Canti brakes - fork mounted rocker or steerer mounted hanger?

[foz]

When setting up front canti brakes what's your preference and why? Fork crown mounted brake rocker, or steerer mounted aheadset spacer type hanger? I have both options available, currently using the rocker but not convinced. I thought they were supposed to be better than hangers? (not sure why, might be imagining it!)

 

[mk one]

Depends on the frame fork combo really, both are fine, cant say i notice any improvements over each other.

 

[legrandefromage]

unless the hanger is made of pasta, they are usually pretty efficient, the rockers can lose some of the leverage

...and with a hanger, you can adjust the straddle cable to suit the cantilevers

 

[Tootyred]

Apparently, if you have a long headtube, having the cable on a headset hanger can increase judder in cantilevers. I can see the logic, in that you kinda forcing a degree of modulation in the cable length......

But saying that im 6'4" and have some stupidly long head tubes and can't tell any difference!

Ive also found some success in using fork mounted hangers. The origin8 ones are really stiff.

 

[Rod_Saetan]

I always understood that the shorter the length of exposed inner cable the better to reduce judder and squeal, I tend to use those Kona-esque fork mounted cable stops for that reason, unless it looks wrong.

 

[Frankenorange]

The best i have found is the original cast Kona fork mounted jobbie. It doesn't flex like the less industrial items and has a few millimeters you can remove, from where it mounts on the fork, to get the cables all working in the same plane. Some cantis have straddle mounting points much closer to the fork center line, than others, if you get my meaning. I think Dia-compe also made a chunky item a long time ago.

 

[foz]

I actually have a crown mounted hanger thingy, never tried it though as I read they can be quite flexible. Sounds like it depends on which one it is though? So that's a third option to try...

 

[sam_white]

I'd add it depends on your brake levers. Rockers work great on levers such as Diacompe SS5s or Pauls, but I've found them a bit too mushy used with servo wave levers or Diacompe levers with an internal cam.
I've a combined Tektro rocker/booster on my city bike and its the best feeling and most powerful cantilever brake I have.

 

[legrandefromage]

The old steel centre pull hangers flexed a lot, later machined aluminium ones didnt

I did suffer from judder on one bike but adjusted the pads and that sorted it

2010/11 Specialized 700c bikes with cantilevers suffered BADLY - so badly we were sent replacement forks before they could be sold

 

[Rod_Saetan]

The old steel centre pull hangers flexed a lot, later machined aluminium ones didnt

I did suffer from judder on one bike but adjusted the pads and that sorted it

2010/11 Specialized 700c bikes with cantilevers suffered BADLY - so badly we were sent replacement forks before they could be sold

IIRC we got a load of those fork mounted cable stops from SBC to fix everyone’s Tricross’ with awful brakes for free in the shop I worked in at the time.