Got a leaking SLX caliper from the piston – I was of the opinion that Madison don't bring seals in to stock.Apart from buying a cheap LX caliper from CRC do I have any other options.

AFAIK, Shimano seals simply aren't available, you have to buy a new caliper.
I'm very happy to be prooved wrong though….

I've tried to get seals for m800 calipers before and they are nowhere to be found. My lbs said I could try sending the caliper to Madison and see if they'll repair it, but no guarantees etc.

Bit of a pisstake really as they have the seals made to assemble the brakes, so why not just get a few spares run off. I only got a couple of years out of the saint before the seal failed, which I'm not that impressed with

Not a lot to lose by stripping the caliper and checking it, I have come across a mis-seated seal before now, and(on an Avid, not Shimano) machining swarf sitting behind the seal.Worth a look before spending any money.

Shimano make more profit by selling complete calipers and don't have to tie up money and space with an inventory of spares.

Some seals are available however and some will be stock sizes

It does suck. But on the other hand, an SLX caliper is £25 and comes with a set of pads worth £14. I'm not sure if it comes with the olive which you'll also need to swap it. So not as cheap as a pair of seals would be but not the end of the world either.

If you look at the labour involved stripping a caliper to replace the seals at the prices most LBS's charge its probably more cost effective to just change the caliper, plus you'll probably find that by the time the seals are worn out the pistons are knackered too. 🙁

you don't even need a new olive to swap an slx calliper.

the change-over will take about an hour, including bleeding, drinking tea, and a quick work-shop tidy.

if you want, strip the old calliper; hey presto! spares! – bet you never use them though…

Out of curiousity, are the seals in an XT caliper the same as SLX and the new Deore these days? I'm suspecting they are since all the levers and calipers are supposed to be compatible, which generally means the same bore.

i had this problem with my xts.

Be careful with replacement. the deore i bought has a different pad shape so now i have a bike with two pad shapes. I'm not particually happy about this.