Just picked up a new pair of breaks for my road bike and I'm going to fit them tomorrow. I'm unfamiliar with this configuration of side pull break, and don't know how to centre them. All the guides I've found seem to give examples for configurations that don't match mine. Does anyone know how to centre this kind? Thanks
by moonwalking_lurker
5 Comments
No one knows.
Don’t over think it. Get them mounted with the cable as tight as you can get it with the calipers closed on the wheel. You should have a third hand tool or second person to hold them closed. Barrel adjuster should also be to set to minimum. The cable will stretch and give you just enough clearance after a few hard pulls. Tighten the mounting bolt with the brake actuated. They should need much adjustment but the set screw will help balance the load if they tend to sit to in side or the other.
That guide is a bit confusing because it’s really showing you how to adjust single-pivot sidepull brakes. [This one](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4ay12CSF48) shows you modern calipers like you have.
But really, you just screw these things on and then you adjust them with your fingers. Like you just yank them back and forth until they are centered.
Mount them and fuck with em until they’re even
The silver part that’s on the back surface of the brake has two flats for a wrench (I think it’s 13mm). Mount the brake on the bike, eyeballing the center, and tighten the bolt. Put a wheel in then use a 13mm flat wrench to adjust to center.