Rough Braking

George said:

I recently purchased a 1994 Bridgestone MB-5 mtn bike.
It rides nicely and I am glad I bought it.
I do have one problem, and I hope you folks can help me figure out the
cause.
The rear brakes are quite smooth, but sometimes the front brakes feel
like there's some sand or grit on the shoes. (There is none.) The bike
came with new Shimano Deore XT brake shoes, which surprised me since
the bike had few other new components.
Anyway, I hope you folks can advise me as to what I should look for
and how I might solve this problem.
Thanks.
Geroge
To reply directly to me, replace all 'z' with 'a' in email address.

The pads have probably embedded grit or little chips of aluminium from
the rims. Throw them away and replace with Kool-Stop salmon pads (or
just refills, if you have that type of brake shoe). Shimano don't make
the best brake pads in the world; some types chew up rims, others have a
laughably short lifespan in wet weather.

Zog The Undeniable said:

George said:

I recently purchased a 1994 Bridgestone MB-5 mtn bike.
It rides nicely and I am glad I bought it.
I do have one problem, and I hope you folks can help me figure out the
cause.
The rear brakes are quite smooth, but sometimes the front brakes feel
like there's some sand or grit on the shoes. (There is none.) The bike
came with new Shimano Deore XT brake shoes, which surprised me since
the bike had few other new components.
Anyway, I hope you folks can advise me as to what I should look for
and how I might solve this problem.
Thanks.
Geroge
To reply directly to me, replace all 'z' with 'a' in email address.

The pads have probably embedded grit or little chips of aluminium from
the rims. Throw them away and replace with Kool-Stop salmon pads (or
just refills, if you have that type of brake shoe). Shimano don't make
the best brake pads in the world; some types chew up rims, others have a
laughably short lifespan in wet weather.

OK. Thank you for the advice. Here's an update with some questions:
My Shimano cantilever brakes have removable shoes. So, I took one of
the front ones off and lo and behold, it has a small aluminum chip in
it.
I also bought some Kool-Stop "Linear Pull V-Type" pads from Sheldon's
shop.
(See http://www.sheldonbrown.com/harris/brakeshoes.html#refill.)
But I think these are not what I need.
My Shimano brakes do not have locking pins. They do have a small
Phillips head screw and a small lock washer. Will the refills I bought
work? Or should I return the package of pads, which I have not yet
opened, and get complete brake shoes?
Also if I need to get complete shoes, how can I determine whether
"Eagle 2" shoes will fit or whether I should get "Thinline"?
Thanks.