Road bike, getting more stopping power

[The Ouzo]

My road bike does not seem to have enough stopping power.

I'm running rim brakes, have tried new brake pads, tried cleaning the braking surface on the rims but I just cant get the brakes to bite properly. 

No matter how hard I pull them with my hands on the hoods I cant get a wheel to lock, its better when I'm in the drops but there is still no "bite" when pulling.

 

Could it be the make/compound of the pads ? Cables maybe needing some TLC ? Rims to far worn ?

What else can I look at ?

 

It is a problem to me on descents as I dont have confidence that I can brake quickly should I need to, so I tend to keep the speeds low because of this.

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

which brake pads you running now? There's a mahoooosive difference between the bargain ones and say, a set of Swisstops. 

[Patchelicious]

My road bike does not seem to have enough stopping power.

I'm running rim brakes, have tried new brake pads, tried cleaning the braking surface on the rims but I just cant get the brakes to bite properly. 

No matter how hard I pull them with my hands on the hoods I cant get a wheel to lock, its better when I'm in the drops but there is still no "bite" when pulling.

 

Could it be the make/compound of the pads ? Cables maybe needing some TLC ? Rims to far worn ?

What else can I look at ?

 

It is a problem to me on descents as I dont have confidence that I can brake quickly should I need to, so I tend to keep the speeds low because of this.

What are you using to clean the braking surfaces?

[Butterbean]

Have you set the brake pads up with the correct toe?

 

Basically, the front end of the pads should make contact with the brake track first, and progressive pressure will force the back of the pad to contact.. Carbon or alu, crap or good pads, this has been the biggest difference in stopping power.

 

To do this, loosen the pad holders in the caliper arms. Then, get a credit card, business card folded in half, whatever, and place the card under the last 1/3 of the brake pad, and squeeze the brakes against the track, then tighten. This sets up the toe in of the pad. Repeat for all the pads, ensuring you don't lose any other alignment settings if they're correct.

 

Then, take some fine sandpaper, I find my wife's nail files work well, and lightly sand the pad surface. A green scouring pad over the brake track will do wonders.

 

Go and ride the bike, braking hard, but without coming to a stop, down a decent descent, a few times in succession. Rim brake pads do need a "seating" of their own.

[Mountain_Goat]

If the brake levers feel soft and you able to pull it right down without stopping properly its most likely a cable issue.

 

I had the same problem, make sure your calipers are centered and then play around with the barrel adjusters to increase tension on the cables.

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

Have you set the brake pads up with the correct toe?

 

Basically, the front end of the pads should make contact with the brake track first, and progressive pressure will force the back of the pad to contact.. Carbon or alu, crap or good pads, this has been the biggest difference in stopping power.

 

To do this, loosen the pad holders in the caliper arms. Then, get a credit card, business card folded in half, whatever, and place the card under the last 1/3 of the brake pad, and squeeze the brakes against the track, then tighten. This sets up the toe in of the pad. Repeat for all the pads, ensuring you don't lose any other alignment settings if they're correct.

 

Then, take some fine sandpaper, I find my wife's nail files work well, and lightly sand the pad surface. A green scouring pad over the brake track will do wonders.

 

Go and ride the bike, braking hard, but without coming to a stop, down a decent descent, a few times in succession. Rim brake pads do need a "seating" of their own.

YES! 100% agree with this. 

[The Ouzo]

which brake pads you running now? There's a mahoooosive difference between the bargain ones and say, a set of Swisstops. 

I actually dont recall what make they were. But the shimano pads that were on before were not much better. but that could be because they were worn.

[The Ouzo]

What are you using to clean the braking surfaces?

green part of a pot scourer and some degreaser

[The Ouzo]

Have you set the brake pads up with the correct toe?

 

Basically, the front end of the pads should make contact with the brake track first, and progressive pressure will force the back of the pad to contact.. Carbon or alu, crap or good pads, this has been the biggest difference in stopping power.

 

To do this, loosen the pad holders in the caliper arms. Then, get a credit card, business card folded in half, whatever, and place the card under the last 1/3 of the brake pad, and squeeze the brakes against the track, then tighten. This sets up the toe in of the pad. Repeat for all the pads, ensuring you don't lose any other alignment settings if they're correct.

 

Then, take some fine sandpaper, I find my wife's nail files work well, and lightly sand the pad surface. A green scouring pad over the brake track will do wonders.

 

Go and ride the bike, braking hard, but without coming to a stop, down a decent descent, a few times in succession. Rim brake pads do need a "seating" of their own.

Probably no point in setting up and running in the current pads, but thanks will try this when I pt new pads on.

The seating part might just be a very important step.

[bikebloke]

Have you set the brake pads up with the correct toe?

 

Basically, the front end of the pads should make contact with the brake track first, and progressive pressure will force the back of the pad to contact.. Carbon or alu, crap or good pads, this has been the biggest difference in stopping power.

 

To do this, loosen the pad holders in the caliper arms. Then, get a credit card, business card folded in half, whatever, and place the card under the last 1/3 of the brake pad, and squeeze the brakes against the track, then tighten. This sets up the toe in of the pad. Repeat for all the pads, ensuring you don't lose any other alignment settings if they're correct.

 

Then, take some fine sandpaper, I find my wife's nail files work well, and lightly sand the pad surface. A green scouring pad over the brake track will do wonders.

 

Go and ride the bike, braking hard, but without coming to a stop, down a decent descent, a few times in succession. Rim brake pads do need a "seating" of their own.

 

this ^^^^^^^^^^^

you should be able to lock up your back wheel with a 50% pull on the lever - your brakes arent set up right

[The Ouzo]

Thanks for the input folks.

 

I'm going to get new pads and then setup and bed in the pads as per Joss suggestion above.

[thisismyotherbike]

Thanks for the input folks.

 

I'm going to get new pads and then setup and bed in the pads as per Joss suggestion above.

 

Fit some new cables as well, they are very cheap

[Jacoo]

Ive wondered about the toe in thing. I have them set up like this (only recently got a road bike), but surely the pads eventually wear at an angle until theyre flat with the brake track again? And then if you set the toe in again the angle will just get worse and worse?

[Patchelicious]

Ive wondered about the toe in thing. I have them set up like this (only recently got a road bike), but surely the pads eventually wear at an angle until theyre flat with the brake track again? And then if you set the toe in again the angle will just get worse and worse?

Is it not more about where the force is applied first, not so much about the actual contact angle?

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

Ive wondered about the toe in thing. I have them set up like this (only recently got a road bike), but surely the pads eventually wear at an angle until theyre flat with the brake track again? And then if you set the toe in again the angle will just get worse and worse?

Not really. The toe in is minor, and the brake blocks get pulled forwards which ensures the whole pad makes contact with the rim

[Headshot]

My road bike does not seem to have enough stopping power.

I'm running rim brakes, have tried new brake pads, tried cleaning the braking surface on the rims but I just cant get the brakes to bite properly. 

No matter how hard I pull them with my hands on the hoods I cant get a wheel to lock, its better when I'm in the drops but there is still no "bite" when pulling.

 

Could it be the make/compound of the pads ? Cables maybe needing some TLC ? Rims to far worn ?

What else can I look at ?

 

It is a problem to me on descents as I dont have confidence that I can brake quickly should I need to, so I tend to keep the speeds low because of this.

My very old road bike has plenty of braking - 14 year old 105 with worn pads. What brakes and  rims do you have? Mine are cheap Mavics but have a nice machined friction surface and they lock up almost too easily. 

 

Perhaps you need to let the brakes bed in a bit?