The following tips for the three most common braking systems in Australia don’t require fancy tools—if you’ve got a set of Allen keys, two hands and ten minutes, you’ll be able to improve your braking performance.

The golden rule of brake adjustment, regardless of what braking system you have, is to check that the wheels are sitting correctly in the dropouts. Loosen the quick release on your wheels and wiggle the wheel from side to side until you’re confident that the wheel is sitting straight. Then, firmly retighten the quick release.