I’ve decided to give some Shimano brakes a try, I have Forumla R1’s at the moment but I cant reach the levers ! (no, I’m not going to post pics of my stubby fingers)

The R1s have great power and modulation, I want a replacement that has that feel, would the XT fit the bill… is the XTR worth that much more ? (I’m not worried about paying more for the XTR… but is it value ?)
I’d hope to set them both up with the Ice tec rotors.

thanks for opinions.

I don’t think XTR is worth it over XT as I’ve just bought a set of XT’s

Try here for brakes http://www.rosebikes.co.uk/

Latest xtr are very nice, treated myself for my birthday. If you are concerned about value you should be buying slx !

If money is not a problem then XTR is the boy, you’ll feel better but brake no different?

I couldn’t get hold of XT or SLX when I went to buy new brakes, so I got the Deores. They’re fab – better than last year’s SLX, which I have on a different bike. I’m sure they must weigh more or something, or everyone would be buying those instead. They still have reach adjust, but you need an Allen key for the one time you adjust them. 😀

I have XTR one one bike and XT on another, both with ice rotors 180 front 160 rear. to be honest in use they are as good as identical. the difference is in the finish, XT are a two piece caliper not one piece, and they are generally a tiny bit bigger and not as nicely finished. This mattered to me on my full XTR bike as I am a ponce about it, not so the Hummer so I used XTs and I am happy I did.

conclusion – if you are OCD about it and want them to look as swanky as they work – XTR.

i went XTR as the drivetrain was full xtr and i’ve OCD…

from reports, the XT are equally as powerful but not quite aslight or well finished

t_l_r – in a nutshell.
the ‘not quite as light’ is when new – after afew months use it becomes pretty much imperceptible

SLX 😉

Ive run both for sometime now. I can honestly say that braking performance feels identical on my AM bike and they weight difference feels negligible however the XTRs are much more bling and the leaver is a fa nicer finish and feel. XTs are a bit less bling and the leaver looks cheap but it works and thats what counts. So its down to if you want looks and performance or just performance.

Is it correct that there is only 30g between the XT and XTR

I think its XT for me.

Cheers thanks for help.

the ‘not quite as light’ is when new – after afew months use it becomes pretty much imperceptible

😕 Do the XTRs get heavier over time, or the XTs lighter?

I’ve got the XTRs and they’re awsome, would get XTs if I wasn’t bothered about the weight – stick ti caliper bolts in and some alu lever bolts and the weight difference will be even closer!

njee20 – I am referring to brake action as opposed to physical weight……..

I have M965 XTR on the SS and M666 SLX on the geared bike.
Ive hardly used the SLX brakes but they are still significantly less refined that 8-9 year old XTR. My old XTR are light and with loads of modulation and sufficient power for my 85+Kg. However, they probably suffer more from pump-up than more recent models as I think heat dissipation is where a lot of R&D has gone as well as pad travel.