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How about apples for apples northwind
Can you go on the internet at any time of the year and ordr a 23 pound caliper or just when they are on special ?
My first set of xts both caliper seals failed my servo waves are fine
Equally x2 race are fault free
My 160mm mono minis on our downhill holiday in les arc were just dandy despite very heavy abuse and lots of other brakes in the group fading ! ( mostly avids)
My bb7s just died after 8 years service and are now on my mates town bike ( inside adjusters siezed solid and plastic dials off now !
Dicked around with this loads over the years. Currently on Hopes Techs on 2 bikes - they're not the most powerful, and they're fairly heavy, but for Peaks use, they have one HUGE advantage, and that's good rotor clearance, which means that the pads last more than 10 miles in the wet - in fact I've only had to change one set of pads so far this winter. To be honest, for most (legal) riding in the peaks, you don't need massive amounts of power because there's so few corners.
Formula Oros? brilliant in the dry, tragic in the wet. Pad life could be measured in minutes in winter.
Formula Ones? Mediocre in the dry, better than the oros in the wet, but still only 2 rides to a set of pads and needed bleeding pretty
much every ride (these were the old shape levers though)
Shimano? Only had one ride on a set of last generation XTs. Felt lovely, but underpowered. Interested to try the current generation though. Spares availability would put me off, but if calipers are that cheap...?
Avid - had a few sets of Juicies. In some ways they're the best brakes i've had. One pair of Juicy 5's has done 2 trips to Whistler, probaly 10 weeks in the Alps inc. 3 Megas, no fade, no power shortage, no bleeding - never needed touching. Pad change is a ball ache and needs doing too often in the wet (2 or 3 rides) and the Tri-and-align thing is a joke once the washers have been used for a while. They're still on the Bfe, and they just keep working well enough that its not worth the expense of changing them.
JonEdwards - MemberFormula Oros? brilliant in the dry, tragic in the wet. Pad life could be measured in minutes in winter.
Something not right there... Using organic pads maybe? (I think the standard pads in Oros are organic) I've only changed <edit- oops, 2 not 1> set of pads this winter, riding 2 or 3 times a week in Scotland's famously dry conditions...
trail_rat - MemberCan you go on the internet at any time of the year and ordr a 23 pound caliper or just when they are on special ?
The last time we had this thread, I googled them and found them easily for around £20. And the same today. And the same the time before. So, yes, apparently.
I have Oros, and haven't had a problem with them through the winter. In fact haven't had a problem with them at anytime.
Cheers guy's some really useful comments there concerning spares/reliability etc.
I will ignore the XC/Freeride comments as cant work out if they are serious or not LOL and is probably a debate for a different topic.
I definitely dont think BB7's are going to cut it with the kind of riding I do however... Jon I think I remember reading a while back that you do quite a lot of the same riding I do around the Cromford area, so not much legal straight line stuff 😉
Really like to give the new Shimano brakes a go, but it seems a bit wrong running them with Sram gear(OCD!lol)and Im not 100% sure about the quality for the price. £400 for some XTR's is a lot of wedge to find out Im wrong. So Hopes with a M4 up front and X2 rear is possible or Marta SL Mag, or willing to try new MT6 if I can get a decent deal off a mate in trade. Dont suppose anyone has actually ridden on the new MT's for any mileage yet?
I definitely dont think BB7's are going to cut it with the kind of riding I do however
😆 Brilliant!!
Go for SLX or XT over XTR if they're too expensive, pretty much the same brakes anyway.
I find Hope Tech brakes to be very reliable with next to no maintenance required. They squeal in the wet/cold but once heated up that seems to stop (are there any disk brake that don't squeal when wet?). M4s/V2s tonnes of power(if set up correctly) X2s I found underpowered for my 150mm bike and how I want to ride it.
Tried Shimano Saints on a mates bike, they squealed too but felt awesome.
All Avid disk brakes I have owned have been very unreliable, the worst being Elixir CRs. They were down right dangerous and would fail mid DH run in the Alps. The warranty replacement of them was good but took 4-6 weeks compared to Hopes 3-4 days. After 3 pairs on warranty I gave up and went to Hopes where I have been ever since without issue.
So for me, riding in the middle of nowhere in the Scottish mountains I need reliability, so I go for Hope and try not to loose too much sleep over the 100g I could have saved if I had gone for something lighter.
Ask the folk who work/have worked in a bike shop what make is the most reliable.....
druidh - Member
Ask the folk who work/have worked in a bike shop what make is the most reliable.....
They said Hope or Magura, but they did have a set of Hopes looking for a home so thought I would ask yu guys as well 😀
Hope feedback is looking good however. What are the levers like, size/shape/adjustment/compatibility with XO shifters? They worry me a little..
Get Hope V2's utterly brilliant brakes. The levers can be used with matchmakers so they mount to the shifter pods which makes for a neater bar.
FWIW Hope Tech levers are massively adjustable, bite point and reach adjust both on big dials, grippy levers too. Quite long levers, shaped for 2 finger braking or move them inboard a bit more and just use the outer groove.
