Is there a difference in stopping power between a mid level V-brake, and a high end V-brake?
Are V-brakes V-brakes?
FlatFender
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Is there a difference in stopping power between a mid level V-brake, and a high end V-brake?
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Whats a GOOD pad, I bought a new used bike yesterday w/ tektro v-brakes and they suck. Just plain aweful....Koolstop?
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There's quite a bit of difference between low end v-brakes and high end v-brakes IMHO, maybe not so much with middle of the pack compared to the high end. Setup is key to getting the most out of your brakes, though, proper pad alignment to rim, quality pads, good rim surface, lever adjustment, etc. Koolstop makes good pads.
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Koolstop makes some good pads, BUT their very bottom level pad (eagle claw II or something like that) is terrible, especially in wet conditions.Bikinfoolferlife said:
I'm using some Aztec pads that I like a lot.
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avid single digit 7 or single digit ti--no difference. single digit 5 maybe not as good.
definitely the avids are better than the tektro or any shimano offering, at least back in the day.
been a few years since i actually purchased a v brake, so things may have changed.
definitely the avids are better than the tektro or any shimano offering, at least back in the day.
been a few years since i actually purchased a v brake, so things may have changed.
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New/used? I get good performance out of my Tektros, Shimano DX, and Avids. V-brakes are all about set-up, just like everything else. I take sandpaper to all my new pads. Once all the shiney is gone, they are good to install. You want them to hit the rim parellel to the rim height wise and have the front hit the rim with the back about 1mm away. Braking forces will twist the brakes and put the whole pad in contact with the rim.
I've seen some lower end brakes made of plastic. Not good. I agree that once you get into the Avid SDs, its hard to justify the difference other than weight. Dont forget decent levers (agian mid level and up are pretty much the same) to round out a great stopping package.
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I had a real problem with my old cannondale hardtail's front brake. It seemed there was nothing I could do to get rid of the squealing. I tried everything...toe-in, reverse toe-in, new pads, steel wool on the rims, brake booster, etc. I had a shop look at it even, but nothing helped. The shop thought it was the wheel since they couldn't stop the squeal. I even tried upgrading to an XT brake from an LX. Anyway, finally I replaced the brake with an Avid SD7 and that fixed all of my issues. :madman: YMMV...
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I swung by the LBS this morning and bought some "Avid Rim Wrangler 2" brake pads.
WOW
Made all the difference in the world. They did say that these pads tend to wear a bit faster than most, but thats OK with me as long as I can stop well
WOW
Made all the difference in the world. They did say that these pads tend to wear a bit faster than most, but thats OK with me as long as I can stop well
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I think Swisstop pads are the best.
XT V-brakes are a shame! Mine worked for two months. Once they got dirty they stopped working at all: The springs didn't have any tension any more - so I put them into the strongest possible position which made it impossible to adjust the pads correctly. Booh!
Since I had a race coming up I mounted some very old and heavy Deores without the crappy parallelogram system. I used the XT cartridge thingies and this worked best.
Now I am a huge fan of the 2006 Deore LX V-brakes without parallelogram. They have a new pad compound that doesn't squeal so much and they're lighter than the XTRs and waayy cheaper.
So I noticed a difference between mid-level and high-level. Mid-level worked much longer.
That's my two shimano cents.
XT V-brakes are a shame! Mine worked for two months. Once they got dirty they stopped working at all: The springs didn't have any tension any more - so I put them into the strongest possible position which made it impossible to adjust the pads correctly. Booh!
Since I had a race coming up I mounted some very old and heavy Deores without the crappy parallelogram system. I used the XT cartridge thingies and this worked best.
Now I am a huge fan of the 2006 Deore LX V-brakes without parallelogram. They have a new pad compound that doesn't squeal so much and they're lighter than the XTRs and waayy cheaper.
So I noticed a difference between mid-level and high-level. Mid-level worked much longer.
That's my two shimano cents.
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I'll say that as far as Avid's SD-7 and Ti and all the other v-brakes they have with the same "length" are concerned they're the same thing. You're paying for marketing and/or weigh savings.
The "better" brakes i've found are with Shimano's linkage XT and XTR offerings which have more stopping power ..... and noise. Oh lots and lots of noise. :madmax:
I did my research and gave the Vuelta / Miranda brakes a try. Same thing, more or less, as what Avid has, only longer arms. Longer arms mean more leverage and more potential for stopping power. Just make sure you buy boosters or you'll be bending the crap out of everything. :lol: No noise either.
The "better" brakes i've found are with Shimano's linkage XT and XTR offerings which have more stopping power ..... and noise. Oh lots and lots of noise. :madmax:
I did my research and gave the Vuelta / Miranda brakes a try. Same thing, more or less, as what Avid has, only longer arms. Longer arms mean more leverage and more potential for stopping power. Just make sure you buy boosters or you'll be bending the crap out of everything. :lol: No noise either.
I have so far (on several bikes, including my wife's) used Dia-compe, Tektro, Deore, LX, Avid SD 3's, SD 7's and Arch Rivals (and cantilvers and discbrakes as well). Imo there's a big difference between low and high end V's. The higher end V's are made from a different material and are noticably stiffer, they also use better springs. In my experience they offer better modulation, more brake power and are easier to set up. With Avid Ti's you get Ti hardware (the only difference with the SD7's as far as I know) the Arch rivals offer a parrallel push system that actually works (and looks good) 
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I have the v-brakes on the Red Rocket and Formula K24s (160 f+r) on The Bastard. I used to use BB7s but they were too heavy for my liking and I didn't like the modulation (makes puking motion).reklar said:
The Vuelta / Miranda v-brakes, with the right set-up, are the closest thing i've found to discs. Shimano's linkage stuff comes second with Avid's a pale third. I liked my ancient STX-RC canti/v-brake combo arms better than any of the Avid's i've tried.
Just MHO and IMAE. Everyone will have a different thing to say with this. (shrug)
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