No brake bite

Coopz

Likes Dirt
I bought my first ever drop bar roadie 6 months ago off a mates dad. It's 5 years old but was ridden maybe 4 times. Anyway it's running the older spec Shimano 105 10x2 gearing and brakes. Everything works fine except the front v-brakes. I cannot get them to really bite. The rears work well, better than the front...
Tried multiple adjustments on the brake position. Cleaned the rim (3 times), new pads, nothing. They work, but are not good enough to encourage spirited riding. Before I give up and take it to the bike mechanic can anyone recommend something I might've overlooked?

The cables and tensions all seem fine. A friend said because I weigh 100kg they won't work well but my old Avanti flat bar had v-brakes and would stop in an instant.
 

creaky

XMAS Plumper
Photo?
Have you replaced the inner and outer brake lines? Could just be corroded, or poorly routed.

Also, not sure that you have v brakes on a 105 groupset roadie, more likely a dual pivot caliper brake?
 

leitch

Feelin' a bit rrranty
Yeah can you post a picture?

If it's actually a v-brake up front (not a road caliper brake) then that could be the source of your issue as road brake levers don't pull enough cable for v-brakes - need to swap for a mini-v (TRP etc) or cantilever to work with the road levers.

If they're 105 brakes though, and not v-brakes, it's hard to tell without seeing the setup.
 

Flow-Rider

Burner
You can buy different types of brake shoes for them, some are soft and some are hard. Make you set the toe-in correctly on them.
 

ausdb

Being who he is
Like @hellmansam says dual pivots, whilst not as good as discs you should still be able to stop confidently with your hands on the hoods with those.
Kool stop inserts work well in the pad holders also the Ultegra ones.
 

PJO

in me vL comy
Like others have said, new pads should fix the stopping woes.
I have the same calipers, changed my pads from the stock Shimano to DTswiss pads and they are so much better. Got these (for Al rims):

(better prices elsewhere, just the first link I came to)
 

Haakon

Keeps on digging
Owned a roadie with those brakes for about six months and then went and bought one with proper brakes... Rim brakes I’m sure are retro chic somewhere, but I like brakes that work.

But, they can be made to work “ok”. It all has to be spot on though - getting the pads set up can be more art than science though.
 

Minlak

custom titis
105's should work fine - there is a lever you turn to open the calipers tog et the wheel out is this in the right position before the cable etc was adjusted to length? - Move rear pads to front and vice versa does the bite magically appear on the front? This will narrow down if your chasing a rim / caliper issue - nothing wrong with those brakes ( as in 105's) or even rim brakes in general
 

leitch

Feelin' a bit rrranty
Weird that you didn’t have any luck with new pads @Coopz - even the standard Shimano pads are pretty good. As above the blue Swissstop pads are excellent on aluminium and contrary to @Haakon ’s moaning you should be able to get them set up well.

When you say they don’t stop, what do you mean exactly?

In the picture they look set up well but worth checking cable tension just to eliminate it - how far does the lever travel before the pads bite? Otherwise as above, check the pads are aligned properly with the brake track (up/down and angle) to make sure they’re meeting the right part of the rim, and set them up with a little bit of toe-in so the leading edge contacts the rim first (just).

If those things don’t fix it then you might need to go to a shop so someone can see/feel what you’re experiencing.
 

creaky

XMAS Plumper
You should be able to get good braking from them, especially with new pads.

Did you replace the cable and housing? They should be very light action to pull the lever.
 

Haakon

Keeps on digging
Weird that you didn’t have any luck with new pads @Coopz - even the standard Shimano pads are pretty good. As above the blue Swissstop pads are excellent on aluminium and contrary to @Haakon ’s moaning you should be able to get them set up well.

When you say they don’t stop, what do you mean exactly?

In the picture they look set up well but worth checking cable tension just to eliminate it - how far does the lever travel before the pads bite? Otherwise as above, check the pads are aligned properly with the brake track (up/down and angle) to make sure they’re meeting the right part of the rim, and set them up with a little bit of toe-in so the leading edge contacts the rim first (just).

If those things don’t fix it then you might need to go to a shop so someone can see/feel what you’re experiencing.
Not moaning, just experience. They can be made to work, but they’ll never be good if your definition of good is hydraulic disc brakes.
 

Coopz

Likes Dirt
Weird that you didn’t have any luck with new pads @Coopz - even the standard Shimano pads are pretty good. As above the blue Swissstop pads are excellent on aluminium and contrary to @Haakon ’s moaning you should be able to get them set up well.

When you say they don’t stop, what do you mean exactly?

In the picture they look set up well but worth checking cable tension just to eliminate it - how far does the lever travel before the pads bite? Otherwise as above, check the pads are aligned properly with the brake track (up/down and angle) to make sure they’re meeting the right part of the rim, and set them up with a little bit of toe-in so the leading edge contacts the rim first (just).

If those things don’t fix it then you might need to go to a shop so someone can see/feel what you’re experiencing.
The brakes work ok, I just need to use 3 fingers on the lever to get them to engage hard. The rears I only need 1 finger on the lever and they bite well. If I have my hands on the hoods I struggle to get them engaging hard. My 2 mountain bikes both have hydraulic brakes which stop in a instant but these rim brakes are not giving me confidence. The pads are only about 2-3mm from the rim and engage/retract fine, they just don't seem to have enough force. I might replace the cable, just seems a little extreme for a barely used bike that has been stored indoors.
 

Cardy George

Piercing rural members since 1981
The brakes work ok, I just need to use 3 fingers on the lever to get them to engage hard. The rears I only need 1 finger on the lever and they bite well. If I have my hands on the hoods I struggle to get them engaging hard. My 2 mountain bikes both have hydraulic brakes which stop in a instant but these rim brakes are not giving me confidence. The pads are only about 2-3mm from the rim and engage/retract fine, they just don't seem to have enough force. I might replace the cable, just seems a little extreme for a barely used bike that has been stored indoors.
Sounds on-par for a bike that's been sitting anywhere. My roadie is horrible compared to what it was, on the rare occasion I use it. I reckon you're on the track with new cables. There's some fairly tight bends on the lever end, especially if the cables are concealed under the bar tape, that will rob power.
 

ForkinGreat

Knows his Brassica oleracea
Like others have said, new pads should fix the stopping woes.
I have the same calipers, changed my pads from the stock Shimano to DTswiss pads and they are so much better. Got these (for Al rims):

(better prices elsewhere, just the first link I came to)
I'm running the green swissstops on my roadie, and I have these when the green ones are toast.
 
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