Learn how to adjust BMX front brakes and it may help you improve your BMX performances. While it may sound very easy to adjust brakes, there are so many little steps for this process. If one little step is not done correctly, you may end up damaging your brakes, or worse, hurting yourself. This article will attempt to sum up the several of brakes that are in use and show you how to adjust BMX front brakes.
-
Determine your type of brakes. There are many types of front brakes in use for BMX bikes. You need to determine the type of your front brake you have before you even start gathering the right tools. The two most common front brakes are "disc brakes" and "rim brakes". It is more likely that your bike has the rim brake.
-
Disassemble your front brake first. Make sure that you relieved all the tension from the front brakes, you do not want it to get deform in anyway. Loose up the bolts that controls the spring part of the front brakes. This depends largely on the types of your brakes. Hydraulic rim break that are on some of the older higher end bicycles are much more complicated than regular rim brake.
-
Adjust the brake shoes. Brake shoes are the rubber pieces that are attached on each arms of the front brake. These will be used up overtime, so make sure you check them periodically, adjust the distance of the brake shoe to the bicycle wheel if necessary.
-
Insert and adjust cable. Insert your cable back to the barrel. Use the barrel adjuster to adjust the tension of the cable. The tension of the cable directly affects how hard and soft your brake. You do not want your tension to be too high, because under certain condition, it may give away.
-
Tighten the bolt. Make sure all the bolts that you previously taken off are tightened.
-
Rotate the wheel slowly. Make sure that your brake shoes are far enough from the wheel that it does not cause any fiction with the wheel. You want to try your brake at a slow speed for a little while before performing.
