I have a Kestrel 4000, and had similar problems. For me, it was a matter of making sure the center pull was actuating each side equally before tightening the set screw that holds the cable. If one side was actuated more than the other at the time the set screw was tightened to fix the cable, then that side would rub. Also make sure your horizontal drop outs are square. I actually adjusted mine a small amount to allow additional clearance on one side the rear wheel break surface so that the wheel was centered between the pads. It's finicky to say the least.

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I wanna go fast!

Do these 'hidden' brakes really make that much difference in aero performance?

Thanks iron for the response. I'll take a look at my brakes to see how they are adjusted.

I've had the same problem, crappy to no rear braking since I got it. I've had it tuned-up and adjusted by two differant mechanics. Yesterday, I spoke to Jack (bike mechanis) at Trisports were I purchased the same bike last Feb. about this problem He told me to get the 2011 brake upgrade (about $65) and that should help. He stated that it would make it better, but not incredibly better. If anyone has any thoughts, I think there's a few people listening/reading.

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TEAMFIREFIGHTER.com
STRIVE Omni Sport.com
Get Busy Living - or - Get Busy Dying

I've heard about the same brake improvement for the QR. I think it's the same TRP brake on the Kestrel 4000. FWIW, I also installed an inline barrel adjuster to allow me to open/close the rear calipers, and dial them in. That seemed a worthwhile upgrade, especially when it comes to taking the wheel out.

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I wanna go fast!

The rear brake situation was the main reason why I did not like my Jamis. The Plasma 3 with the "normal brakes" is like day and night in comparison.

I actually have already installed this new brake, and the problem hasn't gone away. I'm beginning to think that due to it's location (down low) that road grime is causing it to gunk up more and not allow the brake to function properly. I generally clean my bike after each ride, but I'm going to pay more attention to how clean that area is (or isn't).

Quintana Roo recently made a change to the rear brake specification on the Cd 0.1. I'll characterize this change as a tangible improvement. The new TRP brake looks like this (brake lever also shown as attached image):



The previous configuration looked like this (left photo):


If you contact Quintana Roo directly on their customer service line at 800 229 0198 they can advise you on whether or not the new brake is retro-fittable onto the older frames. I believe it uses the sames mounts, but I'm a fan of former President Reagan, who said, "Trust, but verify."

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Well, heck, if you are going with that, you might as well throw a travel agent in there rather than that brake noodle. You get more pull, and modulation is pretty good as well. In addition, you remove some of the kinks in the line for a more 'direct' pull and therefore less return drag (which will affect the modulation).

Stephen J

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I believe my local reality has been violated.
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Happiness = Results / (Expectations)^2

thanks for the pics Tom. So I do have the newer rear brake installed. Granted, it may be the angle of the picture you attached, but your pads don't seem to be 'equally' spaced out from the wheel, and this is what I'm seeing with my setup as well. I'm running a carbon rear wheel, and the brake pad on the non-drive side is much closer to the wheel than the drive side pad. My guess is that I may just have to keep the spacing of the pads to the wheel larger to start with and live with the fact that I may not get much use out of my rear brakes.

Thank goodness the front brake works great!!

SJ - is that something my lbs can change or is it a brake manufacture fix only?

That is something that you can do yourself. The only thing that might be an issue is that they are only available in silver and black. Other than that, you will have to go to custom anodozing. If you google 'travel agent' and v-brake, I think that they should pop right up. If you are interested in buying one, I have a couple for sale for $10 shipped (each). I purchased them for my bike, but they wound up not fitting into the space that I had to work with (custom titanflex).

Stephen J

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I believe my local reality has been violated.
____________________________________________
Happiness = Results / (Expectations)^2

the problem is not QR, the problem is the TRP brake, which is sorta kinda side-pull, and the cable can interfere with the crank.

the cd0.1 somewhat civilizes this brake by allowing you to get rid of a mounting plate - the cd0.1 has frame bosses to which the brake mounts. still, you have that cable housing jutting out to the side, and that's why center pull brakes are a design i favor, and when we built our own custom rear brake back in the 90s for our redstone, center pull was what we built.

i note the cd0.1's new routing, and i haven't seen it in action, but if it works well then so much the better.

there is no problem with the rear braking power of this brake. the rear brake will only give you about 10 percent of your overall braking power, and if you can lock the rear wheel by depressing the brake lever then you've got as much or more power than you'll ever need.

now, that behind-the-fork front TRP brake, if you want to talk about its braking power, that's another issue. but the rear brake does not have a braking power issue, rather it has a crank clearance issue. it's not unmanageable, rather it just takes a good mechanic. i've mounted a few of these, and, while it's a bit of a headache (and i've written about it), it's not a deal breaker.

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

Well put Slowman. I really am fine with the amount of brake force the current set up provides. As a long time motorcycle rider, I understand the importance of balance between the front and rear braking. And I'm more than okay with losing even a bit more braking force if it means no more brake pads rubbing against my wheels while I'm racing.

My rubbing got so bad on my last long training ride, that I started to smell a burning smell!! (that and I was riding harder and not going faster - which could be something related to the rider)

Are there other brake manufacturers that make a rear brake that would work with my QR besides TRP?

