I have a 2009 Triad (non SL), and I know that the rear brake sucks. However, most braking is from the front brake. I also know my routes pretty well and know when I'll need to brake. That being said, I don't really have any clue as to how to make the rear brake better.

I have to adjust the rear brake pads for my HED race wheels, and it can be a pain in the butt to do. It's almost a two-person job without a work-stand.

Sorry I'm not of more assistance, but I'd be interested if anyone does have any good pointers.

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I have no problems at all with the rear brake (2011 Blue Triad SL) but swapped brakepads with SwissStop yellow pads. I don't expect huge breaking power from a rear brake anyway but with SwissStop pads the stopping power is very acceptable for me.

Ciao!
Sam
samgyde.com

I tweeked/bent the brake tension springs so that they were not so tight. Also put some phil's greese in the metal elbow. A kevlar/teflon coated cable would also help.

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Horsecow racing

call our office and ask for Daniel or Mike. They will be happy to help you.

chance

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Chance Regina
President
AVC Enterprises

Old thread, same bike, similar question.

Does any other rear brake fit this bike? Setup isn't bad, but the arm on the brake just barely clears the crown of a 23 mm Vittoria tire on a rim with a 19mm inner. No way a 25 will clear the brake arm and the dropouts aren't adjustable.

TriRig works well...

It does look like a good option, but at that price for a hidden rear brake it's not an option. I run one on the front of my personal bike and like it a lot.

Do any of the most recent TRP post mount style brakes like the 925 have better tire clearance height-wise? No issues with width.

I don’t know. They might give a bit more clearance. Other option is to shave down pads and increase cable tension to provide more clearance.

Thanks Otis. I think that might get enough clearance that I would feel better about somebody riding it around.

We ended up machining a couple small spacers to fit within the dropout and moving the pads to their max after a used 23 mm tire had <1 mm of clearance with the brake arm. TRP said they didn't have any updated brakes that offered better clearance height-wise. The TriRig Omega SV looks like a good option, but the end user had no interest in spending that kind of money. It boggles me why Blue would bother with horizontal dropouts on a frame, but not have any way of adjusting them. We toyed with the idea of drilling into the dropout, tapping or coiling, and creating a spacer of sorts with a pan head fastener.

In my experience brake width is not the only limiter on that frameset. Even if you find a brake with wider clearance, you'll find that clearance at the seat stays is still an issue for wide tires. I replaced the TRP brake with a TriRig and still had issues.

The main issue with that frame is tire height clearance, and the easiest way to solve it is by stacking some washers between the brake and the frame, so that the brake is actually a little bit lower (and hence farther away from the top/center of the tire). You may also need longer mounting screws. I did this with my TriRig brake and clearance is now fine with Corsa Speeds mounted on a Hed Jet+ Disc (so, about 26mm actual width).

Any wider than that though, and the chainstays are the issue; even with that tire I have to be really careful about getting the wheel perfectly aligned in the horizontal dropouts or else the tire will rub the chainstay on hard accelerations or out of the saddle pedaling.

Yup, I was talking 'height' clearance the entire time. Machining some small spacers for the dropouts that still allowed the skewer to hold 100% metal seemed to do the trick. He rode it two hours last night and was pretty happy.