Brake upgrade help

[DEVO]

Bought a used YT last year that came with Sram guide brakes. Not really loving the feel or power. Tried new pads (may have rushed the bedding...) but that didn't help much. So looking to change to something else. Used to ride a lot back in the day, and alway ran Hayes brakes. Almost all of my my riding is enduro/trail riding in N. Shore MA. so don't feel like I need a brake big/strong enough of downhill. But looking for something with more "bite"?

[smmokan]

Can’t go wrong with TRP DH-R EVO or Magura MT-7 brakes.

[toast2266]

What size rotors are you using? Before you throw a bunch of money at better brakes, you could bump up to some 200's (assuming the current ones are smaller than that). And if that doesn't fix your problem, then you can just use your new rotors with whatever other brake you end up getting.

(Agreed with smokkan's suggestions. The hayes dominions are great too).

[beaterdit]

Get the red ones? I mean, standard protocol.

[El Chupacabra]

I hated SRAM Guides. Took them off two different bikes they came on, sold them, replaced with 4-piston Shimano.

I am a Shimano brake fan. SRAM centerline rotors are nice though.

[Roxtar]

XT for good.
Hope T4s for best
Shimano IceTech rotors for either

[beaterdit]

Some more useful suggestions:

-The bedding in process is for the rotors, not the pads, it's supposed to embed an even amount of pad material on the rotors. If you don't do it properly, I guess the pads can get burnished and hamper their grip but if that's the case, sanding them a bit and repeating the bedding process should do it. Replacing the pads and re-bedding also works. Personally I've never really bothered but I'm an idiot, it made a big difference for the Lady's SRAM G2s. I'll be doing a thorough proper bedding for my brakes going forward.

-MTX pads are WAY better, and cheaper than OEM. More power, less fade, less noise. Def a no-brainer for me.

-As mentioned, if you don't have a 200/203mm rotor up front, do it. SRAM claims the new HS2 rotors provide 20% more power. Dunno about that but they're def better, and thicker. Between the 200mm HS2 rotor, MTX pads, and proper bed-in, the Lady's G2s are now acceptable. See next point though...

-Since SRAM brought out the new Maven brakes, CODE RSCs are going for $160-$170/wheel. To me this is the best value in brakes out there right now. Have them on all my bikes, at his point they may not be *the actual best* brake out there anymore, but for the money they are IMO, hands down. Powerful, consistent, reliable, and the contact point adjust actually works. At this price point, the Lady's getting an upgrade whether she needs it or not. Can't have too much brake.

-You can find Shimano XT 4-piston for about that same price point. Good brakes if you can deal with the wandering bite-point and non-function adjustment thereof.

I'd try Rotors and pads first but if you're riding 'enduro'/trail, I'd recommend a more powerful brake. They'll just be more reliable in the long run and again, can't have too much brake.

[DEVO]

Thanks of all the help. Totally going with the new Mavens, cause red, right? Actually will probably look for a set of Code RSC or XT 4 piston...

[chatton18]

This is a killer deal on a very powerful brake set $230 for the brakes, bleed kit and rotors. They also have the MT7s for 370 if you want some more adjustments and better pads out of the gate . Internet thinks maintaining them can be a bit harder (hard to bleed perfectly, sticky pistons) but at this price it's hard to complain.

Code RSC, XT 4 piston, DHR Evo, Hayes dominion, magura mt5/7 are all excellent

https://www.jensonusa.com/Magura-MT5-Brake-Kit

[Eluder]

Some good recomendations in here.

Not my cup of tea, but lots of weirdos on here seem to like Shimano Brakes, and these seem to be the best deal going outside of the Maguras. https://planetcyclery.com/shimano-xt...xoC06oQAvD_BwE

[Andeh]

I keep pointing people to this roundup / comparison:
https://blisterreview.com/gear-revie...brake-shootout

Also, I'd definitely NOT get Mavens. Watch the Dale Stone YouTube video on them - he talks about the huge amount of force required to move the lever, even before the bite point is hit. Even PB's review kind of danced around how much force it takes. Why does this matter? Because all that added force leads to arm pump (requires more muscle force every time you pull the lever).

[MarsB]

Another vote for DHR Evos

[Whiteroom_Guardian]

Been a Code RSC fan for a while now but every serious rider I know on DHR evos has raved. "My arm pump just totally went away"

I will be putting then on my new build.

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[volklpowdermaniac]

shimano brake slut. all my bikes have four piston slx but love xt/xtr as well, just find slx gives up literally nothing to the higher ones. having said that that's insane deal from PC posted above. if i had a free 250 i'd buy and stash.

Very TRP curious and would happily ride them, buddy has the middle tier trail evo
evo and the lever feel is really quite nice, reckon i'll give one of them a try some day.


that's it. that's all i got.