Just as an aside to my last post, if a travel agent works, it allows you to have your pads further away from your brake track, thus eliminating the rubbing issue.

Stephen J

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I believe my local reality has been violated.
____________________________________________
Happiness = Results / (Expectations)^2

You're right- the brakes in that photo weren't centered when the photo was shot. Deadlines.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Hi - I work for TRP Brakes and can say that by and large the problem is one of set up, not the brakes. The short answer is that you probably need to center the brake arms via the two adjustment screws (one on each arm) to eliminate the rubbing. You should also check the mount for any drag when the brake is mounted, but not secured to the brake cable - does it move freely? Is tension spring in the middle position? Are there kinks in the system or is it overly long (eg I'd say that Mr Demerly is running a bit too much cable housing which may slow brake response and return rate). Set up is, as mentioned, very important. We have yet to run across any issues with brake performance when they are properly set up and maintained.

You can see the set up article here: http://trpbrakes.com/...le_detail.php?aid=14 - my apologies for the spacing and layout issues...we'll have that fixed by friday. We do have a set up guide for the QR CD0.1 specifically..but that is mostly for the front brake which has two sets of adjustment screws.

If you have additional questions give me a call - 1.877.807.4162 and we can talk through it (much easier than trying to infer an issue online!)

All the best,

Matt McNamara
TRP Brakes

"I work for TRP Brakes and can say that by and large the problem is one of set up, not the brakes."

welcome to slowtwitch. i don't mean to welcome you with a disagreement, but, as to your explanation, i beg to differ. there are three problems with the TRP design, that i can identify, unless i'm just not a good enough mechanic: the stainless cable housing does present a clearance problem, the brakes are enormously hard to center; and the (tiny) twin screws for centering (2mm?) are prone to stripping.

now, don't misunderstand me, this is a first generation solution to a problem that frame builders want solved; TRP has a solution, the only solution other than custom, so, it's a welcome solution; and i'm sure future generations of this brake will be improved.

if there is a product manager alive who disagrees with me, i'll stand down in my opinion. all product managers welcome to reply, please tell me that i'm wrong and where and why i'm wrong. or, maybe there has been an improvement in the TRP design for 2011 and i just haven't seen the new and improved, in which case, i'll also stand down and applaud the improvements.

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

Hi Dan....

Your points are well taken. The 2mm (2.5?) is small, the stainless housing/noodle can be problematic, and centering the brakes does take some trial and error to get right - much like many bike parts (for example I'm terrible with headsets and disc brakes). The T9 series was developed to address the request to mount the brakes under the BB and/or behind the fork. While it is not the perfect solution, it is OEM on a large number of bikes, so it seems to achieve a balance that product managers are happy with. We continually strive to make the best brakes in the world and to support them ably.

As to the next generation - I'm sure you've already seen our new TTV* http://www.slowtwitch.com/...obike_2010_1510.html

Thanks for the welcome....all good!

Matt

(*the idea for which was not taken from the Felt DA btw...they were developed independently and simultaneously according to both TRP and Felt)

i did see the new front calipers on another bike company's designs for a 2012 bike. i think they're pretty neat, a real step forward.

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

I still dont understand why if you are going to do this:
Then why not put it in the middle of a split fork (kind of sort of like the blackwell) with the cable pull being through the steerer? This would eliminate that silly cable routing to the brake and take it out of the wind. I would do it myself, but I just dont have the time or health insurance to afford that kind of research (I stick mostly to non-structural modifications). It might even allow you to get a UCI legal fork with a deeper aspect ratio than you can otherwise.

Stephen J

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I believe my local reality has been violated.
____________________________________________
Happiness = Results / (Expectations)^2

The best my lbs could do is reposition one of the spacers to the outside of the brake housing to allow for more space between the non drive side brake pad and the rear wheel. This helped to 'center' the brakes and after my ride on Sunday, the problem of it hanging up and rubbing the rear wheel went away. I did sacrifice a little stopping power, but I can live with it.

These brakes are s--t!!! My front brake has locked up. The top of the tire is rubbing against the brake mechanism and I can't get this to release. The tire will not even turn, very frustrating.

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Barry Dmitruk
2017: Florida 70.3 (done); Mont Tremblant 70.3 & Ironman

Hello, everybody.

I'm having this very problem with the TRP rear brake on my Kestrel 4000. I love the bike, but the rear brakes drove me so nuts that I actually took off the brake pads entirely for a while and just went without brakes in the rear. I've had them re-installed, but they simply will not stay centered. Yesterday, I had the lbs center them, and today, at the end of a single ride, the mechanism was once again askew and the drive-side brake pad was rubbing. I found this forum string by searching, and I'm going to point my favorite mechanic to it. Since the last post, does anyone else have any new insight?

Thanks.

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George D.
Canton, GA

QR has sent me a new rear brake. Haven't had it mounted yet, but it suppose to be far superior to the old generation. We'll see.

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Barry Dmitruk
2017: Florida 70.3 (done); Mont Tremblant 70.3 & Ironman