Got formula oro's on all my bikes from XC to dh bikes.
The only time I have had an issue is when I managed to wear a hole in hose of my front brake, sadly it had been rubbing on something all the way to cwmcarn so can hardly blame the brake.
Will be buying formulas for all my future bikes and a mate will not use anything else either
HFX 9s would be a big downgrade from BB7s, surely?
If anyone would like to come for a ride around the Peaks with some BB7's I will gladly take you out. But Im not picking you up off the floor.
Avid code 5s here.
Not too expensive
445g.
Easy bleeding with the syringe kit.
Look good.
No fade on long hot descents.
Stop you like a back hander off your mum.
Edit: HFX9s are awful but I have stroker trails on all my fleet bike sand they are good, powerful, but I don't think they modulate that well compared to my code5s. Worth a look though.
If anyone would like to come for a ride around the Peaks with some BB7's I will gladly take you out. But Im not picking you up off the floor.
Having used BB7s I don't see how they would not meet your needs. Powerful, reliable, simple and aren't effected by being left unused.
Out of all the brakes I've owned Hayes 9's Magura Julie's and Hope Mono series (Mini, M4, M6Ti) the Hope have been the most reliable
Only repairs I have done is I snapped the reach adjust hex on an old mono lever... Fitted a lever rebuild kit and been fine since. only parts I've replaced regularly are master cylinder diaphragm seals when I do a bleed. And the only issue I've had is a squeal like a rotor rubbing from a crudded up M4 that was sticky pistons. the noise would disappear if I lightly applied the brake but not heavily enough so it would drag
It might have been easier to ask which brakes people don't like.
I've had Avid Elixir cr's, great but the rear caliper wore out one pad and not the other.
Changed them for Hope tech m4's, clunky, no bite, and felt spongy after one ride
Changed for formula the ones, felt ok at start of ride, by the end of the ride levers touching the bars
These are all brakes people rave about
Prior to this I had a cheap set of Hayes strokers which people seem to hate. They were powerful, never needed bleeding, easy to set up, and were kind to pads
jools182 - MemberChanged for formula the ones, felt ok at start of ride, by the end of the ride levers touching the bars
That just sounds like a bad bleed tbh- air left at the top of the system where it can get back into the pumped fluid. Did they recover between rides?
I don't understand the negativity towards Hopes. I've got several sets, some bought second hand, some bought new, only ever had one have a problem and replacement seal fixed it. They brake like no other brake I've ever felt - whether it's how you set them up or your pads, or what, I'm not sure. But I'd never go back to other manufacturers until they produce something as mindblowingly stoppy as my M4s. Having said that, I know people who've said the same about XTs or maguras - I've never had them operate anywhere near as well, but many times this is due to the apples and oranges comparisons - lightweight XC brakes won't stop you like a 4 pot DH brake, it is unfair to compare.
The big problem is I suspect many people can't set brakes up, or do so with some variability across bikes/brakes and so incorrectly attribute problems to the brake rather than themselves.
Pinkstiffee, I'm sure your riding is rad^sick but there's no reason to doubt the power of Avid BB7s, just as good as equivalent-sized Hopes/Shimano etc. They might not have the lever feel and modulation of hydros, and the pad wear adjustment is a minor faff, but power-wise they're fine.
absolutly coffeking - once set up and running properly hopes are just fine. I haven't touched any of mine for thousands of miles - well I did have to put a new set of pads in my solo this year IIRC and a set on the tandem
I've just come from a 10 day tour of Tasmania withan overloaded BOB. Hope tech m4s never missed a beat, even though I was using them pretty hard over the mountains. they got super hot.
trailers make you accelerate like crazy, then start to wag on unsealed roads. lots of fun.
Hope Tech V2's here. Been on the bike 18 months and I havent touched them other than to change pads. Prefer them to my girlfriends Shimano brakes that squeal like little piggies on the way to the butchers weather its wet or dry. Couldn't wish for more power, great feel and been told easy to maintain, but wouldn't know about that yet.
Haven't tried the XTR's but having heard good reviews I wouldn't mind a go just out of curiosity.
