TRP Slate Evo Disc Brake review

The TRP Slate Evo brakes are superlative, wallet-happy anchors. Not be as elegant as pricier brakes but they’re superb, reliable stoppers.

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By barney

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TRP Slate Evo Disc Brake review

Well that’s good to know. I’m partway through fitting a set to my trail FSer, replacing SLX 2-pots that I occasionally cooked on longer descents even with 2.0mm Magura rotors. Pairing these with the 2.3mm TRP 203/180 rotors and hoping for improved resistance to heat.

I’m sure a few folk on here got them when Merlin were doign them at £90 a pair a couple of months ago.

I’m running two sets and wholly agree with the review.  I have used SRAM olive/inserts when cutting down and seem to work fine.

My only annoyance is the ridiculously positioned bar clamp bolt.  It protrudes out the opposite side of the clamp to the leaver and whilst it isn’t uncomfortable (no sharp edges), I find it a bit annoying as it’s  totally avoidable.   It’s the only bit that makes it feel budget brake.

Have TRP firmed up lever feel then? I had some Quadiems, which were brilliantly consistent and reliable but they were a step too far in modulation for me. Always felt like I needed to pull miles past the bite point to get power. Changed the levers to Shimanos which really helped, but would be interested in TRP again if they’ve firmed up a bit now (sure I’ve heard DHR Evos are good too)

Don’t know about previous TRP brakes, @mashr, but these ones feel pretty good to me. Some of the best brakes I’ve used TBH.

I put some of the non EVO ones (they were £70 a pair from Merlin) on my Cascade rigid mtb, probably a bit over kill but I’m heavy so need good brakes. They’re freakin awesome. I was so impressed with them I was thinking of getting some of the EVO’s and replacing the shimano brakes on my Reactor. Don’t think I will now as new kids bikes means I can’t afford stuff for me atm, but if they’re still £100 a pair at Merlin (they are atm) in a few weeks I will!

Are the Merlin ones the same brake as the review? It might just be the photo, but the lever assembly looks quite different to me (level blade looks longer, reservoir looks shorter) https://www.merlincycles.com/trp-slate-evo-front-and-rear-disc-brake-set-282217.html

Yeah, I’m pretty sure they’re the same – the Merlins look identical to the latest version on TRP’s site EVO3 going by the page URL: https://trpcycling.com/product/slate-evo-3/

One thing I’d add about those brakes from Merlin is check what front hose length you need. It was only just long enough for mine, no trimming necessary: 140mm 29er Pike, 140mm headtube (zero stack bearings) and 780mm wide / 40mm rise bar. No issues with the rear even with a near-1300mm wheelbase and chainstay/downtube routing.

Great brakes. Had them on the hardtail for around 6 months now and they’ve been spot on (apart from my front brake hose being too short)

No 2.3mm rotors were supplied

So they don’t come with rotors of any description?

Not off Merlin, no.

I’m trying to picture the ‘bleed valve’ bit that’s missing and how that’s different to sram or shimano – for both those you need a specific part that screws into the brake that you have to buy (whether brakes are OEM or retail).

It’s just a grub screw (well, slightly posher grub screw) that plugs the bleed hole. You can either swap them out for bleed nipples as above, or get a bleed kit that has an adapter to screw the hose into the hole.

If you ever want to do quick n dirty bleeds with the brake still fully installed, then the bleed nipple approach is the one

@b33k34 – it’s the caliper part with a nipple that you unscrew a little with a spanner to allow the fluid to exit the caliper when bleeding. You attach a plastic hose to it. The photos up there show the caliper with the Shimano valve installed, as mentioned in the text. When you get the brakes they come with a cap, not a valve. Shimano and SRAM brakes come with the valve installed; you don’t need to buy it.

That’s not really right though;

Shimano – bleed nipple installed. All good
Sram (new) – Requires you to buy the Bleeding Edge tool
Sram (older) – same setup as TRP with a screw covering the bleed port. Needs a screw in adapter for the hose/syringe

I bought one of those aftermarket bleed kits (Total Bleed Solutions IIRC) – had the correct adapter for the bleed port.

@mashr – OK, my mistake, SRAM ones don’t have a nipple either. The point of this review, though,  is that the TRP ones don’t, and this is not a positive.

And my mistake on Shimano – I’ve not run them for years.  It’s the ‘pot’ for the top that you need to buy rather than a caliper attachment.

Sounds like basically the same system as Formula, where you screw a syringe into the caliper instead of pushing a hose over a nipple? I prefer that way tbh, it’s completely sealed and less prone to leaks/hoses falling off nipples, really useful for pressure bleeding up from the bottom.

Great brakes, especially at the £90 that Merlin were knocking them out at.

I also bought some Tektro Gemini SLs from Merlin for £60. They are a cheaper version of these – 2.3mm rotors, 4-pots, bit more basic looking – but they DO come with 2 x 203mm 2.3mm rotors (F&R brakes + rotors for under £60!)

I’ve fitted the Tektro rotors with the TRP brakes, and am running the Tektros with 1.8mm rotors on my rigid runaround bike.