EE brake + Campagnolo lever = mush. Rigid housing the fix?

[tadrums]

It appears to be a set-up issue, not a bike brand issue.

[Denavelo]

I've setup EE brakes and just by looking at the pic, the housing is too short.
EE brakes are predicated on housing length for optimal performance.

[Cheers!]

What makes the ideal setup? A long loop to try to get a straight shot?

[tadrums]

The loop needn't be excessive. In your image I'd call that length of housing too short for any caliper. It is exacerbated by the EE design requiring additional length. EE install and nstructions indicate an additional 1/4" housing length. Hope this helps.

[Calnago]

An ideal setup is one where the cable has the smoothest, most friction free, line possible. Whether it's a brake, or derailleur cable, the principle is the same. Smooth lines and arcs, with no unnecessary bends and as straight an entry as possible into the stop, be it on the frame or derailleur. What I think might be going on in this situation is exactly what @tadrums and others are stating... it's simply too short here. The housing has to be long enough to allow for a full range of motion through the entire range of the caliper when it is compressed. I think it may be compressing then getting stretched and pulled, maybe even a couple millimeters from the stops, and thus it's causing the bad feel. Whenever I set the length for that particular piece of housing, regardless of brake being used, I always kind of hold it up to a fully compressed brake (held to the rim tight with your hand), and that would be the absolute shortest length necessary, and if I add some more it's for making a smoother line to the brake or a nicer looking arc, so long aas it doesn't interfere with anything.

For instance... on my EPQ I like the cable to kind of follow the line of the seat stay to the Campagnolo brake caliper for both 1) function first and 2) aesthetics. Not the best picture but I think you can sort of see it. And when the brake is fully compressed against the rim, there is no pulling. The housing just kind of moves with the brake caliper. But some setups aren't so clean, and as was said, the EE brakes may need more excess to pull, and possibly pulling it around the seat cluster of the frame a bit as well. So yes, try a bit more cable housing length there and it may be all you need to do.

[tadrums]

Amen:-)

[Cheers!]

So I'm not the original poster. I wish I had a celeste green binachi.

here is my setup...

[Calnago]

Those are good pics showing the kinds of contortions the brake housing has to make to the EE brake caliper stops. Combine that with a small frame, or a frame design where the seatstays join the seat tube very low, and it's not ideal. Can't say I'm a fan of EE brakes, and that's one reason. Now imagine a Campy or Shimano brake caliper in it's place and think about where the brake caliper stops are... way over to the non drive side of the bike, allowing for a pretty smooth line of brake housing in pretty much any situation. With the EE design... not so much. But at least in the pics above, there's enough housing that when the caliper closes up, the housing will move along with it.

[Cheers!]

for my cervelo R3SL (size 54) I posted, that is pretty much the best I can get for cable angle exit I think. I'm using Shimano BC9000 brake housing. WIth it setup like this the brake feel is still kinda mushy as well as I can feel the cable drag the EE brake's cable stop exit.

I used to run Nokons at one point and have a lot of spare tubing and beads left, I could attempt a nokon run for this section...

[Calnago]

@Cheers: Sorry, I was confusing you with the original poster, and the pics of the Bianchi. The Bianchi looks like it could be too short. Your Cervelo on the other hand, is certainly long enough, and perhaps even too long, thus creating some obnoxious bends. I suppose you could try shortening it a bit to lessen the bend but there's a fine line between too long and too short, and I think your situation is going to be one of those. But if you were saying in your post above that the cable is dragging on the calipers cable stop exit, I think shortening the cable might actually make the angle of entry even worse. What I'd do in your case is to try and get one of those cable stop pieces of Teflon tubing to insert at the brake stop on the caliper so that it can slide out the exit a bit easier. Also, are you using good quality steel brake cables that don't stretch much, if any?
So, failing all that... shortening the housing a touch, Teflon tubing at the caliper entry and exit, and ensuring that your cable is in good shape (good quality to begin with and not frayed at the brake lever at all), I'm not sure there's much else you can try. I'm not sure how flexy those brake arms are in the first place either.

[CrankAddictsRich]

I would agree with all of the other posters... that the issue stems from the brake housing being too short.

When I first swapped my ee's on, I had the same issue. the instructions say that you typically need 10-15mm more housing for the ee's than you do with traditional brakes. I guess I had enough extra on my front brake that the front worked fine, but my rear wasn't quite there. I was doing all new cables in a week or two, so I knew I;d fix it then anyway... 2 weeks later when I put the name cables in and added some housing #boom. It was all good.

[RedRacer]

Thanks for bringing my old thread back to life. My attention shifted to a different bike before I attempted to fix the mushy rear on my Bianchi but after reading all of the fresh replies in this thread my plan is to add ~15mm of housing leading into the rear caliper.

Sorry to dig up an older thread. I was wondering if the original poster resolved this. I recently setup a pair of 2016 EE brakes on my 2008 Cervelo R3 SL. I too have the exact same problem. Greay feeling front brake. Mushy rear. I'm on sram red levers. I've tried many different lengths of housings but can not get the housing to get the cable to come out of the stop/adjust ferrule of the EE brake.

[Cheers!]

hey Colnago,

No luck on a brake ferrule with the plastic nose on it. I tried a shimano one and a jagwire one i had laying around. The ferrule's external diameter is larger than the inner diameter of the inlet of the EE brakes's cable stop.



I think im going to try makkng a run with nokons.

[silvalis]

Did you try those Jagwire POP ferrules? They have an extension on the end that brings the ferrule back down to std outer diameter.

[breezerboy]

The ee brake adjuster acts like a ferrule, the outer going all the way to the bottom. if there is a draggy feel it is more likely to be a poorly finished cut end of outer than anything to do with the brake. Adding those ferrules may make things worse, but certainly won't give any improvement.

In my experience a properly set up ee brake with good cables can have an almost hydraulic brake smoothness to them, partly aided by the very light return spring. They are also plenty stiff, so mushiness could also be coming from pads set with toe in or not hitting the rim squarely. I agree that they don't have the same solid feel as Dura Ace brakes, but to me the shimano brakes feel decidedly wooden. The slightly softer feel of ee's on the stand translates to excellent modulation and feedback on the road.