I only wish whoever edited this video didn't think that that awful, annoying music was needed. When are video editors ever going to learn that simple fact?
Thank you, Michael. This was the first video on the subject that explained to me in a theoretical way how the brake system works. Because I am one of those people who needs to understand why he is doing what he is doing, that made it much more effective than the others I had looked at first. The proof was in the pudding, because I was actually able to properly adjust the brakes on my son's bike and not resort to the experts at the local bike shop - which would have been the normal course of action. Next I'll be hunting for a video from you on the subject of gears!
Thank you so much! After lots of faffing I found your video and have now fixed the brakes on my daughters bike. She’s super happy about it and so am I!
Thank you Micheal. Its Xmas Eve and you saved me from having to present a Xmas present to my 8 year old that was unrideable. Lovely clear video. You have much more patience that I do! Thank you again and Happy Christmas!
My v-brakes were badly stuck. MY effort was all wasted. Thanks for the video. Really helped me diagnose and understand the problem. I although ended up filing them to make space and reduce braking power for speed but I could've solved the issue with the help of video. Thanks
Many, many thanks for posting this video. My V-brakes are rubbing & I searched in youtube for ages & ages. I don't know, I must be a dinosaur or something. It's all hydraulic brakes now-a-days and then I stumbled across your video. Very well presented, concise & informative. You showed me exactly what to do. Excellent!!
Great video: I had a problem adjusting my brakes. I bought new pads and now there going to work like new and greased the brake pad levers.The grease was dryed out.
Brilliant as some of the other YT vids on V-brake adjustment are, Michael's gave me the light bulb moment when he was tightening the locking nut : you have to squeeze the brake lever while adjusting the cable length going through the nut. 1 hour to adjust a brake (not very well at all) has been reduced to about 3 minutes. Great stuff.
This is a great instructional video. Very easy to follow and understand. A few close-ups in the first half would have been effective but great job. Thank you!
thanks 4 the video. what about the case when the arms work fine when u pull the lever but tilt (and don't recover) when u push in on one side? the other side recovers (pulls back from the rim) but the first side doesn't. i tried micro-adjustment screws but it didn't help.
Excellent video. This was my first time ( I'm 52 ) adjusting my brakes. After watching this video it took me less than 5 minutes. My cables had stretched and everything is still new on bike. Only rode it a couple of times so it had been sitting awhile. You were very clear, concise and knew what you were talking about!! Thank you very much!! Felt very good doing this myself!!
The silver /chrome part on the brake grip is the Barrel. The part that you thread the cable through is the Housing. Had to mention this incase people start referencing them as Thing-a-ma-jig.
You are a godsend, seriously! Thank you so much for this video so clearly explained. Much appreciated! I didn't know the name for that part of the brake block 'Conical washers'.
can you make a video on troubleshooting for some reason, the spring adjustments aren't working, and one of my break pads rubs against the rim no matter whether the adjustment screw is out or turned in all the way
Very well explained and not rushed. One of the best 'how to' videos I have ever seen and I've finally resolved a persistent brake problem on my wife's bike. Thanks Mike.
thank you very much. I was deciding on an expensive bike with disc brakes or a cheaper bike with v-brakes. I'm going with the cheaper bike. Very clear instructions and great for a person with no knowledge of bike brakes!!!
What a great instructional video. Clear, straightforward, calm. Imagine if Mr Rogers had an episode where he showed kids how to adjust V-brakes. This is it.
Good video. My problem is when I replace the brake pad, it twists as I snug up the bolt. There are other brake pad designs on older bikes where this is worse problem, you need three hands. I'm aware of the "third hand" device but mine doesn't fit the cantilever type brakes shown in this video
This doesn't seem likely to me. The adjustment screws come in many shapes and sizes, and can be found in different positions on the caliper arms. However, if by chance these particular brakes actually have no adjustment screws, I'd suggest giving the spring that needs more tension a slight bend and good old fashioned trial and error. But having no screws at all strikes me as odd...
So well explained thank you ! I assume the angle of the arms affects the brake performance so once the arms are past 90 degrees it's best to replace the brake blocks ? thank you .
I walked through my apartment building, saw almost 20 cycles. Did the same in a decathlon store. Tested the breaks. V breaks are very annoying. One of them won't leave the tire. It means there is a certain constant breaking. If you adjust the sync gets disturb very soon. I don't like this design. Old style claw design assured that the break rubber moved away from rim. I will get my cycle old style breaks.
