[Ghost_rider]

Hi Everyone,

I'll be needing new brakes (hydraulic or mechanical) next season and I'm wondering which line offers the best bang for your buck so to speak. I've heard good thing about the Avid Mechanicals...

Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Matt

 

[binary visions]

Shimano Deore hydraulics.

 

[sub6]

that, or Avid Mechs, they're insanely powerful. Very grabby feel, if you're into that sorta thing.

Deores give you the "headaches" of hydro fluid (bleeds, popped/crimped hydro lines), but also the benefits (no cables getting mucked up).

 

[RITFreeRider]

2nd the Shimano Deore hydros. For the money they are hard to beat.

 

[fonseca]

Avid Mechs.

Reliable, trouble-free and can be dialed to feel exactly how you want them. Mine are not super "grabby" or on and off, but adjusted for high modulation, and engage close to the bars.

Setup is critical though: you need Avid levers or another brand with a speed dial equivalent, I would not want to run them without that adjustment option. That and high quality full housing and I remember why I sold my hydraulic sets years ago.

A 160mm set will run you $125, and $150 for 185mm front and rear.

 

[Chutney]

Originally posted by fonseca
Avid Mechs.

Reliable, trouble-free and can be dialed to feel exactly how you want them. Mine are not super "grabby" or on and off, but adjusted for high modulation, and engage close to the bars.

Setup is critical though: you need Avid levers or another brand with a speed dial equivalent, I would not want to run them without that adjustment option. That and high quality full housing and I remember why I sold my hydraulic sets years ago.

A 160mm set will run you $125, and $150 for 185mm front and rear.

I second everything fonseca said. my 160mm were really grabby at first, but once i had them set up right they felt really nice. Only problem i have had with them is with pads falling out. It actually happend while i was riding, which was a little scary. they fixed this problem with the new pads, however. The new ones have springs to hold them in place, in addition to the magnets that the old pads used. A friend of mine had problems with his overheating, but that was probably more bad braking technique then problems with the brakes.

 

[kidwoo]

Nothing beats hydraulic lines if you feel like dealing with them. I don't know what kind of terrain you ride but no mechanical will give you the single finger full brake feel that hydros do.

I have to second the motion on shimanos. I've ridden hayes for almost 5 years (still do for DH) and saw nothing to change that until shimano got into the game. I've got the new xtrs on my XC bike and am happier with those than anything else out there. I got curious and took one of our shop bikes out last year with the deore hydros and they feel as good as hayes. You can't beat the price/performance ratio. Still haven't ridden the avid juicys though. Our buyer went to interbike and rode them and said they are as good as everything else out there. (To me this would be an understatement once you account for all the adustability).

 

[JRogers]

Avid Mechs are good but I was never thrilled with the pair I had- never felt as good as my hydros. I really want to have an extended test of the Deores. I have heard complaints of loud noise and lack of power but the lever feels amazing. Has a really light but solid feel to it. I'm a hayes guy myself. Some have had issues with the HFX9s but mine have been trouble free.

 

[Serial Midget]

Avids. Basically fool proof and they get better with wear... you can set them up ANY way you want and adjust them at will without tools. I have tem on 2 bikes - out of the box they are grabby but that goes away after 2 or 3 hours of use.

The only guy I know who has deore hydros got them oem on a klein attitude - the front brake failed within a few rides - it was a warranty deal that was fixed with a new ring seal of some sort.

 

[kidwoo]

Originally posted by JRogers
I'm a hayes guy myself. Some have had issues with the HFX9s but mine have been trouble free.

Oh yeah I forgot to mention this. DO NOT BUY HAYES MADE AFTER 02' That new G2 caliper is total dookie. They put the hydraulic line on the inside (medial if you're in med school) of the caliper so that once it's mounted on your fork, you get lot of crimping on that crappy new press fit junction. The result is a severed line. This is especially true for long travel forks. That press fit is also an issue because you can't just cut the line, install a new olive and re-clamp it like you could with the old ones. You have to buy a whole new brake line. And yeah the taiwan hfx9 lever/reservoirs are twice as difficult to work on as the older systems.

This is from a previously die hard hayes fan. They screwed up big this year and even though I know they have gotten inumerable complaints, haven't changed a thing for 04. Hayes was the ****e when they had no real competition but that is not the case anymore. Hayes brakes will work great for whatever you want to do.........just remember OLD Hayes. Find em used.

