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I’m sure this has been done to death but I’ll ask anyway.
I’m toying with the idea of using an old frame and spares as a budget gravel build - unsure what are seen as the best mechanical disc brakes for use with Road levers?
Frame and forks are post mount but happy to consider flat mount brakes with an adapter.
What are we loving the most?
Using a set of TRP Hydrids on my latest Grovel build.
Work great,I like them.
Linky
Having used MTB BB7s for many years with no problems (I'm still using them), I was underwhelmed with a set of Spyres, despite trying various levers, fancy cables, etc. I'll shortly be trying a BB7 Road caliper with some Microshift drop bar levers (got both, just need to get on it). If I think on I'll post up on here how it goes.
I recently replaced a pair of cable disc brakes with JuinTech F1 hybrids. Better braking and far better feel.
I have some tektro ones - they work. fiddle to set up right tho
I've got some old bb7s on a tandem. They are pretty trouble free.
I found this out the hard way - there are a few different cable pull ratios.
Obviously there is MTB pull ratio - if that's what your levers have, it's simple.
But there are two slightly different varieties of road brake pull ratio - old-skool Shimano, which also works with SRAM, and new Shimano, which is different.
If you mix-n-match you can end up with brakes that are not quite right. It will work, but just not as well as it could.
TRP seem to use the new ratio, whereas BB7 use the old.
I have a pair of avid BB5 and Shimano cable brakes in the garage.
Drop me a line if you are interested :-)
I've had two sets of these... Been brilliant actually. Much better than bb7s and trp spyre/spyke.
https://biggamebikes.com/product/cable-actuated-hydraulic-brakes/
Can be had for cheaper than that too.
+1 for Juin Tech, got them on a spare Cx bike. Been on it for six or seven years. Trouble free and far better than basic cable disc brakes. Mrs has had a set on her commuter, which gets used a lot and shown no love, again no issues.
Clarks do a clone of the tektro 2 piston design for a very reasonable £40ish Inc rotors and mounts. Maybe not as good as the semi hydro sets but cheap and seem to work.
Hayes CX work grand even if your a larger gentleman. They worked grand slowing my touring set up down from 60mph PDQ on sunshine pass.
But never forget there two types of people in this world. - those who can set up cable disks and cantis.
Ad those who can't.
If your the latter just get hydros and preempt the moaning.
Should as bb7s and bb5 both also work great.
The promax that genisis insist on using to cut costs is the first questionable one I've had in. Long time since the early 2000s when cable disks were horrific
HyRds, partly because they self adjust for wear. Much nicer that the Sypres and the BB7s I had before
Giant Conduct
Ooo, they have a certain agricultural look to them! 😆
Do they hydro callipers need much in the way of bleeding and is it difficult to do?
Paul Klampers (if you're feeling flush). Check out the Hardtail Party review on YouTube.
Giant Conduct
Ooo, they have a certain agricultural look to them! 😆
Do they hydro callipers need much in the way of bleeding and is it difficult to do?
The looks take a bit of getting used to but they function perfectly. Not had to bleed them since fitting but it should be simple enough.
But never forget there two types of people in this world. – those who can set up cable disks and cantis.
Ad those who can’t.
Surely it's:
There two types of people in this world. – those who can set up cable disks and those who canti...
JuinTech F1 hybrids
I think mine are R1's but they have been great
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Finally got round to installing a BB7 Road caliper, mated up to a Microshift SB-M110 lever.
I never got TRP Spyre calipers to work with anything more than underwhelming mediocrity - different levers (Sora, Dia Compe, Cane Creek), pads, expensive cable housing, hours tweaking the set-up....none of it made a significant difference. By contrast, it took just a couple of minutes to set up this BB7 caliper on the front wheel using the stock cabling that comes with the levers: good feel at the lever, endo stopping power at the caliper. Absolutely no contest in my mind as to which brake is better.
BB7 on my singlespeed Unit, working great for many years.
Also BB7 in Road flavour on my 'gravel' bike, which is great too. The stock brakes on this bike TRP Spyres, which were way below expectations.