Arghh my rear brake is driving me nuts. When I have the brakes working nice on the back the lever is hitting the grip. Back to tighten main cable and its binding again..been at it for two hours and only the left side was moving so did the adjustment and got them both moving but with a few brake pulls only the left side moves again. Any ideas what I’m doing wrong
in another video it was said that after replacing the pads the 2 sides of the V brake need adjustment like the one you did yourself by screwing/unscrewing the screw that holds the metal παρτ (2:02-2:54) Why thiw is neccessary? isn't it adjested before changing the pads or gets unadjasted while relising the brake string holder?
can someone help... i changed my rims and they are double walled rims... when i brake they eat up the brake shoes.. in like a few seconds.. can someone help..
Outstanding video. You have a very easy to understand way of explaining things. My problem was with one side of the brakes moving and the other not. It continually rubbed on the wheel. Your explanation of how to adjust that spring tension was clear and very helpful. Well done and thanks!
I've read a lot of brake pad reviews mentioning they should be adjusted with toe-in. You mention the pads should meet the rim flat and the conical washers allow the movement for this. Do you not recommend toe-in?
I thought he could have been more explicit in so far as "what" direction to turn the adjusting screw (cw or ccw) that has the immediate effect of pulling the caliper action to match the opposing side. "That's better" only made things more muddled in my mind.
I asked one of our workshop guys and this is what he said: There are a few variables that can cause flat pads to squeal - softer compound pads (more vibration), aged pads where the rubber compound has hardened to be like plastic which causes slipping, or particular rim surfaces such as painted or chromed rims. If you’re finding that’s the case with your bike, I do recommend toeing the pads inwards (at the front of the pad), as the force of the turning wheel as it pushes against the pad will cause the pad to pull in and make better contact. Toeing the pads outwards as you have could reduce braking capacity due to a reduction in surface contact.
If a v brake adjustment/alignment screw isn't achieving anything, it could be that the spring that gives the brake its tension, has potentially lost some structural integrity, and is not just flexing instead of transferring its energy and position in relation to the adjustment screw. I'd suggest taking it to a local bike shop to have it professionally assessed, it may be an easy fix, or could be a part replacement. Either way, a brake is a crucial safety item and needs to be handled appropriately.
Thanks for this! I keep trying to look up what's wrong with my v-brakes, and they're apparently missing the springs. No wonder they're loose and not braking properly!
in my bicycle the breaks are not engaging, when i push the lever, the pads don't move and the cable slips out from the adjustment barrel, any thing you can suggest for this? thanks for your help.
Very instructive, thank you! I'm curious about one little detail: I"m in the USA, and I'm used to having the right hand brake connected the rear brake. It looks like you're using the right hand brake in conjunction with the front brake. Is that an Aussie thing? Or am I just looking at things backwards :)?
Good question! I've never actually looked at that before but generally speaking, yes we use the right-hand lever for the front and left-hand lever for the back. So it's different in the US then?
Sir, bicycle brakes had been a mystery until today. You fixed my bike in the US across an ocean. Thanks a million. P.S. Do you have a video about how to fix wobbling on a tire (spoke adjustment). If you do please let me know, if you don't it would be another gem.
Ah...Here, V-Brakes nowadays. Last time I was on a bike is 40 years ago. Different story then. Not a lot changed. Mainly the brakes, what I needed help with. Great video and well explained. thanks Guys.
Good one. I wish you had more close up video on the bike part you were talking about. Sometimes what you were doing were not visible because it was hidden behind the cycle frame.
I only wish whoever edited this video didn't think that that awful, annoying music was needed. When are video editors ever going to learn that simple fact?
Thank you, Michael. This was the first video on the subject that explained to me in a theoretical way how the brake system works. Because I am one of those people who needs to understand why he is doing what he is doing, that made it much more effective than the others I had looked at first. The proof was in the pudding, because I was actually able to properly adjust the brakes on my son's bike and not resort to the experts at the local bike shop - which would have been the normal course of action. Next I'll be hunting for a video from you on the subject of gears!
That's fantastic - well done! Really glad you enjoyed the tutorial and found it useful.
Thank you so much! After lots of faffing I found your video and have now fixed the brakes on my daughters bike. She’s super happy about it and so am I!
Glad it helped! :-))
Really clear instruction - very useful indeed. Nice unhurried delivery from Michael - Thanks from London!
Glad it was helpful!
Thank you Micheal. Its Xmas Eve and you saved me from having to present a Xmas present to my 8 year old that was unrideable. Lovely clear video. You have much more patience that I do! Thank you again and Happy Christmas!
