Hi, I’m using Hope V2’s and even with the reach adjusted to the max, I can’t fully use the brake. Does anyone know, if the reach adjust on the latest shimano xt allows it to be very close to the handlebar and still be effective?

Or any other suggestions,

Thanks guys

Really? how small are you hands? Tried custom levers?

Hand deformity, means my index finger is only half the length. So I’m looking for a lever that can be really close to the bar, but when pulled, gives full power before hitting the bars (something my V2’s suffer from)

Cheers guys

I have small hands and my shimano slx seem fine for reach. As were my Avid Juicy 5s. Both much better than the Formula K18 which doesn’t go in far enough to be truly comfortable for me.

Shimano SLX/XT with plenty of fluid in them so the bit point is almost immediate might work.

I set up my Shimano brakes to have almost zero travel (that’s just the way I like them). I do this by overfilling them. That means making sure the piston is a little way out before topping the system up. I don’t know if it’s possible to do this with your Hope brakes. It might be worth trying it before you spend money on something else.

Is it only one hand that is affected? Would it help to switch the brakes over?

close to the bar, but when pulled, gives full power before hitting the bars (something my V2’s suffer from)

The cam mechanism in Shimano brakes will struggle with this too unfortunately.

However, it is very possible to put a custom bend in old style Shimanos if you can find a good set

My son has Hayes stoker aces on his bike. He can one finger brake with them so they might work (unless your fingers are smaller than a 9 yr old)

hi got some hope x2’s for sale with hope tech levers – 2 finger levers with reach and bite point adjust – sound perfect for what your after!

xtr m988 reach and bit adjust with small two finger lever and mega powerful

2012 slx are short leavers an u can run th close

My wife has tiny hands (XS in womens gloves) and we can get Avid Elixir CR levers set up to work for her. The levers are about 1″ away from the bars when released and provided they are properly bled and set-up the brakes pull up at full power before they hit the bars.

CRs work well here too.

the shimano xt levers are nice and small, but I find the way the cam works mean that they move quite a lot before they bite and i cant get mine that close to the bar, even with the adjust screw right in. I’ve not tried overfilling them like some folks above have though.

I read in an MBR review that one of the XTR levers (trail or race but I cant remember which) worked without a cam in it, might be worth trying to get some of those?

would it be worth having a mix and match of lever to caliper..

say larger diameter piston in the lever with a smaller diameter caliper pistons..

this will obviously reduce power but will mean the lever moves less..

Old style shimano LX lever is quite adjustable – relaible and cheap

I’d say run a set of Shimanos, maybe look at the Zee or Saint as the 4 pot will mean you have less effective lever pull for a given amount of bite.

As has been said, the smart move is to trick the caliper by bleeding as per the standard instructions, then reinserting the bleed cup, putting about half a cup full of fluid in, pulling the lever once with no rotor or spacer block in. This in turn brings everything a bit closer, then mess round with the reach and bit adjusts to get it hunky dory.

Hope that helps!

🙂

Would you not be better to pop down the nearest shop and have a fiddle with some that are on display. Or speak to hope and see if they have any suggestions, they may even be able to mod what you have?

For what it’s worth, the Shimano levers I tried before ending up with the Avid CRs on my wife’s bike can’t be set anywhere near so close as the Avids. Worth a play in a shop though as the more recent ones may be different.

Hayes levers – stroker trail / ace will be just the ticket for what you want

The GF has small hands and prefers Avid Elixxer CRs, she finds my SLXs to large for her.

I say give Hope a prod (explain the situation)… may just be a case you need longer reach/bite-point adjustment screws… or may require custom levers. At least you’ll hear from “the horse’s mouth” what options you have.

Get your pads closer to your disk. Remove wheel, pump a couple of time, put wheel back and you’ll have an almost immediate contact between the wheel and the pads

I have small hands and having tried several brakes settled on Avid Elixir’s in the end, nice shape which suits the levers being close to the bars

juan – Member
Get your pads closer to your disk. Remove wheel, pump a couple of time, put wheel back and you’ll have an almost immediate contact between the wheel and the pads

This ^^.

No need to overfill brakes!

Get a custom lever from Hope (or bend it in a vice) and set the bite point adjust so that it has the least amount of travel before it bites.

Hope do loads of custom work if you ask them nicely.