tektro mech brakes.

scooter15
scooter15 Posts: 41
in MTB workshop & tech
im at my wits end here and i need to know if its worth it to continue.

im adjusting front 180mm disc brakes. ive set the caliper, tension everything correctly, have been using park tools video as a guide. adjusting static pad, pulling slack, barrel adj fully in, caliper mount is seated in, etc etc. but no matter what i do the brake lever is like a sponge, i can pull it full so it touches handle bar. now im thinking either the wire cable is gubbed or the caliper is gubbed. i would take it to bike shop however i dont want to throw even more money at this bike. any help appreciated.

tbh the brakes have never been right. i took to a bike shop for service £50 and never felt like it was good job this was few years ago now so ive kinda lost trust there.

Comments

  • scooter15
    scooter15 Posts: 41
    thanks for that. ive ordered 2 new brake cables. the lever looks fine. just bog standard avid ones. theres a small grub screw on the side but thats all the way out.
  • scooter15
    scooter15 Posts: 41
    update: new brake cables arrived monday. i would say it has made a difference overall. i mean to really get the brake solid the pads were just about touching the disc. maybe need a speical tool to really get the wire tight so no slack rather than pliers? im going to give it a week to settle in if cant make it better off it goes to bike shop. ive found a local one and i spoke to the guy he seems on the ball.
  • steve_sordy
    steve_sordy Posts: 2,446
    Some people like the brake lever to be hard and with almost no discernible movement. Others (like me) prefer a more progressive feel, where the lever moves and the brakes are gradually applied. I can still stand the bike on its nose though!

    Are you wanting a very hard lever because you believe that is how it is supposed to be, or is it what you want because you can't live with it any other way? If you can stand the bike on its nose if you wanted to, then there is not much wrong with the brakes.
  • scooter15
    scooter15 Posts: 41
    steve_sordy said:

    Some people like the brake lever to be hard and with almost no discernible movement. Others (like me) prefer a more progressive feel, where the lever moves and the brakes are gradually applied. I can still stand the bike on its nose though!

    Are you wanting a very hard lever because you believe that is how it is supposed to be, or is it what you want because you can't live with it any other way? If you can stand the bike on its nose if you wanted to, then there is not much wrong with the brakes.

    well i mean its not a downhill bike, GT- hardtail, i just assume that when pulling brakes hard ie if to avoid a crash or whatever, the lever shouldn't really be touching the handle bar. its pretty solid now but you know, could always be better. 1st time adjusting these brakes in quite a while maybe im missing somthing in any case will drop off to bike shop as the gear indexing at the cassette isnt on point either lol , pandoras box.
  • david37
    david37 Posts: 1,313
    Firstly mechanical disc brakes are not as good generally as the hydraulic ones, but your levers shouldn't be on the bars. However, even a competent mechanic is limited by the resources.

    changing the cables is a good plan but so is replacing the cable outer and making sure the ends of the outer are straight and there is nothing to impede the cable. Cable outer is cheap and you can cut it with decent diagonal cutters. Tidy the ends up with a file if necessary.







  • steve_sordy
    steve_sordy Posts: 2,446
    scooter15 said:

    ........
    well i mean its not a downhill bike, GT- hardtail, i just assume that when pulling brakes hard ie if to avoid a crash or whatever, the lever shouldn't really be touching the handle bar. ....../blockquote>

    I agree, the lever should not pull back to the bars. There should always be a means of adjusting easily for pad wear, but if yours is fully taken up, then something else needs to be done. On a hydraulic brake, there is a knurled knob or an Allen screw that winds the lever out. Once that is fully adjusted, it's usually new brake pad time. On a mechanically operated brake, I'm assuming that the inner wire cable does not actually stretch in the same way that wire gear cables don't actually stretch. It is something else that is going on instead. On gear cables it is usually the ferrules on the outer cable settling further onto the outer. This has the effect of shortening the outer cable and making it look as though the inner wire cable has got longer ("stretched"). This can be taken out by adjusting the knurled knob at the shifter body end, sometimes at the mech end, more rarely both. For mechanical brakes I'm assuming that you have used up all the adjustment you have, in which case the bits that the inner wire cable is being braced against are worn out and need replacing.

    Oxoman was correct in that the system need some slack taking out of it (go back and re-read his post).

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