My v-brakes were badly stuck. MY effort was all wasted. Thanks for the video. Really helped me diagnose and understand the problem. I although ended up filing them to make space and reduce braking power for speed but I could've solved the issue with the help of video. Thanks
Glad you liked the video :-)
Many, many thanks for posting this video. My V-brakes are rubbing & I searched in youtube for ages & ages. I don't know, I must be a dinosaur or something. It's all hydraulic brakes now-a-days and then I stumbled across your video. Very well presented, concise & informative. You showed me exactly what to do. Excellent!!
You're welcome!
Great video: I had a problem adjusting my brakes. I bought new pads and now there going to work like new and greased the brake pad levers.The grease was dryed out.
Super explanation! I've done this many times but feel like I learned something new in this video!
Brakes make you stop suffering Breaks. Great tuition.
Hehe thanks mate
Brilliant as some of the other YT vids on V-brake adjustment are, Michael's gave me the light bulb moment when he was tightening the locking nut : you have to squeeze the brake lever while adjusting the cable length going through the nut. 1 hour to adjust a brake (not very well at all) has been reduced to about 3 minutes. Great stuff.
This is a great instructional video. Very easy to follow and understand. A few close-ups in the first half would have been effective but great job. Thank you!
Hi Trey, thanks for the feedback and glad you found it helpful overall. We've noted your suggestion about the close-ups for future videos. :-)
Excellent explanation, this helped me a lot!
Awesome! Glad we could help :-)
Great video thanks heaps. Cute how 6m46s 6m51s was obviously mean for cutting room floor :)
Very helpful video, thanks for sharing
Why are Australian videos so complete and easy to understand. Great work I really needed this detail to understand how things work
Hi Terry,
I wish I could say it was an Aussie thing.... but I think it might just be Michael haha.
Thank you though - I'm really glad it helped :-)
Thank you. Simple & complete instructions
Thank you!
thanks 4 the video. what about the case when the arms work fine when u pull the lever but tilt (and don't recover) when u push in on one side? the other side recovers (pulls back from the rim) but the first side doesn't. i tried micro-adjustment screws but it didn't help.
Excellent video. This was my first time ( I'm 52 ) adjusting my brakes. After watching this video it took me less than 5 minutes. My cables had stretched and everything is still new on bike. Only rode it a couple of times so it had been sitting awhile. You were very clear, concise and knew what you were talking about!! Thank you very much!! Felt very good doing this myself!!
Thanks! Glad you found it useful :-)
Great video, I wish all stuff on UA-cam was this quality
Thanks very much Antonio and glad you liked it :-)
The silver /chrome part on the brake grip is the Barrel. The part that you thread the cable through is the Housing. Had to mention this incase people start referencing them as Thing-a-ma-jig.
You are a godsend, seriously! Thank you so much for this video so clearly explained. Much appreciated! I didn't know the name for that part of the brake block 'Conical washers'.
Excellent, clear and to the point. Thanks.
Nice :-) Thanks for the feedback.
can you make a video on troubleshooting
for some reason, the spring adjustments aren't working, and one of my break pads rubs against the rim no matter whether the adjustment screw is out or turned in all the way
Awesome tutorial !
Thank you!
Very helpful video.
Glad it was helpful!
Very well explained and not rushed. One of the best 'how to' videos I have ever seen and I've finally resolved a persistent brake problem on my wife's bike. Thanks Mike.
Great to hear & you're welcome :-)
Wonderful demonstration Michael , so clear and easy to follow. Great teacher.
The "That's better" after he adjusted the break just made my day and I don't know why :)
Les Steed Brake*
The Doctor of Brakes is pleased that the Patient is better, and expresses it with a simple, but soothing "ah".
Hahaha glad to make your day :-))
Oh me too! Michael is my favourite!
Very clear instruction and smooth delivery. Helped me adjust my brakes for today's ride. Nice background music!
*thank's to this i'm fixing my own brakes*
That's awesome!
Excellent - thanks!
No worries!
Really helpful thanks
No problem!
Awesome. Problem solved. Keep it up
Thanks !
thank you very much. I was deciding on an expensive bike with disc brakes or a cheaper bike with v-brakes. I'm going with the cheaper bike.
Very clear instructions and great for a person with no knowledge of bike brakes!!!
Glad I could help
That was very helpful. I was able to make the adjustments to my V-brakes I needed from your clear instructions - Thanks Michael.
No worries Derek!
