[drumbum540]

I am new to serious mountain biking and I am planning on getting a new bike. some of you know me as the annoying kid that posted the beginner bike help threads and the Gt avalanche threads. I am sorry about all that but I have a question. what are they differences/ pros + cons of mechanical or hydraulic disk brakes? thank you for any help.
-drumbum540

 

[Serial Midget]

Hydraulics as long as you can afford it, if not Avid mechanicals are just fine and very easy to install and maintain. Now stop being annoying.

 

[drumbum540]

okay thank you for your help. My uncle told me that mechanicals are easier to keep up. but hydraulics have smoother braking. I was not sure if they really had a difference. thanks for your help serial midget. sorry for the annoyance.
-drumbum540

 

[1453]

for the longest time I swore by Avid BB7 brakes. But ever since I got a COde 5 front/Hayes 9 back setup, I'm pretty spoiled with the precision of the hydros.

I keep a set of the BB7 with levers as back up though, they are a breeze to install and set up.

 

[zahgurim]

You're a new rider, I say go with Avid BB7s.
They're a breeze to maintain, cheap, and you don't have to worry about ripping out hydro lines when you bail (and you will!).

After you've progressed a bit, go with a hydro setup. You'll appreciate the better performance more after you already have a feel for your bike and baseline to compare them to.

The BBs are great brakes. I still rock them on a play bike or two, while using Hope hydros where I want race-performance.

 

[drumbum540]

Ok, thank you both.

 

[dirtygirlmagnet]

If you startout with mechanicals, don't buy anything but the bb7's, as everyone suggests. Anything else will just be crap. Quality cables will go a long way with these brakes. Most shops will have odysee brand linear brake lines in stock, which work pretty well and are tough.

When you do decide you want hydros, stay away from hayes 9's. They have too many issues to mention. avid juicy's are fairly popular for their feel, and I have found them simple to maintain. (bleed them every 1500 miles for xc, and every couple of months for DH).

I've known a lot of riders who love the bb7's, then can't believe the major difference when they make the jump to a good hydro. So you'll probably be stoked with either choice, so the decision I guess would be up to your budget, and how often you plan to ride.

 

[drumbum540]

The bike im looking to buy in the next month comes with avid juicy 3's. they felt pretty nice, but how will they hold up?

 

[unskilled]

you'll never have anything to compare to if you don't buy a bike and ride it. If you're wise you'll buy a mediocre first bike with decent components and run it into the ground. If you spend all your time asking everyone else what they think you aren't out riding. I've run both and have both on two different bikes of mine. i saw your other thread about a beginner bike, invest in a good bike frame with sh*t components and once you start breaking things, then move up to hydros. I have never serviced my hydros and they are 2 years old now, yes they do work fine, good as the day i got em. Only thing i did was replace pads. You'll start learning what you like by riding with people and comparing your experience with your product, to their experience with their product. Make sure what your doing is what you want to do.

 

[drumbum540]

okay, thank you very much for your advice.

 

[unskilled]

and stop being so damn nice. you'll weird people out

 

[DirtyDog]

IMO, hydraulic lines are half the advantage of a disc brake setup. Not a fan of cables myself.

 

[drumbum540]

okay, ill stop being nice, haha. Are Juicy 3's hydraulic or mechanical?

 

[Arkayne]

Juicy 3's are hydraulic. If you are torn between the two, I recommend you visit your local bike shop and test ride some bikes with mech and hydro brakes. Get a good feel for the brakes at low and high speeds. Don't worry, the bike shop won't get 'mad' at you for test riding.

 

[drumbum540]

I did go to a LBS and ride a bike that I really do like. a Scott reflex 20, and it came with those brakes, the guy was very nice about letting me test ride, he told me to go do what I would normally do on a bike so I did just that, I came back to the shop and the said no, your not done yet. I was very confused, and he told me to go get it as muddy as I could. and thats what I did and that gave me a real good feel for it. I do like the feel of hydros a lot more than mechanicals but the only thing I am worried about now is maintenance.

 

[BUMP]

hydros are good if you got the money and can either keep them up yourself or have a shop that can do it. they are a little more finicky then the maechanicals, but they are more powerful, and the rotors don't worp as easily. the mechanical actually bend the disks when they stop the bike and so if your doing alot of fast downhill be ware not to ride your brakes cause you'll bend your disks.