop salmon's
A mate of mine uses compression resistant bmx brake cables, he swears it makes quite a difference as well as what others have mentioned.
New Ulegra blocks are noticably better than any other shimano's i've used. They seem to come on with a lot of power as they heat up, yet no grab that risks a tyre slide - ie they work well from initial contact and within a second or 2 there's bags of power and control. This summer's Alps ride over 9 or 10 cols say they're the best brakes I've ever had on a road bike.
Mine are full Ultegra, work a treat....
It's the whole package really isn't it.
Levers
Cable quality
Outers
Ferrules, plastic ones compress and absorb some of the cable pull.
Calipers.
All the parts can be worn or partly worn, incorectly guided through the frame, set at the wrong torque. Even having the levers in an unsuitable position will drastically effect things, from the point of not being able to get good leverage. Do they work any better from the drops when you're pulling on the tips of the levers?
I changed my worn out TRP pads with Ashima and I have to say there was a significant improvement. Must get round to getting the front sorted.
I've just got some 105s and I think the blocks alone are responsible for at least 50% of the improvement in braking I'm getting. Maybe get some 105 blocks instead of spending lots on the calipers, too.
Not really Oldgit, no.
It's an old Trek 1400, 1996.
I've upgraded the drivetrain, replaced the consumables and it currently stands me at about £350 including the purchase price.
Had to buy new wheels too, but that was my fault so doesn't count.
I intend to use it until I can't get 8 speed bits or 1 inch threaded headsets anymore, or the bonded ally frame gives up, whichever happens sooner!
Will keep an eye out for some 105 calipers at a decent price if none of the above works.
Might be worth just slackening off the cables a little bit. Counterintuitive but it can allow you more power, with the only downside being you have to pull more lever before you get anything. You can probably test this quickly by running (carefully!) with the caliper quick release in open position
I have the same brakes as you on my Peloton, I used neat citrus degreaser on the rims and this improved the braking loads but created a major sqeal. Queue on the road washing with ribena from the bottle. Seems to be pretty goood now. I'm still running original brake pads from '99 but have been told on here that Koolstop Salmon but I hear good revioews about the clarkes triple compunds which are about half the price
.... are rubbishone piece blocks
I use them on my commuter cos the old campag calliper won't fit the new ones for some reason, but they really are bad. also old pads go hard cos they heat up so even if they have what looks like a fair bit of wear on them they can sometimes be fit only for the bin
if you try the 'one last clean' method, make sure you clean the brake block surface as well as the rim