Rubbish Disk Brakes

[That Jekka Gal]

Bought an EZE N20 e-bike and the brakes are woeful.

They need constant adjustment & go from 100% effective to 10% after about 50km.

They are marked as Shimanos but given that the bike is made in China, I’m not sure they’re genuine.

When fully adjusted, they screech like hell when I apply the leaver & it looks like the cable adjustments and the calipers themselves are not holding.

In general, is it easy enough to swap everything out with something of better quality?

 

[NetMan]

Bought an EZE N20 e-bike and the brakes are woeful.

I couldn't find this online so I've no idea what spec it is.

They are marked as Shimanos but given that the bike is made in China, I’m not sure they’re genuine.

Just because they are Shimano doesn't mean people rate the model that has been fitted assuming as you said they aren't fake.

The brake levers, calipers, pads and discs should all be stamped with a model number have you tried looking for reviews of the ones that are fitted?

When fully adjusted, they screech like hel

For the squealing the pads / discs could be contaminated or misaligned just cleaning the discs and replacing the pads might sort that.

the cable adjustments and the calipers themselves are not holding

I'm not sure how common it is in different areas but theres a bike pop up surgery I see advertised on facebook from time to time that does free bike checks failing that its probably best to pop into a local bike shop for advice because this doesn't sound right.

In general, is it easy enough to swap everything out with something of better quality?

I've always maintained my own bikes and would have no issue changing or servicing the brakes on my own bike but you wouldn't have posted this question if you were confident you could do the work safely so it might be safer for you to get your local bike shop to do the work for you.


Have you considered fitting a hydraulic set instead, a cheap entry level set like these might be better than your mechanical brakes:

https://www.halfords.com/cycling/bike-parts/bike-brakes/shimano-br-mt200%2Fbl-mt200-disc-brake-set-794302.html

It would depend on the frame routing options for the pipe and whether you have seperate brake and gear levers but it does away with the constant adjustments of mechanical brakes. As you have an Ebike there might also be a motor cut out switch which is activated by your brake levers so you would need to check that as well before switching to a hydraulic set.

 

[grudas]

Take it to a bike shop and let them have a look if you’re uncomfortable with it. Or go on YouTube and check, many videos online. Theres clearly a mechanical issue.

 

[That Jekka Gal]

Thanks for the replies.

Certainly there was a mechanical issue & it had nothing to do with my adjustments coming undone.

Both sets of brake pads were down to the metal. Sounds like an obvious thing to have checked but since I’d only done 300km of city riding, it was the last thing on my mind.

As suggested, will check what serial nos etc are stamped on the individual parts of the brake system and look at the viability of fitting an alternative.

 

[NetMan]

If my pads had only lasted 300km I'd have needed more than 10 sets a year when I was commuting lol.

Something wrong there for sure, I doubt they were shimano pads.