Another BB7 + 1. I'd probably have them on my main bike if they had better modulation, but the power is there. They may have better modulation with the proper avid levers as well, I'm just using shimano levers. The power is there 
Closest I've been to no maintenance has been Magura (two sets of Louise and one set of Marta) and Shimano, however I did not like the Shimano feel. Currently have Hope Tech V2's and they work well, but they did need attention to keep the pistons coming out evenly in the beginning.
I also had Tech M4's for a while. I just could not get the pistons to come out evenly what ever I did, and finally got rid of them. A friend had two sets (four calipers) of M4's and had the same problem on one of the four. He studied the issue quite a lot, and noticed that whatever caliper he put the pistons from the problematic one on, had the same issues. Also changing seals did not help... He figured it would be a tolerance issue, that is the pistons would not be exactly the same size (or something like that) resulting in them working a bit unevenly. Sounds pretty logical to me, but was never suggested from Hope when I was trying to find a solution for the problem (never got one).
However the feel of the brake on the V2 is the nicest I had on anything, with the Maguras as a second.
edit: I did also have BB7's with nice cables and levers back in the day. They where very fit and forget, all that was needed was manually adjusting the pads now and then, and it was very simple and fast. They did not have the feel of good hydraulics, but if reliability was the main factor then you can't really go wrong with them. I did notice the lever and cables seemed to make a big difference on how they feel, so keep that in mind if you get a pair.
And another set of Hope here. Once I got rid of the old metal pistons for the phenolic which they now all come with, they have been dependable and reliable. M4 front and rear on two bikes and M2 on another. All rebuildable both at the caliper and master cylinder though they don't seem to need it.
Running Dot 5.1 synthetic and no boiling fluid issues. Cant see any need to change them.
I definitely dont think BB7's are going to cut it with the kind of riding I do however
Unless you ride underwater, or on the moon or something, I'm not sure why this would be the case.
I'd probably have them on my main bike if they had better modulation, but the power is there. They may have better modulation with the proper avid levers as well
The Avid levers do make a difference. And as an example of the power, after a week of riding in the Alps, I was the only one in the group on BB7s (with a 203mm front disc) and was the only one who never suffered from hand cramp from braking. And I definitely braked the most, 'cos I'm a pussy
And as for 'feel', I actually think it's better with the BB7s than my previous Hopes (mono minis). You can literally feel the pads on the disc through the cable, which cannot be said for hydraulic brakes where you just get vague 'squish'.
BB7s. They Just Work.
Mono Mini's and mono 6 Ti's have been great, but my SLX's are possibly even better.
I've gotten on best with Shimano brakes myself and I have to say they come out best in the VFM stakes too (Perhaps not XTR).
I've also had good experiences with Magura, but that was a good long while ago...
Not a Hope fan myself, but also never been a long term owner, it's a purely personal thing and many people swear by them (often on the grounds of plentiful spares), Expensive though IMO.
Never owned Avid discs, although I suppose BB7s would qualify as a very reliable, servicable brake though...
How does 180F 160R - 2012 XT with the fancy "ICE Tech" gubbins sound? Seem like a fair balance of stopping efficiency, cost and weight? That would be my choice or maybe the same thing in SLX to save a few pennies.
Formula TheOneMy10s here, ridden for two years (3-4000 miles per annum) and all I've done is changed the pads and they are still as good as the day they were fitted. One finger braking, any more and you're over the bars
I've just recently bought some 2012 Avid Elixr 9 Carbons cheap from Merlin to replace my ageing Mono Minis, apart form the slightly ill conceived Tri- Align system they have been great in fact I have discovered what modulation really is.
BB7s not up to the riding you can do on a Soda? Genius.
Seriously, they address all your complaints. They're totally reliable and the lever bite point and modulation are both tunable. The only box they probably don't tick is "light".
Northwind - Memberjools182 - Member
Changed for formula the ones, felt ok at start of ride, by the end of the ride levers touching the bars
That just sounds like a bad bleed tbh- air left at the top of the system where it can get back into the pumped fluid. Did they recover between rides?
Nope, they didn't 
Ok cheers again guy's.
