I’ve been a fan of Shimanos 2 and 4 piston mtb brakes for years but I’m curious whether I’m leaving any performance on the table by not trying anything else. I ride in the mountains of SW VA with long steep 1000-2000 foot descents, so 4 piston is my preference.
What are y’alls opinions of the current crop of brakes out there, if I’m fairly happy with Shimano 4 piston should I stick with those or is anything from Sram, Hayes, Hope, or Formula any better or worth trying?
I realize brakes are pretty subjective, but I do get some hand fatigue on long descents and I’m wondering if that’s normal or would I be better off with a different brake set. I’m currently running a 180 rotor in the front, 160 in the rear. I tried a 180 in the rear and it didn’t make any noticeable difference.
I upgraded from very ancient Shimano M785 XT brakes to new M8100 XT brakes and was very disappointed. The old brakes felt much nicer, the force curve had a nice plateau right before the brakes would bite. The new ones don’t and they have a wandering bite point, which is very annoying. E. g. when I pull the brakes hard on and off, the bite point would significantly start earlier in the lever travel.
So far the new brakes seem like a downgrade to me. A pity nothing else was available at the time (I got the M8100 XT brakes during Covid).
If you have some cash, Hope’s 4-piston brakes feel amazing. I had 4-pot Hope brakes on a rental bike (the former bike of a pro), and they were a significant step up.
Shimano brakes are OK, and thats that. But they are cheap, and easy to bleed. I use Magura MT7 and love them. They feel a lot stronger than my old XT brakes, but they are quite difficult to bleed and also a bit finicky regarding adjustment of the caliper versus Shimanos. All in all I would choose the Maguras again 9/10 times.
I would reccomend same size disc on both wheels to get the same feeling when braking.
The opposite for me. Not that I’m enamored with the M8100s, but I find my M785’s bite point wanders worse and I don’t like the grabby implementation of the Servo Wave mechanism. I find the M8100 to have less wander and better initial modulation.
over the last year i’ve upgraded all of my shimano 4 piston brakes to Hayes Dominion A4 brakes. I’m a big guy, live in Northen California where there are very steep thousand foot descents that require a strong brake with ability to modulate. I highly recommend them.
Thanks everyone for your suggestions…I was starting to lean towards the Dominions but after a little research found that they may be a bad match for my frame, an Epic Evo, since they use a larger diameter brake hose which looks to be a tight fit for the Epics internal routing. Back to the drawing board…
I’ve historically used XTR and found them to be reliable and easy to look after.
Last year I did a new build (Epic 8) and put SRAM Motives on it. Generally they have felt well but when they get hot under heavy braking the piston stick and don’t release well. I have to pull and release the lever a couple of times to get them to fully release. I’ve have it looked at a few times at the shop but so far haven’t not been able to completely solve the issue. Next time around I’d likely go back to Shimano.
I’m on an Epic Evo as well, so following what you find or go with. I’m in the loamy steep PNW so I need good modulation and bite without brake fade. I’m still running the stock SRAM G2’s and after last year’s Maven or Motive release (I can’t remember which but both were close in release timeframe) I’ve been thinking of going in that direction.
From what I found earlier, it seems to handle well and a few have reviewed it on their EE’s, so might go in the direction. Just need to find a good sale if I can unless you find a good solution from the Dominions.
Overall, even if our experiences differ, one thing we seem to share is that in those 10+ years, nothing much has changed on the brake front for Shimano. And that we don’t love those brakes.
I pity I couldn’t get a hold of Maguras at that time (I had Magura Julies, and thought they were great).
I have the A4 on my trail bike and T2 on my XC bike. Both just incredible brakes. I can easily lock up my rear wheel even with the T2’s…I’ve never felt underpowered whatsoever.
I have them on my Epic 8. I won’t lie…it’s a massive pain in the ass to get the hose through the downtube internal tube, but it is possible. Enough grease, time and patience you can do it. Start with a fresh cut, bend the end inward to create a cone-like point, grease it up and just work it in.
I use Formula Cura on all my bikes. I bought them for all my bikes in probably 2022 when they were like $90/brake. I always describe them as being the half way point between SRAM and Shimano feel. They’re strong enough but not super powerful, good bite but not harsh like Shimano, once they bite the travel is consistent. They also are easy to bleed and have been totally maintenance free. Kind of a jack-of-all-trades brake, probably not 10/10 in any category, but no flaws other than part availability (so I just keep some olives/barbs and a few brake pad sets on hand).
Har, yeah. I still have the bike with 785s I got in 2015. At the time, I came very close to swapping brakes with a friend who just got a bike with SRAM brakes (I don’t remember which). In the end we didn’t and I stuck with the 785s until getting a new bike two years ago that came with the 8100s. I’ll probably stick with those until the next bike, whenever that might be.
I got M785s on a fully I bought in 2012. When I sold the bike for two six packs of beer + shipping fees to a friend of a friend, the brakes were still in perfect working order. The bike needed new rotors, but that’s a wear item, so I don’t fault the brakes for it. In fact, they were one of the few things that were still in perfect working order.
It’s all about the rider. I stick with Shimano (and proper rotor size) because I prefer their ‘on/off’ feel over the heavy modulation you get with SRAM/Others. For my style—braking late and hard—I need that instant power and a firm lever. I’ve found SRAM to be a bit too soft for my preference; I just never got the feedback I needed from them
That’s good to hear @acedeuce802. I have a soft spot in my heart for Formulas, my first disc brake set was Formula Oro Puros in the mid 2000’s, they were flawless and dead sexy. Right now the Curas might be my leader in the clubhouse.
@teddygram Actually that’s why I’ve stuck with Shimano too, and I agree about SRAM brakes, some people describe them as having great modulation but to me that translates as soft feeling. I guess in the long run it’s good to have options. Maybe I’m crazy for thinking the grass might be greener on the other side.
