My Formula K18s have finally kicked the bucket - seals have gone, but I guess after 17 years I've got my money's worth.
The obvious replacement is Formula Cura 2s, as mentioned here recently; I can get a pair for €165 front and rear. But are there any others I should look at otherwise?
And does anyone know if the Cura uses the same IS mount adapter as the K18s?!
Shigura with MT5 calipers and SLX levers. Absolute troopers.
I've found formula to be excellent too, if you can find any at the right price go for it.
Hope are over budget but you can't go wrong with second hand Hope, X2 with Tech levers should be doable for that price, especially if you don't need rotors
I don't think you can beat Cura 2s for that money. Great power, modulation & consistency.
Bloomin' love my Cura 2s. So those.
OEM packaged Cura 2 set here for 70 Euro (you'll pay less but have to pay VAT/Duty on the UK side)
https://www.bike-discount.de/en/formula-cura-pm-disc-brake-set
Same site has the non-OEM version (minus the free adapter) for 200
Those knobbly levers are WEIRD.
It's just a little rubber thingy over the end of the lever I think. Seems to be glossy when you zoom in, the rest of the blade is matte
Just fitted the new XT 4-pots to my 28kg Kenevo (with 90kg me) and they work brilliantly. Easy to fit, easy to bleed, powerful enough for me and look pretty decent IMO. Think they were £275
OEM packaged Cura 2 set here for 70 Euro (you'll pay less but have to pay VAT/Duty on the UK side)
Jeez that's a steal - I'd found a 2-pack for €130 and thought I was doing well. Even adding a bit for the LBS to cut hoses and rebleed it's cheap. Especially since I'm in Ireland, so no duty.
I do hope it is just a rubber thingy. If not the blades might need a rub of a grinder
I'm not so sure. They're listed as two finger levers rather than one finger, so mebbe they all look like that. I dunno.
It's odd - I've not seen any other listing with that bulbous lever.
https://www.bike24.com/p2979359.html
Sram db8's?
Still not fitted mine yet (that reminds me to look for some clamps) but thinks others on here have said they're good.
No idea how they compare to what you have.
I'm not so sure. They're listed as two finger levers rather than one finger, so mebbe they all look like that. I dunno.
You might be right, the other ones are listed as 1
Sram db8's?
Still not fitted mine yet (that reminds me to look for some clamps) but thinks others on here have said they're good.
No idea how they compare to what you have.
Wow that's cheap! I've been thinking of upgrading my entry level Shimanos for a while (MT410, the ones that only take resin pads), are these a worthwhile upgrade over them? I used to use Avid Elixir brakes and liked the feel of them so guess these are a similar kind of thing?
Sram db8's?
Still not fitted mine yet (that reminds me to look for some clamps) but thinks others on here have said they're good.
No idea how they compare to what you have.
Wow that's cheap! I've been thinking of upgrading my entry level Shimanos for a while (MT410, the ones that only take resin pads), are these a worthwhile upgrade over them? I used to use Avid Elixir brakes and liked the feel of them so guess these are a similar kind of thing?
Just be mindful they don't come with the bar clamps. It's another £38 for the clamps from banana unless you happen to have them already
My money would go on the £90 TRP Slate Evo from Sport & Leisure. 4 pot, brilliant modulation and power. The best bit? They are so easy to install with the little plug thing on the hose.
Just be mindful they don't come with the bar clamps. It's another £38 for the clamps from banana unless you happen to have them already
Good call, didn't spot that! Maybe not worth it then as I'll need new rotors too. I've just seen there are actually sintered and other compound pads available for the MT410 now so I might just get some new rotors (mine are the cheap resin-only Shimano ones) and try that first.
Xt 'trekking' brakes at merlin £99. They have a full finger lever, so just put them in a bit on the bars.
Cheap you say?Shimano Deore for £44.99.
Just be aware that those non-series levers aren't servo-wave. But they are longer.
So if you have a long 'grip' section on your bars then you can just run them well inboard and use one finger on the end of the lever to get enough power. had the same (except with the 4-pot front) on my Vitus and recently upgraded to some old M785 levers and there's far more power now. They're not bad, I just came back from a long weekend in the Peak and they performed just fine, they just need squeezing a little harder than higher performing brakes.
Personally, I've had enough of SRAM brakes. The switch to mineral oil might solve some of their past issues. And they're not the only brand to use plastic calliper pistons. And they're not the only callipers with sticky pistons. But the bleeding procedure is an absolute faff and requires proprietary tools. I genuinely do not understand why anyone would buy them. If they come with a bike, then fine, they work well for a few months/years. But as soon as they need a bleed, or the pistons get lazy, or the lever sticks, just bin them and get something that works better and doesn't need babysitting to keep it functional. I spent way too many hours stripping, fixing and bleeding them because I didn't want the faff of swapping, or 'downgrading' to the 2-pot shimano I had spare. Then I did swap them it took 30minutes to fit both ends and bleed them because there isn't a overly complicated 20-step bleed procedure with leaky and sticking syringes. And the 2-pot shimano had more power anyway because the cheap SRAM levers lack their version of servo-wave.
If it were me, I'd get either those £45 M4100/M410 brakes, they are functional, reliable, easy to bleed. They're prefect if you're not doing anything too fast and gnarly.
Or I'd spend a bit more (~£95) and get the M6100 version. At that point you're basically getting almost top tier performance in a less shiny package.
Good call, didn't spot that! Maybe not worth it then as I'll need new rotors too. I've just seen there are actually sintered and other compound pads available for the MT410 now so I might just get some new rotors (mine are the cheap resin-only Shimano ones) and try that first.
I know you're not supposed to, but I've never paid any attention to those warnings.
You are supposed to take the rotors off and give them a sand with wet&dry paper on a flat surface to take off any pad material though.
Thanks everyone; I've ordered those Curas from the link above - €90ish incl a bottle of Formula mineral oil. It'll be a faff to cut them down to length, but it's cheap enough to make it worth it, I reckon
Thanks everyone; I've ordered those Curas from the link above - €90ish incl a bottle of Formula mineral oil. It'll be a faff to cut them down to length, but it's cheap enough to make it worth it, I reckon
Reckon you'll be very happy. I'm seriously considering switching my >5 year old pair onto my main bike to replace a pair of near brand new M6120s.
But do us a favour - when they arrive, let us know what's going on with the bobbly lever ends!
very interested to hear what these are like and total delivered cost in GBP to get them
Shigura with MT5 calipers and SLX levers. Absolute troopers.
Interesting, just borrowing the OPs thread as I have a sticky Shimano brake that's not responding to the usual, clean, lube, bleed, tyre lever and squeeze routine.
They work with Shimano oil?
Update! The Curas arrived, for €95 incl a bottle of Formula mineral oil, and P&P. They look brand new, unused; hoses are long and need trimming, so just need to buy some hose connectors for that.
And the levers are indeed quite knobular! They're just as shown in the retailer's photos; I've not found any pictures anywhere else of this lever, so no idea what it is.
Nowt to be done for now, so I'll fit them and try them; if it bothers me at some point I may just invest in some new levers.
SRAM DB8s
Any chance of more pictures of the cura's?
Especially the lever.
How are they when fitted?
Mate runs Cura 2 pots on his Reign. He runs a bike park* north of Bergamo that's properly steep and has no complaints with the brakes.
* Love Bike Park https://4tproject.com/lovebikepark