Like most things on MTB and road bikes, buy the top of the range Shimano and you will fit it and forget it, forget all the blingyness, it usually is un-reliable. XTR 985, superb feel, awesome stopping power, quite light and look the dogs. (blingyness-new word?)
kingkongsfinger - Member
Like most things on MTB and road bikes, buy the [s]top of the range[/s] [u]mid-range[/u] Shimano and you will fit it and forget it
FTFY...and since when was xtr not bling?
cynic-al - Memberkingkongsfinger - Member
Like most things on MTB and road bikes, buy the top of the range mid-range Shimano and you will fit it and forget itFTFY...and since when was xtr not bling?
Fair comment but you get my drift
BB7 FTW +2
how can you overlook these?
😕 BB7
Thanks for all of the replies guys been very helpful.
Going to go Hope Tech Evo M4/X2 or Magura MT6
Cheers again
🙂
Loving my Magura brakes here, 06 Louise FR brakes have never let me down and all the times hey have been to the Alps, they have always been spot on whilst my riding pals newer brakes have always thrown wobblers part way through. One finger braking all day long and never worn more than half a set of pads out in a holiday.
I also have a set of 2009 Magura Louise BAT on my hardtail. Again, no issues, ever apart from me putting oil on the rotors 🙄
Hope Mini's were ok but squealed like little pigs, Shimano M525 Deore were fine but heavy (reliable though) and Shimano XT M765? were pigs to bleed but OK when bled.
I'm still using a set of original Shimano's Deore 555's. Not the most powerful,light or glamorous but have been utterly reliable.
Just had pads replaced and bled probably twice in their life and one of those was only because I put Goodridge hoses on instead of the originals.
I have been tempted by newer brakes but then think why fix what ain't broke.
Glad to hear such good things about Maguras. I've just bought a pair of Louises to replace my old Louises which have done me well for 5 years.
BB7 would be my suggestion and some lessons with Jedi.
Hope on both bikes for 5 years without any real problems.
hard cross country?
you'll be needing Saints.
I love al comment so if I buy ANYTHING from shimano I just fit it ont he biek and it work, for ever, without any maintenance...? Me think you should ride your bike more than just around the zoo.
No brake will be 100% problem free. I would however stay away from avid and shimano. The former for being a PITA in terms of maintenance and spare availability. The later simply because the stopping power of my GF's deore is shite, and the brake fluid just seems to disappear. My bikes have all been fitted with hope brakes and formula. And I have yet to have a problem with them. However IIRC the only brake that was carefree was the hayes mag something in purple.
not read this in detail but I can't see much voting for Hayes HFX9 or Stroker.
I have used these on three alps trips without a hiccup while owners of avids and hopes have had problems with fade etc.
Got formula oro's on all my bikes from XC to dh bikes.
The only time I have had an issue is when I managed to wear a hole in hose of my front brake, sadly it had been rubbing on something all the way to cwmcarn so can hardly blame the brake.
Will be buying formulas for all my future bikes and a mate will not use anything else either
HFX 9s would be a big downgrade from BB7s, surely?
If anyone would like to come for a ride around the Peaks with some BB7's I will gladly take you out. But Im not picking you up off the floor.
Avid code 5s here.
Not too expensive
445g.
Easy bleeding with the syringe kit.
Look good.
No fade on long hot descents.
Stop you like a back hander off your mum.
Edit: HFX9s are awful but I have stroker trails on all my fleet bike sand they are good, powerful, but I don't think they modulate that well compared to my code5s. Worth a look though.
If anyone would like to come for a ride around the Peaks with some BB7's I will gladly take you out. But Im not picking you up off the floor.
Having used BB7s I don't see how they would not meet your needs. Powerful, reliable, simple and aren't effected by being left unused.
Out of all the brakes I've owned Hayes 9's Magura Julie's and Hope Mono series (Mini, M4, M6Ti) the Hope have been the most reliable
Only repairs I have done is I snapped the reach adjust hex on an old mono lever... Fitted a lever rebuild kit and been fine since. only parts I've replaced regularly are master cylinder diaphragm seals when I do a bleed. And the only issue I've had is a squeal like a rotor rubbing from a crudded up M4 that was sticky pistons. the noise would disappear if I lightly applied the brake but not heavily enough so it would drag
It might have been easier to ask which brakes people don't like.
I've had Avid Elixir cr's, great but the rear caliper wore out one pad and not the other.
Changed them for Hope tech m4's, clunky, no bite, and felt spongy after one ride
Changed for formula the ones, felt ok at start of ride, by the end of the ride levers touching the bars
These are all brakes people rave about
Prior to this I had a cheap set of Hayes strokers which people seem to hate. They were powerful, never needed bleeding, easy to set up, and were kind to pads
jools182 - MemberChanged for formula the ones, felt ok at start of ride, by the end of the ride levers touching the bars
That just sounds like a bad bleed tbh- air left at the top of the system where it can get back into the pumped fluid. Did they recover between rides?
