[jonnynails]

Need new DH brakes and wanted to see what people using either of these brakes had to say about them. I have heard that the Saints are powerful but make tons of noise. Reviews on the Formulas state a great lightweight brake, but the lever supposedly engages very late.

 

[Dogboy]

I vote for the Saints. The lever engagement on the Ones killed them for me.

 

[jonKranked]

Old Saints:

Good power, Good modulation, good price, easy to maintain (back loading brake pads). I have 2 sets. Never had a problem.

New Saints:

Better power & modulation (from what I've heard), not sure on price or maintenance. Parking lot test. And friend has them on his Trek Session and I have not heard any complaints from him.


Formula Ones:

Great power, great modulation, a little later on the engagement, but you get used to it quick. Best one finger braking brake according to several friends that run them. Very pricey, and I've heard bleeding can be tricky. One of the lightest out there. Have taken several runs on them over the last 2 years on various peoples bikes, was never disappointed. Quite possibly going to be my next brakes.

 

[IH8Rice]

New Saints:

Better power & modulation (from what I've heard), not sure on price or maintenance. Parking lot test. And friend has them on his Trek Session and I have not heard any complaints from him.


.

besides the first few months of constant squealing

 

[rayhaan]

saints, they are amazing, never had any problems with noise with them.

 

[Sandwich]

I have new Saints after coming from years of torture with Hopes and later Gustavs.

My saints are durable, easy to set up, and they have plenty of power and modulation. Not sure they have the power of the gustavs, but who cares. I'd rather not lock up my front tires on anything wet. I had to bleed them recently in the platty parking lot and despite fighting with the god-forsaken brass olive and ferrule, the process was comparably easy and my brakes worked all day. Also, the only time they started squealing was when I hit the bottom of the mountain after they were worked the whole way down. That may also be due to the fact that I am running non-standard rotors (Sawblades from Jenson/Alligator) that don't quite work as well as they should. I look forward to getting legit rotors in the future to get back that little bit of power and quality/feel. Also, no fade or very little in the steepest runs at plattekill and the long ones at whiteface. The brakes could probably use a proper bleed using the correct kit or whatever, just to get every modicum of air out, but I was never uncomfortable as I was with the hopes. No arm pump is a victory day for me.

As for the formulas, I can't comment directly, but I have heard of a lot of problems with quality and bleeding issues. Things like as the pads wear, the engagement point changes drastically. Plus availability and price, and I opted out.

You can get Saints from Backcrunchy for $270 a side with no rotor or adapter, but I got mine from Chainreaction for a little over $200, or close to it. They did come with a bunch of spare parts and an olive/ferrule set but I bought some extras anyways. I'm using magura adapters since shimano's are pointlessly expensive. I do need longer bolts though.

 

[jonKranked]

besides the first few months of constant squealing

I said the complaints I heard weren't coming from him.

 

[ska todd]

besides the first few months of constant squealing

So, I found out the cause of this first hand up at Whistler this weekend straight from the Shimano R&D & tech guys.

It is possible with the new Saint brakes to actually melt the pad compound and embed it into the rotor. This will then cause the most god awful squealing noise you have ever heard and cause your friends not to ride with you. The best way to remedy this is to change the pads and then gently sand the surface of the rotors.

The best way to keep it from happening, don't drag your brake all the way down the mountain.

Having that sound howling really did show me how much I use my brakes and how much of a pussy I am.

-ska todd

 

[jonKranked]

The best way to keep it from happening, don't drag your brake all the way down the mountain.

but then how will people get down Alpine?

Having that sound howling really did show me how much I use my brakes and how much of a pussy I am.

See your quote in my sig.

 

[IH8Rice]

So, I found out the cause of this first hand up at Whistler this weekend straight from the Shimano R&D & tech guys.

It is possible with the new Saint brakes to actually melt the pad compound and embed it into the rotor. This will then cause the most god awful squealing noise you have ever heard and cause your friends not to ride with you. The best way to remedy this is to change the pads and then gently sand the surface of the rotors.

The best way to keep it from happening, don't drag your brake all the way down the mountain.

Having that sound howling really did show me how much I use my brakes and how much of a pussy I am.

-ska todd

thats what they told him at the US Open as well. they sanded them down for him at the tent and also "re-lubed" the pistons too. they mentioned that since it uses 4 pistons, if all 4 dont move evenly, it will cause the pad to wear and squeal annoyingly.

they recommended a organic compound, but said they dont offer them in the states. i did find some websites where he can buy organic compound for his new Saints though.

 

[buckoW]

Two pistons = two problems
Four pistons = four problems

Some people are having troubles with the Saints over here as well. Formula Ones are the brake of choice for the locals here.

