Tweaks to get some oomph from a V brake?

[LittleSkink]

thanks hamster - yes that was one of my thoughts too, the levers are cheap alloy Clarks ones, the packaging says V brake levers but the pivot is closer to the cable exit compared to others I have

I did some measuring, both V arms continue (front set and rear) to bend after the brake pads are firmly against the rim - by a full 6mm. Reckon the calipers (pressed steel by the looks) simply arent up to the job, might swop a cheap alloy Tektro V caliper off another bike and see if it helps

fwiw my little girl likes the brakes soft as they are, but I think as she grows in speed and weight she will need more stopping power

 

[FluffyChicken]

Child specific levers too?
Ah yes Tektro/Clarks etc. are cheap for a reason, but kids don't have as much to stop. If you're hitting the technical stuff, just buy a nice M770/T780 or the LX M580/T??? equivalent at the time. You can find them cheap and they work really well.

 

[REKIBorter]

Not sure if it's already been mentioned. When setting up the brakes make sure the arms are parallel to each other at the bite point (the moment when the pads touch the rims). Don't mess around with changing the spacers on the brake levers to alter feel / power until you have the rest dialled in perfectly.

 

[hamster]

As a cheap tune-up the Tektro / Clarks boxed brake and cable set around £15-20 from Halfords works very well and is ideal for kids. I've sorted several pals children's bikes with them.

 

[RickTheUncivil]

Good ol' flexing or stretching. If it's the cantis themselves then yeah, replace is the only option really. It's the bit that makes me sad about kids bikes, my boy has plastic v cantis on his. Plastic. The shame.

 

[doctorstewie]

I was gonna say that: it's very possible that if they were ever replaced some genius put the wrong sort on, probably not knowing there *is* a wrong sort.

EDIT:
Ooops, sorry late to the party.

 

[Blackstar]

squeeze hard

 

[kipperthedog]

Re:

Shimano M600 LX levers. Short, adjustable cable pull, cheap(ish).