DAE figure out the park tool third hand trick for holding brake pads while you set toe-in?

Thomas Perry · 2026-10-19T22:55:04.647197+00:00

I was fighting a set of front brake pads on a customer's hybrid last week and getting the toe-in right was driving me up a wall. Every time I squeezed the lever the pad would rotate just a hair, and I'd have to undo the bolt and start over. After maybe the fourth try I grabbed a clean shop rag and folded it into a thin shim, then wedged it between the rear of the pad and the rim so the front edge sat about 1mm off the rim. Tightened the bolt down while the shim held the angle, pulled the rag out, and it was dead on the first shot. Took me longer to find the rag than to dial in both pads after that. I know some folks use a business card or a feeler gauge for this, but the rag worked because it compresses a little and doesn't slip. In my experience the toe-in is what squeals more than anything else, so getting it right matters. Anybody got a better method for holding that angle on the older side-pull calipers where there's barely any room to work?

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DAE figure out the park tool third hand trick for holding brake pads while you set toe-in? | Bicycle Mechanics - Free To Speak