Just saw three bikes in a row with the same wrong brake pad setup

At the shop this week, I kept finding front brake pads set with the toe-in way too tight. Like, maybe 2 millimeters of gap at the back. It makes a weird rubbing sound and wears the pads down fast. I think people just crank the fixing bolt without checking the alignment first. Anyone else notice this becoming a common fix?

3 comments

3 Comments

wendy_clark2mo ago

Honestly, that setup sounds pretty minor. A tiny bit of rub isn't the end of the world for most casual riders. They probably just want the noise to stop and don't care about perfect pad life. It's not like the brakes fail, they just get a little noisy and wear faster. Most people wouldn't even notice the difference in performance. Calling it "wrong" feels a bit strong for something that still basically works.

river_wright2mo ago

But @wendy_clark, wrong is wrong even if it works, lol.

burns.brooke1mo ago

Actually @wendy_clark, I remember a few seasons back when a buddy of mine had that exact same rub and it ended up overheating his rotor on a long descent, warping it completely. So while it might work for short rides, calling it "no big deal" misses the safety issue that builds up over time.