Avid elixir r’s on my daughters bike have been giving grief for too long – binding on, pistons not retracting fully/evenly etc.

Tried all of the suggestions but they are no better. Haven’t changed the pistons yet though.
Looking at the treads on here the common view is that the only way to sort avids is to buy shimano.
Looking at a set of Deore 596’s for £80 which seems like a bargain – any reason not to??

No.

Any brakes are better than Avid…

For the money the Deore 596’s are the best thing on the market.

What Tee said. Avid = when they are good they are very very good, but when they’re bad they’re horrible…

……..and it isn’t just dealing my own frustration – an angry 14 year old is not to be taken lightly!!

go for it,much better 😀

XT and Deore here. Very few issues. Didn’t like my Juicys…

Shimano levers and 14 year old girl hands might not be a great combo. We had to put a custom bend on the levers of Mrs Legends Shimano brakes, and you’ll be pleased to know she’s older than 14!

Toying with the idea myself.

Had Juicy 3’s. Didnt really get on with them, so moved over to BB7’s

Would I be right in thinking that either Deore or the XT’s would fit straight onto my existing IS mounts (sorry for the slight hijack)

Porlus – you’d need IS to post mount adaptors, but surely using BB7’s you’d already have these?

I found you could get the new 1 finger Shimano brakes very close to the bar with the reach adjuster?

I would never have another pair of Avid. Didn’t like the lever shape and they lacked power despite bleeding and new pads numerous times.

Currently on Formula, but I’d have Shimano’s again if I was buying some new brakes.

I think she will have to be content with difficult to reach brakes that work as opposed to easy to reach brakes that are always half on!!
Off to make the purchase from bike-discount.de crc don’t have the front ones in stock

The bite point on my Deore 596s seems closer to the bar than any other brake I’ve had. I like it, and it might actually suit a smaller hand.

Tried http://www.rosebikes.co.uk/ ?

I had skooted past them – couldnt get the country selector thing to go away!! Doh.

Good price, just off to purchase from them now!

martinhutch – Member
The bite point on my Deore 596s seems closer to the bar than any other brake I’ve had. I like it, and it might actually suit a smaller hand.

Bite point isn’t the problem it’s where the reach is set to, hence the previous lever bending comment.

kitebikeski – Member
I think she will have to be content with difficult to reach brakes that work as opposed to easy to reach brakes that are always half on!!
Off to make the purchase from bike-discount.de crc don’t have the front ones in stock

She won’t be if she grabs a handful of nothing when having a moment

I know not what these problems are as i run BB7’s with speed dial levers, great brakes.

Avid brakes are great, my Juicy 7’s can be tweaked so accurately that nothing else comes close.

BUT you can’t run Avid’s and be a ham-fisted DIYer. STW has lot’s of ham-fisted DIYers.. In fact a lot of LBS shy away from Avids so maybe I’m just awesome. 8)

Remove the pads, pump the pistons out so they’re exposed and clean them with a paint brush dipped or sprayed with Silicon (available from your local halfords). Push pistons back in a repeat a few times to get them going. Don’t use GT85 this is a common mistake – it bloats the rubber.

Juicy 3s are a pain…the pistons need a lot of regular, thorough cleaning to ensure that they retract properly.

I’ve a nine year old set of Hope M4s which are still in tip-top condition, the only maintenance they’ve had aside from pad changes is a a hose swap and a bleed, nothing more.

As for Shimano, I bought a single Deore M595 when I broke the lever of one of my Hopes while away on a long biking weekend. It’s bloody ace, there’s plenty of feel, the reach adjust is spot on and they seem very well made indeed. I haven’t been able to source another 595, otherwise I’d chuck a set on my hardtail with no hesitation whatsoever.

Don’t use GT85 this is a common mistake – it bloats the rubber.

In my extended reseach that’s what I have been finding – unfortunatly AFTER I had read and acted on one thread that advised using it.

I have ordered the shimanos, that gives me the time to then mess with the Avids. I will get a set of new pistons & seals to see if that works. If so I will have a spare set.

She won’t be if she grabs a handful of nothing when having a moment

True – but hopefully the reach adjustment will be sufficient – we’ll see!!

Seriously, if they aren’t perfect it’s a piece of p*ss (depending on which ones you’ve gone for) to bend them into the right place

Cheers for all that help guys!

I went the other way, back to Avid from Shimano. Much happier with the Elixir 3s tbh. If you order from rose dont expect good customer service either.

Even the cheap £15 shimano brakes advertised on here last month have been way better than my last two sets of Juicy 3’s. Easier to bleed and the pad dont require the same faff.