How to Set Up Cyclocross Bike Brakes

Video Transcript

"MICKEY DENONCOURT: Probably the biggest problem a lot of folks have setting up their cross bikes to perform optimally is setting up their brakes. Cross bikes use cantilever brakes, you know, center-pull cantilever brakes, which used to be the standard on mountain bikes for a long time, and mountain bikes have moved away from them. But they--understanding how they work can be a bit of a challenge. There's two basic styles that you see. This lower-profile cantilever style here and then some bikes use a wider-profile cantilever where the cables sort of go down to here instead of up here. Those have, you know, a longer cable pull, so the break levers are farther away from the rim so you get more clearance. But ideally, you know, the thing to do to make sure that these things are set up right, is you want the front of the brake pad to touch the ground, I mean, to touch the rim before the rear of the pad. It's going to keep things from squealing and all that sort of stuff. And then the other thing that you want to do when you're setting up the brakes, the thing that's very important is what's called a straddle cable height. This little cable, you know? This is attached into your brake lever, and this is anchored here and this cable goes across. You want to set up your straddle cable height so it's high enough that your brakes feel firm and low enough that you have the optimal amount of leverage. And that can be, you know, that can be a difficult thing to balance. But ideally, you know, if you look around, there's a nice, square angle is really keep that stuff working best. So, yeah, if you get frustrated, go to a bike shop, find the oldest, grizzliest-looking guy there and he's probably going to be the one best suited to adjust your cantilever brakes."