Bicycle Tutor

Hello all,
I have the same problem with my bike as trilong2009 did three years ago. The threading in which my Brake Cable Barrel Adjuster Screw (for the rear brake) is apparently somewhat damaged or stripped -- even though I could see most of the threading -- because I am unable to turn the cable barrel adjuster tight and that in turn is not allowing me to adjust the cable. This first happened last year when the bike was new and hardly used, and so, I am a little skeptical that it was because of a lot of grime and grit that got caught in the there; but, nevertheless, I did try to wash it out and spray wd40 in there, but the thing still doesn't turn snug; it just keeps on turning around. It doesn't appear to be the screw because when I take the screw off, the nut screws on tight. And so, because I am cheap, and have no money, I can't afford the Helicoil and the Helicoil insertion tools that I need to insert a new thread in there. I am going to try cleaning it out again and spray vigorously with the wd40. In the meantime, if anybody out there has some insight to my problem (other than the problem of having no money to buy things) and on how I could resolve it on my own, I would greatly appreciate it. [/size][/font]

First of all NEVER use WD40 on your bike. WD40 is designed to displace water, and then form a sticky protective coating. It is NOT a solvent and it is NOT a lubricant.

Please post a picture of what you are talking about. Where is the adjuster - on the brake, on the brake lever or in line?

I have no idea if this applies in your case, but...I've seen quite a few brakes where the adjusting barrel is not inserted into a threaded hole at all, it is just a smooth hole to hold it. The nut that goes onto the barrel is used to push the adjusting barrel up or down. This is not the ideal design of course. But it functions. You use the nut as the adjuster rather than the adjuster barrel.