Replace bicycle brakes

Replace ​bicycle​ brakes

For safety on the bicycle, the brake is the most important bicycle part of a bicycle. Without good brakes you can not make a good emergency stop and that can of course create a dangerous situation. Yet the brakes of a bicycle are often the most neglected part of the bicycle.

Time to change this with an article about checking, maintaining and replacing bicycle brakes.

Check the brake cable The brake cable is one of the most important parts of the brake. If the brake cable does not function properly, the signal that you want to give from the brake lever to the brake will not be transmitted

properly. So check the brake cable for kinks, cracks, broken fibers and frayed ends. It is advisable to replace both the inside and outside cables every two years, because the brake cables wear out with frequent use. The frictional resistance between the inner cable and the outer cable becomes larger as time goes by. You notice this because you can not easily squeeze the brake lever.

Note: Absolute minimum for a bicycle used even to a small extent, however, We should be ​bike gear review​ once every year because it’s good for everyone.

Adjust the brakes When adjusting the brakes, make sure that the wheel is securely in the bike and the rim is exactly in the center of the fork. The brake pad should have a distance with the rim of about two to three millimeters.

At a greater distance you can adjust this with the adjusting screw on

the brake. As a result, you tighten the inner cable and the distance between the brake block and rim becomes smaller. If, during braking, the brake pads do not touch the rim at the same time, you have to adjust the brakes so that they have the same distance on both sides of the rim, using a flat spanner or Allen key.

Maintaining and cleaning brakes For the cleaning of the brakes it is best to remove the wheel from the bike so that you can get close to the brakes. Use water and detergent for cleaning. First clean the rim edges of your bicycle wheel and the brake pads with the soapy water. This removes the dirt on the brake pads and rim. Then make the grooves in the brakes, which ensure the drainage of the rain water during a rain shower, free of dirt and the grinding of the brake pads. For this you can best use a screwdriver or something else with which you can 'scratch' the dirt. The grooves of the brake pads must be at least 1 millimeter. If this is not the case, it is advisable to purchase new brake pads. Besides that driving with worn brake pads is dangerous, it is also bad for the life of the rims of your bike.

Every so often you will also have to lubricate the brakes with oil.

Lubricate the oil on the pivot points and springs of the brakes. Of course, you must first clear the scraping points of any dirt.

Replace brake pads Replacing a brake block is a simple job. Loosen the bolt of the brake block with an Allen key and remove the brake block from the brake. It is different for each type of brake block whether you can replace the brake pads immediately or whether the brake block must first slide out of the holder. You can replace a complete brake block immediately, with brake pads that you have to place in a holder you have to change the block and fix the holder again in the brake. Make sure that the new brake pad is mounted in the correct direction of travel, this is

indicated on the brake pad by means of an arrow. Then fix the brake block with the bolt in the brake shoe. The brake pad must be at the same distance from the rim on both sides. Also make sure that the entire brake block touches the rim when braking and that they only touch the rim and not the tire.