Is it 'socially' acceptable...
- Thread starter Whatleymeister
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See, I would always take a hydro over a cable disk, but the vanity in me says matching levers too (now its been mentioned!) so I am not sure. I will probably look at the lever options available before making any final decisions to see what ones are out there for what brakes, but the BB7 brake from Avid does get a lot of very positive feedback.
I am still a massive Hope fan though
I am still a massive Hope fan though
Whatleymeister":fx8t1y6s said:See, I would always take a hydro over a cable disk, but the vanity in me says matching levers too (now its been mentioned!) so I am not sure. I will probably look at the lever options available before making any final decisions to see what ones are out there for what brakes, but the BB7 brake from Avid does get a lot of very positive feedback.
I am still a massive Hope fan though
Compared to the Hope I’d describe the BB7s performance as adequate – however it does depend on where you ride.
andrewl":28f0ctz6 said:Whatleymeister":28f0ctz6 said:See, I would always take a hydro over a cable disk, but the vanity in me says matching levers too (now its been mentioned!) so I am not sure. I will probably look at the lever options available before making any final decisions to see what ones are out there for what brakes, but the BB7 brake from Avid does get a lot of very positive feedback.
I am still a massive Hope fan though
Compared to the Hope I’d describe the BB7s performance as adequate – however it does depend on where you ride.
I don't use Hope brakes but I have Magura Marta SL on two bikes with the same size rotor (180mm) on the front and I can't say that the Magura modulation is a great amount better and, if anything, I would say that the Avid BB7 has more out-and-out power - and the Marta brakes aren't known for being anaemic.
As far as depending where you ride goes, if you only ride flattish trails in the dry then you'd not be at much of a disadvantage with V brakes.
That's not the sort of riding that I do, though.
I've run front disc rear canti/V combo on half a dozen bikes. One had matched levers (Paul Love Levers to Mountain Cycle Pro Stop + Strange widget style brake), the rest were some sort of canti (Pro Stop) + V lever combo, or Hydro (Hayes/Hope) + V combo. No one ever came up to me, pointed at them, and said it was a fashion faux pas. Balls (or lack thereof), I suppose.
Andy R":32mol1x1 said:
I'd say we ride a similar style of trails. Over this way though the BB7s just don't stand up to the conditions as well as a hydraulic brake. On more than one occasion I've seen trail debris catch in the caliper arm (while riding) making the brake very ineffective.
If budget was an issue and I wanted a cheap upgrade then I'd happily choose BB7s but selecting one when you've already got a peefectly good Hope brake just to match the levers doesn't sound like an intelligent solution.
On the Marta SL, a few people I ride with have also commented on the lever feel in comparison to other brakes. I don't have any but have found on the Hopes and Shimano brakes I have that the Goodridge hoses make a noticable difference to the lever feel.
andrewl":2hgxnwv4 said:
All very valid points re. the trail debris issue, and true - if I already owned a good hydraulic front brake I wouldn't bother changing to a BB7 just to match levers either. In fact the only reasons that I'm using one on that Kilauea that I have in Greece was that I didn't have a spare hydraulic lever/caliper lying around and, to be honest, I was curious to see how good they are.
I still find it an impressive brake, especially for the money (I already had the SD7 levers anyway) and the comparison with the Marta SL's was simply because they're the disc brake I'm most familiar with and one that I find to be really good.
It's all down to personal preference and I think it's more important for a bike components to function well than it is for them to look pretty.
To have both is nice, of course
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This has turned into an interesting debate. It seems with the votes that function is winning over form, so I would suspect that to be the direction I take, but like Andy R wrote, I am also curious to try a BB7 to satisfy my own curiosity, as many people (here included) have spoken of their quite reasonable performance.
If I do manage to have the oportunity to try one, it may sway my decision. Still, brakes are a while off in the build yet unfortunately, i still have to get the wheels, gears....
If I do manage to have the oportunity to try one, it may sway my decision. Still, brakes are a while off in the build yet unfortunately, i still have to get the wheels, gears....
most suspension forks are disc ready, inf fact the more recent models no longer have bosses for v-brake or cantilever; the rear end is a different matter, especially with old frames.
but if you can fit disc, preferably hydralic, then do so. even if it needs adapter - I made two, one for proflex XP8 frame and other for GF frame, admistedly that was disc brake ready but an usual and rare mode of caliper that needed adapter to fit a small front caliper (magura marta) on the rear.
hydraulic isbest - self adjusting, no wrorry about dinging rim and best of all, no grindy noise when braking after cycling in mud
but if you can fit disc, preferably hydralic, then do so. even if it needs adapter - I made two, one for proflex XP8 frame and other for GF frame, admistedly that was disc brake ready but an usual and rare mode of caliper that needed adapter to fit a small front caliper (magura marta) on the rear.
hydraulic isbest - self adjusting, no wrorry about dinging rim and best of all, no grindy noise when braking after cycling in mud