Thanks for the video, im new to bike maintenance and this just fixed my girlfriends brake issue.
Great to hear!
I'll try adjusting my front brakes again. The brakes only work on one side, & I"m messing with the brakes themselves & barrel adjuster
Heya, how'd you go with this?
@@IvanhoeCycles I did some more research online & I'll give it another go
Damn....you made this so simple.....had a headache trying to fix mine.....thanks buddy....
Glad we could help!
Fantastic video, thank you. Really useful, clear instructions and excellent filming. 👍🏻
Extremely instructive video, all the necessary adjustments explained in a simple way, thank you very much!
You're very welcome!
What a great instructional video. Clear, straightforward, calm. Imagine if Mr Rogers had an episode where he showed kids how to adjust V-brakes. This is it.
Haha thanks David! Appreciate your feedback :)
Good video. My problem is when I replace the brake pad, it twists as I snug up the bolt. There are other brake pad designs on older bikes where this is worse problem, you need three hands. I'm aware of the "third hand" device but mine doesn't fit the cantilever type brakes shown in this video
How to adjust these without tension screws? I have a model which does not have tension screws.
This doesn't seem likely to me. The adjustment screws come in many shapes and sizes, and can be found in different positions on the caliper arms. However, if by chance these particular brakes actually have no adjustment screws, I'd suggest giving the spring that needs more tension a slight bend and good old fashioned trial and error. But having no screws at all strikes me as odd...
Wished I would have watched this before I started messing with my granddaughters new bike. 🚲 Urrggg!!!
Thank you. At last a simple guide that is easy to follow and actually teaches me what to do.
I am really grateful.
Stick with my shimano mechanical disc brake
Easy to repair
So well explained thank you ! I assume the angle of the arms affects the brake performance so once the arms are past 90 degrees it's best to replace the brake blocks ? thank you .
I walked through my apartment building, saw almost 20 cycles. Did the same in a decathlon store. Tested the breaks. V breaks are very annoying. One of them won't leave the tire. It means there is a certain constant breaking. If you adjust the sync gets disturb very soon. I don't like this design. Old style claw design assured that the break rubber moved away from rim.
I will get my cycle old style breaks.
Yeah fair enough. Each to their own I guess!
When he said '' that's better " I was saying that word all that day 😁
Lol! Seems to be a favourite, that one...
Arghh my rear brake is driving me nuts. When I have the brakes working nice on the back the lever is hitting the grip. Back to tighten main cable and its binding again..been at it for two hours and only the left side was moving so did the adjustment and got them both moving but with a few brake pulls only the left side moves again. Any ideas what I’m doing wrong
in another video it was said that after replacing the pads the 2 sides of the V brake need adjustment like the one you did yourself by screwing/unscrewing the screw that holds the metal παρτ (2:02-2:54) Why thiw is neccessary? isn't it adjested before changing the pads or gets unadjasted while relising the brake string holder?
Excellent! You took your time and explained things well. Even with that crazy British accent :)
Thank you! Except we're Australian... hahaha
British accent lolololol.
Very well put together video and very informative but straight to the point. Thank you
Very nice video explaining abc of V- Brake system. Thank you for sharing.
You're welcome! Thanks for watching :-)
uhhhh so I took my back tire off without disconnecting my breaks and now they don't work. Help?
Very well explained tutorial. Only thing missing is the order that the washers go onto the brake block shaft.
Thank you brother. Nothing more and nothing less. Optimised content. Wonderful
Much appreciated!
Good
can someone help... i changed my rims and they are double walled rims... when i brake they eat up the brake shoes.. in like a few seconds.. can someone help..
Excellent video,clear and relevant.Thank you from England.
Oh g'day so my bike train is 3x8, i wanna chang it to 1x8 so how much for that will be
Thank you👍
Very clearly explained. Thank you very much !
You are welcome!
Outstanding video. You have a very easy to understand way of explaining things. My problem was with one side of the brakes moving and the other not. It continually rubbed on the wheel. Your explanation of how to adjust that spring tension was clear and very helpful. Well done and thanks!
Thanks mate, really appreciate that!
I've read a lot of brake pad reviews mentioning they should be adjusted with toe-in. You mention the pads should meet the rim flat and the conical washers allow the movement for this. Do you not recommend toe-in?
I thought he could have been more explicit in so far as "what" direction to turn the adjusting screw (cw or ccw) that has the immediate effect of pulling the caliper action to match the opposing side. "That's better" only made things more muddled in my mind.