I don't understand the negativity towards Hopes. I've got several sets, some bought second hand, some bought new, only ever had one have a problem and replacement seal fixed it. They brake like no other brake I've ever felt - whether it's how you set them up or your pads, or what, I'm not sure. But I'd never go back to other manufacturers until they produce something as mindblowingly stoppy as my M4s. Having said that, I know people who've said the same about XTs or maguras - I've never had them operate anywhere near as well, but many times this is due to the apples and oranges comparisons - lightweight XC brakes won't stop you like a 4 pot DH brake, it is unfair to compare.
The big problem is I suspect many people can't set brakes up, or do so with some variability across bikes/brakes and so incorrectly attribute problems to the brake rather than themselves.
Pinkstiffee, I'm sure your riding is rad^sick but there's no reason to doubt the power of Avid BB7s, just as good as equivalent-sized Hopes/Shimano etc. They might not have the lever feel and modulation of hydros, and the pad wear adjustment is a minor faff, but power-wise they're fine.
absolutly coffeking - once set up and running properly hopes are just fine. I haven't touched any of mine for thousands of miles - well I did have to put a new set of pads in my solo this year IIRC and a set on the tandem
I've just come from a 10 day tour of Tasmania withan overloaded BOB. Hope tech m4s never missed a beat, even though I was using them pretty hard over the mountains. they got super hot.
trailers make you accelerate like crazy, then start to wag on unsealed roads. lots of fun.
Hope Tech V2's here. Been on the bike 18 months and I havent touched them other than to change pads. Prefer them to my girlfriends Shimano brakes that squeal like little piggies on the way to the butchers weather its wet or dry. Couldn't wish for more power, great feel and been told easy to maintain, but wouldn't know about that yet.
Haven't tried the XTR's but having heard good reviews I wouldn't mind a go just out of curiosity.
Another BB7 + 1. I'd probably have them on my main bike if they had better modulation, but the power is there. They may have better modulation with the proper avid levers as well, I'm just using shimano levers. The power is there 🙂
Closest I've been to no maintenance has been Magura (two sets of Louise and one set of Marta) and Shimano, however I did not like the Shimano feel. Currently have Hope Tech V2's and they work well, but they did need attention to keep the pistons coming out evenly in the beginning.
I also had Tech M4's for a while. I just could not get the pistons to come out evenly what ever I did, and finally got rid of them. A friend had two sets (four calipers) of M4's and had the same problem on one of the four. He studied the issue quite a lot, and noticed that whatever caliper he put the pistons from the problematic one on, had the same issues. Also changing seals did not help... He figured it would be a tolerance issue, that is the pistons would not be exactly the same size (or something like that) resulting in them working a bit unevenly. Sounds pretty logical to me, but was never suggested from Hope when I was trying to find a solution for the problem (never got one).
However the feel of the brake on the V2 is the nicest I had on anything, with the Maguras as a second.
edit: I did also have BB7's with nice cables and levers back in the day. They where very fit and forget, all that was needed was manually adjusting the pads now and then, and it was very simple and fast. They did not have the feel of good hydraulics, but if reliability was the main factor then you can't really go wrong with them. I did notice the lever and cables seemed to make a big difference on how they feel, so keep that in mind if you get a pair.
And another set of Hope here. Once I got rid of the old metal pistons for the phenolic which they now all come with, they have been dependable and reliable. M4 front and rear on two bikes and M2 on another. All rebuildable both at the caliper and master cylinder though they don't seem to need it.
Running Dot 5.1 synthetic and no boiling fluid issues. Cant see any need to change them.
[i]I definitely dont think BB7's are going to cut it with the kind of riding I do however[/i]
Unless you ride underwater, or on the moon or something, I'm not sure why this would be the case.
[i]I'd probably have them on my main bike if they had better modulation, but the power is there. They may have better modulation with the proper avid levers as well[/i]
The Avid levers do make a difference. And as an example of the power, after a week of riding in the Alps, I was the only one in the group on BB7s (with a 203mm front disc) and was the only one who never suffered from hand cramp from braking. And I definitely braked the most, 'cos I'm a pussy 🙂
And as for 'feel', I actually think it's better with the BB7s than my previous Hopes (mono minis). You can literally feel the pads on the disc through the cable, which cannot be said for hydraulic brakes where you just get vague 'squish'.
BB7s. They Just Work.
Mono Mini's and mono 6 Ti's have been great, but my SLX's are possibly even better.
I've gotten on best with Shimano brakes myself and I have to say they come out best in the VFM stakes too (Perhaps not XTR).
I've also had good experiences with Magura, but that was a good long while ago...
Not a Hope fan myself, but also never been a long term owner, it's a purely personal thing and many people swear by them (often on the grounds of plentiful spares), Expensive though IMO.
Never owned Avid discs, although I suppose BB7s would qualify as a very reliable, servicable brake though...
How does 180F 160R - 2012 XT with the fancy "ICE Tech" gubbins sound? Seem like a fair balance of stopping efficiency, cost and weight? That would be my choice or maybe the same thing in SLX to save a few pennies.