Braking Power

carlflinn
carlflinn Posts: 8
edited March 2011 in Road beginners
I have a Specialised Secteur 2010 which I bought at the beginning of the year which is great apart from the brakes. They have been properly adjusted by the LBS but they don't inspire me with as much confidence as my hybrid. Is it the blocks that need changing or the positon of the levers or are road bike brakes not as good?

Comments

  • R8JimBob88
    R8JimBob88 Posts: 285
    Depends what your comparing them too. In my experience the pads that come with Specialised bikes are crap. It will have little to do with the leavers of callipers
    If you do what you have always done, you will get what you always got....
  • Bar Shaker
    Bar Shaker Posts: 2,313
    Road bike brakes are no where near as good as mtb brakes.

    Swisstop pads will make a big difference but they will never have the power of a disc brake.
    Boardman Elite SLR 9.2S
    Boardman FS Pro
  • Buckled_Rims
    Buckled_Rims Posts: 1,648
    If they are the original blocks then they're crap. Kool Stop brake pads are good, but I've used fairly cheap blocks from ebay in the dry weather and they stop OK.

    You don't mention what Shimano (?) version of brakes you have. But Sora upwards are decent brakes unless you're 300lbs and go downhill at 50mph :wink:
    CAAD9
    Kona Jake the Snake
    Merlin Malt 4
  • CiB
    CiB Posts: 6,098
    Give the braking surface on the rims a good wash with warm slightly soapy water, and do the blocks whilst you're at it, and the rest of the wheel to make it look nice again. I've done this on 105 / Shimano R500 wheels and my current Ultegra / Fulcrum set up, and it's hugely effective. Brakes grip, bike stops. Give it all a good wash, make sure you rinse it properly afterwards, and then dry with paper kitchen towels. Sorted.
  • cougie
    cougie Posts: 22,512
    Your braking is only as good as your tyres - no point in locking them up - so they dont need to be as powerful as MTB brakes.
  • unixnerd
    unixnerd Posts: 2,864
    It's often good not to have overly powerful brakes on a road bike. Reduces the chances of locking up a wheel. I had an "off" a few months ago because my road bikes brakes are so much better than my tourers and I locked up, mainly due to new wheels with a superb braking surface.
    http://www.strathspey.co.uk - Quality Binoculars at a Sensible Price.
    Specialized Roubaix SL3 Expert 2012, Cannondale CAAD5,
    Marin Mount Vision (1997), Edinburgh Country tourer, 3 cats!
  • Si G
    Si G Posts: 9
    I have got the same bike and thought exactly the same! I changed the pads for these http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Mode ... elID=55815 They had some good reviews and re much better especially when the roads are wet/damp.

    Si.
  • carlflinn
    carlflinn Posts: 8
    Thanks for all your useful replies

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