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I've finally had enough of my Elixirs after 4 years of putting up with them!
The question is XT's or SLX?
I don't think there is an awful lot in it; the XT's have an extra adjustment that doesn't do a huge amount and isn't adjustable on the fly.
I bought the XT's purely because at the time they weren't much more than the SLX's from Rose bikes.
Either way you'll end up with a great set of brakes. I am really happy with mine and have just hought a pair of Deore brakes for my BFe which also seem great value for money.
Cheers mindmap, about £30 difference with Merlin at the moment so given the time I put up with the Avids for I might push the boat out for the XT's!
i have the XT's and they are awesome for the money
as above, i only bought the xt's over the slx as there was fairly little price difference, and for reasons of vanity!
i understand the slx's are just as powerfull
Hope, will actually last, as good and as powerful as Shimano.
I had juciy7's which I really liked and had no bother with...however they got nicked and I replaced them with XT's
The XT's are absolutly awesome. Massive stopping power (can be a bit stick in spokes untill you get used to it!) and a great lever shape. I haven't had to work on them yet so i don't know what thats like but by all accounts its a breeze.
Got older SLX on my hardtail which don't look as good but are also brilliant. Only got a 160mm front rotor on the front, which i feel is a bit small so a 180 is on its way.
If you can strech to the xt's then do it, but as mentioned there really isn't a lot in it
[url= http://www.rosebikes.co.uk/products/bike-parts/brakes/mtbatb-brakes/?brand=764&page=1&viewtype=list&count=16&order=topseller#anchor_products ]Rose Bikes - Shimano Brakes[/url]
I got my XT's when they were a little cheaper on Rose bikes. I've had a play around with Deore, SLX and XT and they're all worth it, just pick how much you want to spend.
The disc's and adapters are good value at rose as well so it's worth it to do the whole lot at once, especially if you had Avids before as the discs are slightly different in diameter and rotor width.
Swapping the hoses round the right way is a doddle, i was nervous beforehand but won't be next time
Ah! forgot the Avids have a slightly odd disc size! Cheers
If it's discs as well the SLX work out quite a bit better then
My XT brakes from Rose didn't come with the Ice Tech pads, but I wasn't that fussed because I wouldn't have put them in again when they wore out because I'm tight. I did get the Ice Tech rotors though.
All in, delivered I paid about £190 for 203 / 180 discs, adapters and the brakes.
As far as I can tell, there is no difference between the SLX and XT ones aides from finish and the free stroke adjustment. A lot of people prefer the more subtle finish of the SLX's.
They are pretty damn powerful but I think very controllable. Bleeding is harder than the older Shimano brakes but not too difficult.
free postage from Rose this weekend too 🙂
XT not worth the premium, the adjuster does next to nothing, and the chintzy fake plastic chrome on the XT is ugly IMO, the brushed finish on the SLX looks better, and the reservoir looks less bulbous.
XT had some early reliability issues too - not sure if SLX suffered in the same way.
I just got some new SLX's to go on a new build (Tweeks cycles cheapest i could find at £71 an end including the posh finned pads) and they look very nice. As i have older SLX and older and newer XT's on other bikes i decided to go the cheapest option as i can't tell much difference between them all (they're all great).
I think the Shimano levers are all ugly no matter what the finish! I went for them because of good reviews and the fact that they were cheap.
My XT's are black with just the chrome top cap so don't look too bad. The free stroke does seem to make a bit of difference, but I don't feel short changed with the Deore's on the other bike that don't have it and need adjusting with an allen key.
There are reports of reliability with both XT and SLX brakes - but look on any forum and someone will have issues with one brand or another.
I've got SLX on one bike and XT on t'other.
The basic components are the same, just painted a different colour. The only functional differences are:-
1. XT gets free-stroke adjustment, but as others have said, this does bu@@er all anyway, and some clever chaps over on MTBR have worked out how to 'hack' the SLX and give it free-stroke if you're that bothered - [url= http://forums.mtbr.com/brake-time/shimano-zent-812550.html#post10293773 ]here[/url]
2. XT gets a slightly shorter and lighter lever blade, if one-finger braking is your thang.
3. XT caliper gets a screw-in pin to hold the pads in versus a split pin on the SLX. But the screw thread for the pin is still there on the SLX so you can just buy the pins and fit yourself.
4. SLX rotors are not Ice-tech, ie. they don't have the heat-sink sandwich construction of the XT ones. But again, I just bought the XT ones anyways.
Pads are all interchangeable between latest generation XTR/XT/SLX, so its your choice whether you use finned or not, resin or sintered.
So, in the end it just comes down to a slight price difference, and which initials match the rest of the components on your bike...