 

[novice]

which deore hydros are you guys talking about, the 525 or the 555?

I've got a set of new marta's that seem pretty amazing, except they squeal at the start of rides until you can wear the glaze off of the pads.

 

[kidwoo]

The ones I've ridden are the 555s. I just realized the new XTs that are a spinoff of the newer XTRs are out. I would bet those are mighty nice just based on my experience with the XTRs.

 

[Repack]

The Avid mechs are great. Don't know how they hold up for DH, but for xc they rock. FYI-If you get the Avisa, I've had problems with the round tab on the pad retainer spring causing some noise. Don't be afraid to clip it off. Set up will be even easier.

 

[Ridemonkey]

I don't know what you guys are talking about "dealing" with hydro lines. That's what's so great about them - there is never anything to deal with. Maybe I'm just lucky, but I've been running Hope Minis for almost 2 years and I've never had to even think about the hydraulic lines, and they feel as good as new.

I'll never go back to cables.

 

[Repack]

Originally posted by Ridemonkey
I don't know what you guys are talking about "dealing" with hydro lines. That's what's so great about them - there is never anything to deal with. Maybe I'm just lucky, but I've been running Hope Minis for almost 2 years and I've never had to even think about the hydraulic lines, and they feel as good as new.

I'll never go back to cables.

I agree. Even when I cracked a Hayes body at the pirch this summer, I was able to transplant anothe lever from another bike w/o having to rebleed. How do Avid's and Deore's compare price-wise?

 

[sub6]

Originally posted by Ridemonkey
I don't know what you guys are talking about "dealing" with hydro lines. That's what's so great about them - there is never anything to deal with. Maybe I'm just lucky, but I've been running Hope Minis for almost 2 years and I've never had to even think about the hydraulic lines, and they feel as good as new.

I'll never go back to cables.

Hayes brakelines are a little on the "brittle" side; they tend to crease or kink pretty easily. Ditto with Shimano's black lines. I think Hope uses a steel braid line, no? Steel braids are extremely durable.

Anyway, it is not an issue if you ride XC and FR stuff, only for DH riding where the crashes are frequent and burly. I find that most of my line failures come from getting too out of control on a steeep-ass chute, and ramming into a tree, pinching the line between my stem and the tree.

 

[kidwoo]

Originally posted by Ridemonkey
I don't know what you guys are talking about "dealing" with hydro lines. That's what's so great about them - there is never anything to deal with. Maybe I'm just lucky, but I've been running Hope Minis for almost 2 years and I've never had to even think about the hydraulic lines, and they feel as good as new.

I'll never go back to cables.

It's easier to change a cable than it is to bleed a brake. A cable will never contaminate your pads or rotor.

On the other hand, since I too have sworn off cables, I never have to "deal with" braking with two fingers

Hydros require a little more know how. That's all. Unless your dealing with hayes g2 calipers and a downhill fork......then you're "dealing with" a completely inferior design.....hahahahahaha

 

[berkshire_rider]

A 160mm set will run you $125,

Where did you see them for $125 / set ?

 

[Repack]

Sorry for the spamage
http://207.68.162.250/cgi-bin/linkrd?_lang=EN&lah=d39421e91e30b74bb0c79219d2cca133&lat=1068843843&hm___action=http://www.ridemonkey.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=66747&goto=newpost

 

[fonseca]

Originally posted by Repack
Sorry for the spamage
http://207.68.162.250/cgi-bin/linkrd?_lang=EN&lah=d39421e91e30b74bb0c79219d2cca133&lat=1068843843&hm___action=http://www.ridemonkey.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=66747&goto=newpost

If you're going to spam, at least use a working link.

Originally posted by berkshire_rider
Where did you see them for $125 / set ?

They have been on ebay for that price with "buy it now" for many months. Not many pairs on this weekend, but here is an auction with ten pairs available for $128.50 buy it now. If you're not in a hurry, you can do better pricewise.

 

[berkshire_rider]

hey have been on ebay for that price with "buy it now" for many months. Not many pairs on this weekend, but here is an auction with ten pairs available for $128.50 buy it now. If you're not in a hurry, you can do better pricewise.

