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Just got a Voodoo Bakka for my seven year old and with a few tweaks it will be a decent little mtb, but the brake levers are so far away from the bar and require lots of pressure. So what hydraulic disc brakes can be run nice and close to the bars to help little hands?
Deore are fine and adjust nice and close.
I put hope x2’s on my kids bikes with the tech lever. They are so adjustable with reach and bite point it’s easy to set them up for small hands.
Hopes would be nice, but unfortunately way over budget.
Cable discs are more than adequate for a 7 year old, I use Avid BB5 and speed dial levers
I don’t think you love your kids if you put cable discs on their bike. Awful things.
Deore, hydraulic (so easy) with one-finger (small) levers with adjustable reach (so you can get them nice and close).
My lad has Avid DB1's and they are more than adequate.
The grips on the bike were way bigger than what I used myself, swapped for raceface half nelsons. Deore is looking favourite so far.
Got a set of Clarks disc brakes from Amazon recently for my daughters bike, the levers are adjustible and she seems to be getting on fine with them. Incedible value for money at £35 for the full set including rotors and brackets!!
edit with link: Here
I've yet to see the Deore M6000 in the flesh....
XT levers are nice unless you have a security head that fits the SLX screw for the bite point.... the 68x/78x callipers are identical other than decals and getting a £3 bolt and retaining clip... (when I say identical i mean identical to the point you can put a left half from XT and right half from SLX and the fit together and work perfectly.
However either way there is no need to buy a whole brake... I didn't try but don't see why you can't just fit the lever (£30 each) to some Alivio or similar calipers which will more than stop a kid...(Or even the clarks as they are presumably mineral oil and if you can get the right hose/olive combo) I didn't try though as I run SLX/XT myself I prefer to have the same interchangeable pads but I've got a mix of SLX/XT across 5 bikes... many with non matching levers/calipers as that was what got swapped at the time...
tomcrow99
Got a set of Clarks disc brakes from Amazon recently for my daughters bike, the levers are adjustible and she seems to be getting on fine with them. Incedible value for money at £35 for the full set including rotors and brackets!!
@tomcrow99 did they come with additional olives/barbs for shortening them?
Also how easy were they to bleed?
Looking at putting a set on my daughters bike.
+1 for any newish Shimano. I've used deore/slx/xt on my son's bikes as he's grown, all secondhand. Reach adjust works with a little Allen key and as long as they're bled the bit point is spot on even when the reach is dialled right in.
Yep, my lad's had Deore since he was 10-ish.
There's only one downside - cos they're such good brakes, all the other kids with cable disc Carreras insist on having a go and pulling skids!
Another vote for Shimano. The tiny levers are perfectly sized and give excellent stopping power with relatively little effort. My youngest has had M8000 (XT) ones since he was 8.5 and they've been bulletproof. Lightweight too.
Those Clarks look ideal!
samual has had SLX M675 since he got his bike at 7 (now 8). just wind the reach in and its fine. having lots of pull is a good thing for inexperienced hands. he has more than enough braking power for his speed.
Yep, the clarks came with the olives etc, I still need to do the rear myself, front is fine for a 26er.
Decent brakes also and the pads are the same as shimano.
tomcrow99
Yep, the clarks came with the olives etc, I still need to do the rear myself, front is fine for a 26er.
Decent brakes also and the pads are the same as shimano.
Thanks, will get a set for Daughters bike.