Brakes: Need Help with Reach Adjustment

[KnollyBro]

I have built up a cheapish bike using spare, Pinkbike and some Aliexpress parts for me to ride around town and for my girlfriend to ride on some easy DH trails but have run into an issue with the Aliexpress brake I bought for it. The brake works well but the reach adjustment is at its limit and the lever is still too far out from the bar for our liking. My experience with brakes like SRAM and Shimano without pad contact adjustment is that once you hit the limit of the reach adjustment, that is it as reducing the the amount of fluid in the system only reduces the amount of fluid in the reservoir. Is there a way to adjust the reach on these brakes to make the lever contact start closer to the bar? Will reducing the amount of fluid in the lever reservoir make any difference?

 

[steve_sordy]

That bolt that clamps the lever to the bar: Can the faces of the lever and the faces of the clamp be modified so that the whole lever can be tilted towards the bar? Obvious need for care, but surely possible if all else fails?

 

[KnollyBro]

That bolt that clamps the lever to the bar: Can the faces of the lever and the faces of the clamp be modified so that the whole lever can be tilted towards the bar? Obvious need for care, but surely possible if all else fails?

Haha... I love the radical approach, it is something I would do as my first option! I am still hoping that there is a way to bleed them to change the reach. Maybe use some Oatmeal in the brake fluid. Same volume but the oatmeal would compress more allowing the lever to pull on more. Possible? Difficult to get Oatmeal into the brake lines tho.

 

[RickBullotta]

Shorter bolt. Problem solved. You can probably also just cut off a couple mm and re-tap the threads. Or get a matching bolt with a hex cap head and use a wrench to adjust reach.

 

[Stihldog]

One of the guys, in my WhatsApp group, just printed a clam for his dropper. He gonna test it out today. If it works he’s gonna use stronger material and 3D print again.



Don’t know if that’s possible with your setup?

 

[KnollyBro]

Shorter bolt. Problem solved. You can probably also just cut off a couple mm and re-tap the threads. Or get a matching bolt with a hex cap head and use a wrench to adjust reach.

A shorter reach adjustment bolt? If so, I am not sure that would help.

 

[KnollyBro]

One of the guys, in my WhatsApp group, just printed a clam for his dropper. He gonna test it out today. If it works he’s gonna use stronger material and 3D print again.

View attachment 151854

Don’t know if that’s possible with your setup?

Nice! I am sure I could design and print something but I would have definite trust issues printing out of any material that I usually use (PLA or ABS). What will he be printing his dropper post out of if his design works?

 

[irie]

The bar clamp has a bolt through it that looks like you can adjust the brake alignment with the bars. IYSWIM. Perhaps you could grind this to givena bit more rotation to bring the lever closer to the bars?

 

[Stihldog]

Nice! I am sure I could design and print something but I would have definite trust issues printing out of any material that I usually use (PLA or ABS). What will he be printing his dropper post out of if his design works?

The dropper control clamp? I’m not sure yet but it’ll have to be strong. Then there’s the brake/trust issue. Now that I think of it …Magura MT7’s bar clamps are plastic.

 

[KnollyBro]

The bar clamp has a bolt through it that looks like you can adjust the brake alignment with the bars. IYSWIM. Perhaps you could grind this to givena bit more rotation to bring the lever closer to the bars?

View attachment 151856

I think this is where I will start.

 

[KnollyBro]

The dropper control clamp? I’m not sure yet but it’ll have to be strong. Then there’s the brake/trust issue. Now that I think of it …Magura MT7’s bar clamps are plastic.

Agreed but my bet is they are injection molded and made with some proprietary plastic, probably using carbon fiber.

 

[steve_sordy]

The bar clamp has a bolt through it that looks like you can adjust the brake alignment with the bars. IYSWIM. Perhaps you could grind this to givena bit more rotation to bring the lever closer to the bars?

View attachment 151856

That's what I said in post #2, but you said it better!

 

[RickBullotta]

The dropper control clamp? I’m not sure yet but it’ll have to be strong. Then there’s the brake/trust issue. Now that I think of it …Magura MT7’s bar clamps are plastic.

And the fasteners/screws are plastic. Low risk of overtorque damage. And that bleed port screw...

 

[RickBullotta]

A shorter reach adjustment bolt? If so, I am not sure that would help.

I must have been drinking when I wrote that.

 

[RustyIron]

Let all your homies know that your wife needs some brakes. Surely someone has upgraded their XT's or SRAM's and they're now just sitting on a shelf.

 

[KnollyBro]

The brakes work well now that i backed out the reach adjustment machine screw all the way out and back in again. I guess it reset something. The brakes seem adequate for rear brakes. Time will tell if the hold up to a full long run with out fading or need to be bled often.