How much pad movement is normal?

[SuperHangOn]

The pads in the Shimano (cable) disc brake I bought can wiggle side to side 2-3mm - is this normal? The bolt is tight. When I leave a large enough gap to compensate and prevent the pad/disc from slightly rubbing, the lever has to be pulled way too much. Thoughts?

Bloody annoying... although the 2 packs on free haribos has calmed me down a tad.

[nickfrog]

On hydraulic, to adjust, I just pull the brakes hard, then release a little and then tighten the caliper in position but not sure on cable activated. It should be the same principle though. Try bikeradar if not, if you haven't done it yet.

[SuperHangOn]

Thanks have read a few guides, and even the instructions (desperate times...!). There doesn't seem a way to tighten the pads or adjusting their angle so I'm absolutely stuck.

Could it be a faulty calliper or is pad movement normal with these brakes?

[CoolC]

I have very little experience of cable disc brakes, but can you not pull the cable tighter through the lever (at the caliper end) to shorten the throw? A third hand may well be very helpful there.

[SuperHangOn]

Took the calliper off and looked closely - it seems to be a bit wonky, I'm 99% sure its a duff part.

I have a suspicion Shimano aren't what they used to be. The bits on my old clunker are all made in Japan and really nice quality, the newer stuff seems to be made in China/Malaysia and a bit crap.

Going for Avid hydraulics instead.

[CoolC]

I have Avid Elixir 3's on my Trek and they are a right royal PITA to bleed. If you have the oportunity to choose something else then I would if I were you.

These are the only disc brakes I've ever had though so can't comment on which are better for servicing.

[gazza285]

Nature of the beast. My lad's cyclocross bike has Avid BB7 disc brakes and they are a royal pain in the arse to set up. There is sideways movement in the pads, but there should be a spring to keep the pads off the disc. If you can go hydraulic, although keeping them in working order can be very frustrating as well.

[nickfrog]

SuperHangOn said:

Took the calliper off and looked closely - it seems to be a bit wonky, I'm 99% sure its a duff part.

I have a suspicion Shimano aren't what they used to be. The bits on my old clunker are all made in Japan and really nice quality, the newer stuff seems to be made in China/Malaysia and a bit crap.

Going for Avid hydraulics instead.

Shimano have been using China for a long time you know, with no adverse effect. A SLX disc set up is cheap, super reliable and ever so easy to work with / bleed, unlike some Avid stuff that I have seen.

[Maty]

I've got Shimano Hydraulics on mine. The pads do wobble around a few mm inside the caliper but doesn't seem to cause any problems. The ones on mine come with a metal carrier that goes over each pad sort of holding them in place. It's a proper PITA arse though and on more than one occasion after fitting new pads I've gone out, slammed on the brakes and the carrier has got stuck in the disc and twisted itself in knots. I've ended up doing away with the carrier on the rear and now the pads 'rattle' around all the time, it's very annoying!

[Kell]

I think mine are Avid, but I use Shimano pads.

From my own experience, the way I set them up is as follows.

Wind the barrell adjustor on the brake lever so it's about halfway between tight and loose.

Then, if you look on the inside of the caliper, you should see an allen bolt. This tightens and loosens the innermost pad. From what I can tell, this pad doesn't move when the brakes are applied. So the key to good stopping is to have this as near to the disc as possible, without it rubbing. Otherwise, when you apply the brakes, the outer pad just pushes your disc in and without anything to push against, your braking is rubbish.

You can check if it's near by standing over the brakes and pulling them on. If your disc is being pushed in, it's not tight enough.

It's adjustable through the spokes with the wheel on too - so it's not guesswork and constant wheel on, wheel off.

Then, it's a simple matter of seeing whther the outer pad oulls in enough. Loosen the bolt and pull the cable through - making sure it's nice and tight. Then loosen your barrell adjustor off again so this one doesn't rub.

I'm sure this isn't the 'correct' way to do it, but it works for me.

Edited by Kell on Thursday 3rd October 11:24

[SuperHangOn]

Cheers all! I think the piston was going in at a slight angle so getting the moving pad straight was impossible. Pretty sure that's the problem so returned it - minus the haribos If it wasn't for that, setting it up would have been a doddle. Unsure whether to go BB7 or hydraulic.