 

[ebarker9]

but then how will people get down Alpine?

Easy now, I resemble that remark.

 

[cableguy]

Formula Ones At least in the US, Formula offers great customer/warranty service.

 

[- seb]

My only experience of Saints is riding friends' bikes around the carpark. If I had to sum them up in one word it'd be GRABBY. I'm sure you get used to it, but if you're not used to it I've never tried such an on/off brake!

My Formula Ones have been on my bike for, er, 18 months maybe now? Not sure, a search of the forums would reveal the answer! I love them. Never needed to bleed them yet. Experienced a bit of fade at the Megavalanche last year, but frankly I'd be surprised if any brake could cope with that much DH without a bit of fade!

 

[Sandwich]

My only experience of Saints is riding friends' bikes around the carpark. If I had to sum them up in one word it'd be GRABBY. I'm sure you get used to it, but if you're not used to it I've never tried such an on/off brake!

That's way odd to me, because that isn't remotely how I would describe my brakes. Maybe he has the BPC way in? Or different (organic) pads maybe? My brakes engage smooth and controllably, almost to the point where I'd prefer a bit more bite. They are way smoother than my Gustavs, which had me plowing through every turn because of their grabbiness.

 

[IH8Rice]

That's way odd to me, because that isn't remotely how I would describe my brakes. Maybe he has the BPC way in? Or different (organic) pads maybe? My brakes engage smooth and controllably, almost to the point where I'd prefer a bit more bite. They are way smoother than my Gustavs, which had me plowing through every turn because of their grabbiness.

my buddy's stock pads are grabby as hell too, even with the squeal. i nearly flipped over the bars a bunch of times before i realized how much power they have.

 

[- seb]

That's way odd to me, because that isn't remotely how I would describe my brakes. Maybe he has the BPC way in? Or different (organic) pads maybe? My brakes engage smooth and controllably, almost to the point where I'd prefer a bit more bite. They are way smoother than my Gustavs, which had me plowing through every turn because of their grabbiness.

You need to brush up your English. Note the position of the apostrophe, I'm talking about at least three different people's bikes, not one.

 

[Sandwich]

Sorry- internet. Typos and intended punctuation are sometimes indistinguishable.

My brakes are still not grabby though, maybe it's the ****ty rotors.

 

[bizutch]

Two options:

1. Saint
Parts easily found in most any bike shop, levers that could be swapped out for XT or LX in a pinch, and most any shop will have the bleed kit.
2. Formula
"Ooooh...those look cool dude but we'll have to order that thingie there for ya."

 

[jonKranked]

Two options:

1. Saint
Parts easily found in most any bike shop, levers that could be swapped out for XT or LX in a pinch, and most any shop will have the bleed kit.
2. Formula
"Ooooh...those look cool dude but we'll have to order that thingie there for ya."

In regards to the Saint:

1) I have two sets, one with saint levers, one with XT's. I prefer the feel of the XT's.

2) I also have the bleed kit. It RULES. BUT! A $3 kitchen syringe from the grocery store will do the trick in a pinch, but you won't have the nice reservoir for the lever reservoir.

 

[haromtnbiker]

I guess I can comment somewhat from my experiences.

I've owned a pair of the old shimano saints on my slalom bike. I love them, great modulation and more power than my juicy 7's. I never had any issues with them. I never experienced any loss of power. Never

I also own a pair of the new 4 piston saints. I absolutely love these brakes. They have so much power, but I've learned to control them and not flip me over the bars. These brakes are currently sitting on my hardtail but I will likely move them over to my downhill bike. I haven't had any issues with squealing. I had a friend ride the bike who is a beginner (on the brakes a lot) and he did have some.

I currently own formula oro k24 brakes. I don't really know how they compare to the One's, but I like them so far. I've only had one day of downhill on them but will ride them at snowshoe this weekend. The lever pull feels great with good modulation but nowhere near as much power as the Saint's.

 

[Orvan]

they recommended a organic compound, but said they dont offer them in the states. i did find some websites where he can buy organic compound for his new Saints though.

What website is that?

 

[rigidhack]

Can't commet on the Formulas, but I have done a run or 2 on the new Saints. Compared to my Juicy 7's they felt a bit "grabby", but I suspect this has more to do with the lever engagement point being different than what I am used to than anything else. I did not notice any fade, but I think I would need a full day of multiple laps to really see if it was there or not (I can feel it a bit on my 7s towards the end of the day).

I was impressed with how easy it was to adjust the lever position using the little gold dial.

Overall impressions of the Saints:

 

[IH8Rice]

What website is that?

theyre actually semi-organic
http://www.a2zcomponents.com/02products_01fastop.html