I wont mock the BB7's until I have tried some off road. Having tried some on a commuter (admittedly with small discs) I just didnt feel that they would scale up well to some hard off road riding on challenging terrain with the kind of modulation and feel that I expect from a decent hydraulic. But hey I havent found a decent hydaulic at the moment so what do I know LOL. And Im not saying Im some crazed demon downhiller but the terrain and conditions vary so much in the Peak that you need a decent reliable all rounder wih plenty of power. In some ways even more so the fact that I ride a long travel hardtail.
Anyway pretty sure I have decided on the Hopes or then again the Magura MT6 if feeling brave. Will happily resurect this thread with my verdict as and when I get sorted.
Ta all really appreciated
And as for 'feel', I actually think it's better with the BB7s than my previous Hopes (mono minis). You can literally feel the pads on the disc through the cable, which cannot be said for hydraulic brakes where you just get vague 'squish'.
I know what you mean, they definitely have that sort of feel to them. I only have Juicy 5s to compare them to though.
Just to beat the BB7 drum a little further, I have two sets and am speccing another for a new build. I spent a lot of time reading this link:-
http://www.twowheelblogs.com/avid-bb7-disc-brake-set-and-tuning
It works, I'm currently using the speed dial levers but have used this setup with other levers with good success.
I have nothing to add to the hydraulic side, I have one set that work fine, Tektro Auriga Comp. But they are on a road going bike(so not really taxed) and, when they degrade beyond an easy fix/pad swap, then it'll be a fourth set of BB7s.
I've got the same set of old saints on my patriot from god knows when - 2006 or something - alps, spain, canada, scotland, wales, on and on. Had an occasional sitcky piston but always recoverable with a bit of TLC. I change the fluid about every 18 months. I've had a spare set of calipers sitting in the spares box since about 2008 and I've still not needed them. I've got another set of old XTs on the other bike that have been on a lot of bikes and were second hand when I bought them. So, I've got no experience of current brakes on the market as I bought shimano some time ago.
I've also had BB7s, which aren't really up to it IME on longer descents - I replaced them after riding at fort william in about 2002 I think with hopes, which looked great and occasionally worked.Had hope M4s and M6s but will never go back to hope - unpredictable IME.
One of my riding friends shimanos do the cold weather failing thing, but mine don't. I'd go shimano everytime.
Another 1 for Hopes here......By far the easiest to servive/get parts for. No probs with power or overheating, and i live in the North Lakes where we regulary do 2.5/3000ft decents. Only changed the oil in mine once in 2 years and using the sintered pads they barley make any noise in the wet, (belive me it`s been REALLY WET here latley).
Others in our group are on Avids...they have issuse and those that are on Shimanos are awfully noisey, especially in the wet.
However, i cant compare them to Avid/Shimano on a personal level as i`ve never used them
I've gone xtr trail after much deliberation.... Light and supremely powerful, way more bite than my tech m4s...
Going to Shimanos when I get a bike.
Used Hopes since day dot, and they never let me down in use with the exception of the retaining clips folding up and spuing out the pads. The big down side was that they don't like to be left idle and the levers rattle like ****.
My sons basic Shimanos are buttery yet strong. And whilst cheaper and heavier are a much nicer brake...to me anyway.
I've just sold two bikes worth of hope e4 brakes that were faultless. I'm replacing them with tech EVO v2 brakes. Great feel, reliable, long lasting and easy to work with.
I've run Hope C2's, Shimano XTs (755 I think), Coda, and Hope XX4s in the past. I've just changed to Hope X2s with the Tech lever and they are very, very good. I went with 183mm rotors at both ends because I'm old, fat and fearful of not being able to stop.
For what it's worth my thoughts on the older brakes:
Hope C2's = fantastic but very rattle levers
Shimano XTs = Good for about 18 months then gradually lost power and started to drag even when bleed multiple times
Coda = CRAP came with a Cannondale and fell apart on a steep descent resulting in my hitting a gate very hard
Hope XC4s = good but very, very underpowered (my mistake I wanted light brakes but I wasn't light enough myself!)
No Problems with formula R1s although mega pricey.
Shimano XT. Have had no problems with except when I fiddle with them and undo bolts that release the oil 
They have served me well and have shown no signs of wear in their functionality.
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