Thanks for the info. I'm not in any hurry to buy a set, but the cheapest I saw were $69 each.

 

[Shredder]

Definitely Avid Mechs

I've had some for two years and they RULE!!!

 

[skinny]

Originally posted by kidwoo
...I never have to "deal with" braking with two fingers

I don't know what you're talking about, I NEVER have to use two fingers on my Avids.

I'm not an unbiased opinion by any means, but I have to vote for the Avids. They're ridiculously easy to set up, a retarded chimp could dial them in, and they have HUGE power and modulation for the money. I'll never stray from my Avids, they rule. I just can't wait until I get XTR levers for them

 

[EBasil]

Originally posted by skinny
...the Avids. They're ridiculously easy to set up, a retarded chimp could dial them in, and they have HUGE power and modulation for the money.

Ah. Good. My wife just bought Avids and a wheelset for her new bike, and I get learn all about Discs by wrenching on her bike. I think I meet the standard you describe.

 

[fonseca]

Originally posted by skinny
I don't know what you're talking about, I NEVER have to use two fingers on my Avids.

I'll agree with that. I haven't used more than one finger to brake in years, even on the steepest downhill. Avids in my experience are at least as strong as properly set up hydraulics in the same size, and generally stronger. As for modultaion...that's one area where the avids can be as good as most hydraulics, but if you ride a lot you're going to have to tweak your adjustments occasionally.

Every 50 miles or so I either have to adjust the pads a click, or play with the speed dial to keep the same feel. Sometimes a bit of both, and I have to do both outboard and inboard knobs to get the front and rear feeling the same again and the levers engaging at the same spot. It takes less than a minute but it's a slight hassle. With open system hydraulics that's not an issue, which is convenient. But on my last two sets of hydraulics the levers didn't engage at exactly the same spot anyway.

I haven't run hydraulic brakes since 2001, but I'm about to switch to them on my primary bike. I'm thinking about trying the new juicy sevens in 185mm, or mabye the hope mono minis or m4s. The 2004 magura louise fr model looks good too. But none of those qualify as best brake bang for the buck.

 

[skinny]

Originally posted by EBasil
Ah. Good. My wife just bought Avids and a wheelset for her new bike, and I get learn all about Discs by wrenching on her bike. I think I meet the standard you describe.

You're a , not a chimp, and all s have some issues.

 

[dfinn]

or play with the speed dial to keep the same feel

what are these speed dial levers that you are talking about. i recently switched to avid mechs on my xc bike but for now i'm still using the lx levers i had.

 

[EBasil]

"Speed Dial" levers are Avid's product (in the 5, 7, Ti and Ultimates) that have a screw adjuster to modify the leverage and cable pull, very much like Shimano's "servo wave" levers did/do, but infinitely adjustable.

eBay is the place for Avid 7's, the best deal in great brake levers going. $30, and LESS.

 

[Superdeft]

Originally posted by EBasil
Ah. Good. My wife just bought Avids and a wheelset for her new bike, and I get learn all about Discs by wrenching on her bike. I think I meet the standard you describe.

I did the same thing, I just hope I'm smart enough too....

 

[Spunger]

On my DH build I watched Zark cut and bleed my brakes. They were much easier than you'd think, you just have to have the right little ends to do so. I think time wise, maybe an extra couple minutes to cut/put the ferrel on/bleed. Hydro's feel so nice when they are burned in and work. I don't even think maintence wise they require that much. IF you ride hard, maybe like a yearly fluid change. I went from a 6" in back to a 8" in back and geez, it is just great stopping power.

I dunno about the stock hayes lines. I wanted to get a set of the goodridge lines. They are expensive but the reviews state they are worth it. That'd be some major bleeding by going that route.

I would have gotten cables, but no DH bike I've ever seen uses cables. It is just hydro's for them. Some FR bikes come with cables or hydro's. I think I'd still rather have hydro's over cables. Just less to deal with.

You can always find a good, used set of hydro's for the same price as a new set of cables. I'd just look around a bit.

 

[fasterTHANyou]

bang for the buck? sounds like the avid mechanicals are winning... as for the 'bang for lots of buck' category, i've got to go with the new avid juicy sevens... i used to ride magura julies (ew), then hayes mag plus (sweet carbon and Ti, yukcy performance)... i can't live without these new avids... give 'em a shot