I know they aren't at blingy as some of the other brakes mentioned, but the '08 Shimano XTs are fantastic. They have great modulation, power, and lever feel; the spare parts are easy to come by, and they are very reasonably priced. Between me and CB, we've got two sets and they have been trouble free.
Just one jerk's experience with brakes. Keep in mind I know how to set up brakes and when I had trouble with a brake, I had a mechanic look at it too: '07 Avid Juicy 7's--HATED them!! Money down the drain. They weren't powerful and were super noisy. Lever adjust was over rated IMO. '06 Shimano XT--Mine were junk. The pistons got stuck all the time. '04 & '06 Shimano Deore--Awesome brakes!! Set it and forget it. Have never even had to have them bled. '06 & '07 Hayes 9's--Awesome brakes. I heard bad things about them before I got them, but I have nothing but good experiences with them. I've never had to have them bled. Very inexpensive brake system too. Dollar for dollar, the best brakes out there, IMO. '06 Hayes Mags--Good brakes, but I have to have them bled a couple times a year. No experience with Hope, Magura or Formula. These are not my opinions but are what I have heard firsthand: The mechanics at my shop say Magura's are hard to get parts for. They also refer to Hope brakes as "HOPE they work". Hope this helps bro.:beer:
"I know they aren't at blingy as some of the other brakes mentioned, but the '08 Shimano XTs are fantastic. They have great modulation, power, and lever feel; the spare parts are easy to come by, and they are very reasonably priced. Between me and CB, we've got two sets and they have been trouble free. " The new XT's are super nice brakes, I really dig the way they look, great new design with the servo wave lever feature, and are in fact in my opinion at least, blingy, and I have heard nothing but good reviews on them, but they are not what I'm looking for. I was checking out the size of the calipers and pads...kinda small for a fat-a$$ like me. On a long, steep descent, I would heat those babies up to a melting point. If were into XC, and wasn't as fat as I am, they would be perfect. I did price them out at a couple places when I was searching for a new set-up and the price on these is comparable to what I can get a great set of Hopes for.
i have formula k24s on one of my bikes... these are my least fav brakes juicy 7s on my dh... they are the best brakes i've felt so far xtr duals on another bike... used to love these until i got exposed to the juicys hayes hfx on another dh... get the job done
Yeah, I have the Hayes 9's, they work well. I am satified with their performance over the last 5 1/2 years. They have treated me well, always worked fine, fairly easy to bleed, inexpensive, and easy to find parts for if anything needed replaced/serviced, which hasn't happened yet. it's just time for something new, and more powerful, with some flava. I considered the mags, but they just seem to vanilla for what I'm looking for...who knows maybe I'll change my mind when it come to plunking several hundies down on a brake system. But the floating rotors, milled calipers, moto/style levers...that just screams out to me. Plus the fact that I have not heard anyone with first-hand experience with them say anything close to dissapointment, or even unsatisfied, or even buyers remorse. I was really looking to see if anyone has had problems with them firsthand, but so far none. I've been looking at upgrading my brakes for a couple years now, and it is finally time. The Hayes won't be retired, they will go on my hardtail which is currently running rim brakes...yikes. I appreciate all the feedback so far, and am still looking for more
when i went from the hayes 9, to shimano saints i was amazed how good brakes could feel, ive since then tried formulas, and juicys. i would recommend either the shimano xt, or anything formula.
that moto set up looks sweet, but seriously to burly for my taste. when i want my bike to weigh 50 lbs, ill do that set up.
That is pretty nice isn't it. Gosh, I'm drooling just looking at it. Weight isn't an issue for me, ifn I was worried about weight, I could shed enough pounds off my chubby girth to make up the difference...but I won't
I have Hope mono6 ti's on one of my bikes (40lb VP with Shiver)... by far the best brakes I have ever owned. Durable, well made, etc. The dont seem to fade as much as others. my 2 cents
Considering this info, I would say that gustav's are probably sticky at lower speeds because they're a DH specific brake. When I switched to race pads on my track (motor)bike they were real twitchy on the street at lower speeds. At speeds above 80mph, it is much easier to control than with stock brakes.
You are the first person to mention the Strokers. One of the reasons I took them out of contention was because no-one could give any feedback. None of the shops I've talked to has anything to say about them, good or bad, I guess there just isn't enough of them out there yet. How long have you had them? How well do they modulate (compare to other brands if you can please)? Are the pads larger than on the Hayes 9's? Where would you rate the power (compare please)? What kind of riding do you do? How bigga boy are ya? (Roy D. Mercer) Thanks DISCO
If price is no object, then you might look into Formula Ones. Supposedly the best stopping power out there. I will probably put Formula Oro Puros on my FR/DH bike. http://www.formulabrakeusa.com/?page_id=105
Pete, I have had Stroker Trails on my XC bike since Christmas. Nice brakes, love the levers, and they are definitely better than the BB7s they replaced. They leave something to be desired in the fact that they have no pad adjustment feature. That's a pet peeve of mine. I have already had the front caliper piston stick. That's annoying on brand new brakes. It wasn't a big deal, but I had a rotor dragging for a while. Modulation is fantastic and they seem to respond how I want them to. One finger braking is no problem as they have lots of power. I am a fat chicken shit (6' 0", 220 lbs before dinner) and I came down Skyline in Corona (long ass fire road descent) at my slow speed without seeing them fade. I was impressed. Unfortunately I can't compare them to other hydros you're talking about because I haven't run Hayes 9s or any others on the list. Bang for the buck they are pretty good and worth a look. They are about half the price of Hopes as far as I can tell. If we are going to run into each other somewhere, you are more than welcome to take them for a spin at your convenience. I like these brakes, but based on my experience so far I probably wouldn't buy them again and would opt for something better. Not sure what that "better" is though. Just my opinion, but if you go 5 years without changing your brakes, you deserve to buy some great ones. Go for Hopes, Maguras, or Formulas.
