Anyone spotted any handy deals on Shimano brakes?

Best I can get together is two 2011 SLX brakes from CRC, + a £10 voucher = £110, then a set of 180mm / 160mm rotors + adaptors from Superstar for around £30, giving me a set of SLX brakes for £140.

Is there there 40 quid’s worth of difference between the 2011 and 2012 SLX brakes?

Merlin is doing the old style one with rotors & mount for £134.99 with there VIP pricing which is free to register for, iirc

Merlins are 160/160 6 bolt (but also include olives/inserts/spacer/clamp)

not massively impressed with mine.

Are the SLXs not all that great then? Reliability, power or feel problems?

TBH I’ve had Maguras for years and they’ve been fault free for a very long time. Might look into another set of Maguras…

GW, I was a bit underwhelmed too with mrs j’s slx (from when ribble were doing them cheap). Don’t know why but they now seem rather firmer at the lever than when we fitted them last november. Is it the warm weather? Or have our other brakes gone spongier in comparison? 😆

I’d buy these if I didn’t already have a set.
http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/shimano-saint-discs-pair-60

I’ve just bought a set of those CRC SLX brakes. I’ve got a set on another bike, and I can’t tell the difference between them and the XT’s that I have on an other bike…

Are the SLXs not all that great then? Reliability, power or feel problems?

Nah, no reliability issues at all, just not massively impressed with power or feel, and unfortunately they seem to feel worse the closer you run your levers to the bar. hoping replacing the pads (when I eventually wear them down) with Sintered will improve both feel and power.

No issues here, regardless of standard pads or aftermarket.

Easy to bleed, nice and firm lever feel, easy pad swap, plenty of power. Just a bit heavy perhaps compared to Formula, Avid etc.

Do the new SLX have any new features that make them a better brake than old SLX or is it just revamped looks?? I don’t think so.

Regarding reliability, I went through 3 calipers with stuck pistons before giving up on 2010 Slx brakes.

The lack of user servicability and lack of spares annoyed me no end. Now using Fromula k24s and much happier, they seem much better brakes and are fully servicable.

tomo – Yes, the new SLX do have new features, I’m sure google can explain them better than me.

At this price I’d definately recommend Formula Oros, still stupidly cheap direct from Formula. I used to have XT M775s on one bike and the Oros on the other, that didn’t last long at all, going from one to the other really brought up the weaknesses of the Shimanos, and then they got a stuck piston and needed a new caliper 🙁