[carlh]

I’m very happy with by Hayes dominions lots of power with light lever feel. Last bike had code r which were adequate but not more, went to 220 front rotor and mtx gold pads for power but still was in the same ballpark as the 2 piston xt on my hardtail. Maguras on my friends bike feel good in the parking lot but I haven’t ridden them on anything steep.

[zion zig zag]

Another vote for DHR Evos

And one more. I put the Trail EVO’s on my bike and I was blown away by how good a brake can be. I went from serious arm pump on long steep downhills to not even noticing.

One caveat: I found the reach to be way too long in stock form, I changed out to the Freedom Coast levers and that made a world of difference.

[Sandbox]

Another vote for MT7’s, lots of power and the lever feel is great imo. I’d like to grab the new Magura rotors


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[s1ammy]

Maybe there is something wrong with me but I definitely prefer Shimano brakes over SRAM. Four piston is nicer than two piston. While SLX is definitely the sweet spot in consideration of price, XT look and feel nicer if you can justify the cost.

[Jtlange]

I've been a huge fan of my Dominions. I'm a fairly heavy dude that rides moderately fast when comfortable. They have so much controllable power and I've never had such good power modulation. I just picked up a second purple set.

[toast2266]

I continue to be baffled by the love for shimanos. The wandering bite is a hard deal breaker for me. It's fucking terrifying. There are only 2 kinds of shimano brakes: those that have tried to kill me, and those that will try to kill me at some undetermined point in the future.

I'm totally fine with pretty much any other 4 piston brake on the market. Trp, hayes, magura, hope, sram. All have their downsides, and some are better than others, but all are usable.

[Spencer123]

As someone who has had XT's, SLX's, CODE RSC's, and Dominions, but never any wandering bite point issues the attraction to them was excellent feel, a lot of power for the price point, and super easy bleeds.

That said, if they ever tried to kill me I am sure I would feel the same as you and because of that fear I moved away from them. I have A4's now and they are incredible, but like a fancy sports car I feel like they require a lot more attention (sticky pistons, tight tolerances for rubbing, squeal if they are not bedded just right etc...). My shimanos always felt great no matter what type of abuse I threw at them.

I continue to be baffled by the love for shimanos. The wandering bite is a hard deal breaker for me. It's fucking terrifying. There are only 2 kinds of shimano brakes: those that have tried to kill me, and those that will try to kill me at some undetermined point in the future.

I'm totally fine with pretty much any other 4 piston brake on the market. Trp, hayes, magura, hope, sram. All have their downsides, and some are better than others, but all are usable.

[Andeh]

Yeah, as someone who's owned XTs, MT5s, MT7s, Code RSCs, and now Dominions, I get the appeal of Shimano, if they would only fucking fix the wandering bite point. I had it on the 2 or 3 pairs I owned, my buddy has had it happen on every pair of his (including on his bike when I borrowed it). If they could just get over their pride and admit there was an issue (and fix it), they'd be great. Until then, having the chance that when going into a corner at speed that the lever has equal odds of pulling to the bar or engaging instantly is a deal breaker.

Magura drove me nuts with tight clearance, trying to keep 4 individual pads from rubbing, sticky pistons, and inability to service pistons.

Codes were dead easy to bleed, but the seals seemed pretty weak. It was easy to get fluid to push out of the reservoir when bleeding, and I suspect that plus DOT led to me needing to bleed them every 6 months or so. Contact adjuster was great, but the lack of sharp power and stiff levers gave me arm pump.

Dominions feel great, but they do seem to need to have piston seals replaced a bit more often. I've replaced piston seals on 2 of my calipers, MC seals on 1 lever, and bearings on 1 lever. Agreed with them having very tight clearance, especially if you run a 2.0mm rotor. Brand new pads and rotors is basically guaranteed to rub for the first ride or two unless you sand down the pads. Sports car feel is a good description of them. When I keep up on their maintenance, they're incredible. When I ride them without touching them for 3 months in oily mud or moon dust, they start to develop issues that an overhaul fixes.

I've been eyeing some of the boutique brakes. It seems crazy to spend as much on a set of brakes as a fork, but I guess they're arguably more important.

[Spencer123]

Are Saints prone to the same issues as all of the other Shimano brakes? Part of me wishes I had given those a try when upgrading from my XT's.

[D(C)]

As others have said, there are many good options out there. But there is something to be said about going with a brand where you can easily find pads, fluid, small parts, etc. at local shops... and not just at home but also on riding trips.

[XXX-er]

As others have said, there are many good options out there. But there is something to be said about going with a brand where you can easily find pads, fluid, small parts, etc. at local shops... and not just at home but also on riding trips.

this exactly ^^

I had shimano on the yeti and now guides on the SC, I'm happy with either brand, the biggest hassle is needing a different bleed kit for each

But I had the Hayes mags back in the day and everytime i read the words Hayes I break into a cold sweat