rear v brake problem

danlightbulb

Hi all,

My rear v brake is hardly working at all. I have read alot of tech guides and have adjusted them as best I can, but they just don't seem to have any power. Its got to the point now where I can't even lock the rear up with them, and they won't hold me stationary on an incline either.

In comparison to the front brake, the lever itself feels very hard to pull. Could this be the source of my problem, and if so, whats actually happening because the rest of the setup seems fine in terms of adjustment.

The front brake is the same type and its fine, apart from approaching the end of the barrel adjuster nut which i need to pull a bit more cable through at the brake.

Bike is a declathlon rockrider 5.2, standard v brakes.

Thanks

trigger118

How old is the bike? Sounds to me like it could be a cable issue, try replacing the cable and see how it is, or even just take the inner cable out of the outer and see how it looks, any kinks/rust/dirt/fraying could be the cause.

I take it the callipers move if you just pinch them together with your fingers?

danlightbulb

Its only 4 months old. Yeah the brake arms seem fine at the wheel.

Do i grease the cable if I dont find anything wrong with it?

trigger118

A tiny bit of oil down the inner cable will help but it should work fine without it, I never bother the oil personally but I know that you technically should. As I don't do it myself I can't remember what type of oil it should be.

cooldad

Clean up the rims and give the pads a rub on a bit of wood or something. Gunk on surfaces makes a big difference.

danlightbulb

I checked the cable, it was fine, then I spotted that the tension adjusting screws on each arm were all the way in. This has solved the problem. I must have been constantly tightening them to balance the arms and they ended up too tight.