Fair enough, thanks for your feedback
If I put my brake pads flat as you suggest they squeal horrendously. Having the rear of the pad make contact with the rim first makes them quiet.
I asked one of our workshop guys and this is what he said:
There are a few variables that can cause flat pads to squeal - softer compound pads (more vibration), aged pads where the rubber compound has hardened to be like plastic which causes slipping, or particular rim surfaces such as painted or chromed rims. If you’re finding that’s the case with your bike, I do recommend toeing the pads inwards (at the front of the pad), as the force of the turning wheel as it pushes against the pad will cause the pad to pull in and make better contact. Toeing the pads outwards as you have could reduce braking capacity due to a reduction in surface contact.
Thanks man, this was the best instruction.
Glad it helped
Please somebody tell me what do I do when there's no mount for the V brakes at all on the Forks
Incomplete. What if one side touches the wheel first??
0:51 brake cables are bass guitar strings confirmed
Super video, thankyou!
5 years later and still helping people :)
Yeyaaa! So happy that these videos still help people. We're actually about to start making some more to post.
I tried adjusting the screw but it does nothing. Can you tell me where I should look at now?
If a v brake adjustment/alignment screw isn't achieving anything, it could be that the spring that gives the brake its tension, has potentially lost some structural integrity, and is not just flexing instead of transferring its energy and position in relation to the adjustment screw. I'd suggest taking it to a local bike shop to have it professionally assessed, it may be an easy fix, or could be a part replacement. Either way, a brake is a crucial safety item and needs to be handled appropriately.
This is really helpful, simple and clear enough for a non-mechanically minded granny to follow! Thank you.
You're very welcome!
Great advice
Thanks! Glad it was helpful :)
Really well put together and the presentation was absolutely first class - thanks for a great session.
Thank you so much! My brother just gave me a bike, but the front brake isn't working well. I'll give this a try tomorrow!
Very helpful video. But I had to play at 1.25 speed.
Fair enough
Thanks for this! I keep trying to look up what's wrong with my v-brakes, and they're apparently missing the springs. No wonder they're loose and not braking properly!
in my bicycle the breaks are not engaging, when i push the lever, the pads don't move and the cable slips out from the adjustment barrel, any thing you can suggest for this? thanks for your help.
Thanks a lot, will try on my son's bicycle !!! 😊😊😊
Most welcome 😊
nice video but the music over your talking is very distracting
Noted
Thanks so much, this was very helpful! What does the small screw do at the very bottom? Shown at 7:42
Thank you Michael! I have not had a lot of experience with V bakes nd your walk through was perfect. Will look forward to more videos from you.
*I thought there's a mice inside my bike!*
Haha
Great video. Very well explained. Thank you,.
You're welcome :-)
Thank you very much. That was really helpful and allowed me to sort out an ongoing problem.
You know what name Close Up shot? Try it next time
Lol yes thanks will do
How to install v break on rear part
Very instructive, thank you! I'm curious about one little detail: I"m in the USA, and I'm used to having the right hand brake connected the rear brake. It looks like you're using the right hand brake in conjunction with the front brake. Is that an Aussie thing? Or am I just looking at things backwards :)?
Good question! I've never actually looked at that before but generally speaking, yes we use the right-hand lever for the front and left-hand lever for the back. So it's different in the US then?
Could you please do a video on changing bike stems from non foldable to foldable?
Thanks so much this was verrry helpful, I wasn’t able to reattach my vbrake, adjusting the cable had worked!! :)
That's great! Glad we could help.
Beautiful cycle a
Sir, bicycle brakes had been a mystery until today. You fixed my bike in the US across an ocean. Thanks a million. P.S. Do you have a video about how to fix wobbling on a tire (spoke adjustment). If you do please let me know, if you don't it would be another gem.
Glad to help! And no, unfortunately we don't yet. But we'll be aiming to do a bunch more tutorials this year coming.
Ah...Here, V-Brakes nowadays. Last time I was on a bike is 40 years ago. Different story then. Not a lot changed. Mainly the brakes, what I needed help with. Great video and well explained. thanks Guys.
Thank you sir!
Thank you, easy to understand and apply for a newcomer :)
My bike brakes much better now!
Fantastic! Thank you!
Perfect video for bike breaks
Thank you!
Super video. Well presented and explained. Very good and thank you!
Good one. I wish you had more close up video on the bike part you were talking about. Sometimes what you were doing were not visible because it was hidden behind the cycle frame.
Fair enough - we'll aim to improve that for next time
Well done. Many will be grateful if you make more. Thanks!