I’ve been riding my mountain bike regularly and seriously for over a year on real mountain bike trails. I had been riding an old bike for many years prior, but just on a flat, paved trail. After a year of some hard riding my rear break was worn out. It was nearly down to the metal. In the spring around here in Northern Utah, bike shop services are booked out weeks in advance. So I decided I’d take a shot at replacing my own break pads. How hard could it be?
Not hard at all.
After watching a couple of YouTube videos related to my brand and model of breaks, I ordered some replacement pads on amazon and did them myself. It was super easy.
I had to take the break mechanism off by unscrewing two large hex bolts. Then a smaller hex bolt released the pads.
Being careful not to touch the pads with my fingers and transfer harmful skin oils and dirt to the pads, I replaced them with the new ones.
Once on I loosely put the two larger hex bolts on and lined up the mechanism with the break disc so it wasn’t rubbing and the wheel could spin freely. Once I found that spot I tightened them them down.
Done.
Here’s one of the videos I used as a reference below. This is a Tektro video. Tektro is the brand my bike currently has.