I noticed today that my son's rear brake is damaged. Don't know how it's called, but it's only the part of the cable after the bolt that is damaged. Not sure how this happened. Should I replace it? Is it safe for him to ride his bike meanwhile?
by Particular_Web2848
16 Comments
I wouldn’t ride that, maybe only for short rides. A brake cable is really cheap and a quick fix.
Brake is fine. That cable is asking for a replacement!
That’s pretty bad. If that cable slips then the brake stop working. I would get that replaced ASAP. Just take the old cable out and get a new one for 5 bucks.
It’s not likely to detach but you should replace the cable
I would not recommend riding this as is, yes the cable if frayed AFTER the clamp bolt, but there is a slight safety margin by having a short tail after the clamp bolt just in case the cable slips a little, it’s not a total brake failure. It’s hard to tell just how much is actually getting clamped by the pictures. Those frayed bits are quit uncomfortable to stab yourself with, so thats another thing. ALso, cables are $10 -$30 installed at a decent shop, so pretty cheap insurance.
Bad? Nah It’s just a fun brake.
You should replace the cable and get those pinch-on caps that prevent fraying like that. Those hurt when you get poked or scratched. As far as the brake working as long as you don’t loosen the pinch bolt, I don’t know why the condition of the cable past it matters. I’d ride that until I got the cable replaced.
Seems to be a case of overtightened bolt.
The cable at the other end may be damaged in a similar way. Replace it.
Bike shop can replace for like $25. If you’re have a few tools and watch a youtube video, the part costs around $5.
You should see how frayed my cable ends are. They are tight and work though so whatever. For a kid I would snip the sharp parts and put another cap on the end
Remember if you do decide to replace it yourself, snip off the frayed end first. Otherwise when you pull it back through it can shred the inside of the outer cable and make threading the new cable back difficult. 👍
It’s hanging on by a thread
Does he have a front brake or coaster brake as well? He should be ok. Like said I would remove the extra frayed cable but it’s not a big deal as some make it out to be.
This isn’t especially dangerous except for the injury risk of pokes from the frayed cable (painful!).
Additionally, it’s hard to tell from your photo whether the cable is frayed under the pinch bolt? If so, it’s possible the brake will fail under hard braking: and that IS dangerous!
A new cable is roughly $5 USD and easy to replace. If you do the job yourself, be sure to use a cable crimp so that the new cable doesn’t fray like this, too!
Brake looks fine, cable has seen better days though
Since i’m sleepy…tok me a while to realize the problem…But when i did… I really did…