Ultegra 8020 (shifter) and rs785 (calipers) compatibility...

[a4racer]

Ahoy there, working on a new build...more details to be revealed shortly!

Frameset is post-mount, and I've got some rs785 brakes (also PM). If I run Ultegra 8020 (mech/hydro), can I run the rs785 calipers? I know the new 8000 disc stuff is all flat mount...

Thanks!
:banana:

[CiclistiCliff]

You need BH90 hose and the SM-BH90 flange connecting bolt M9 - pn Y8RD98010


Currently doing 9120 levers to m9000 calipers and you'll need the new connecting bolt for the new levers. Match the hose to the caliper, per shimano, but bh59 will work too.

[zank]

Hi Cliff,
Have you already set up the M9000 calipers? That is the one mountain caliper that is not designed for servo wave levers. I'm just curious how you like them. I had a set of M9000 calipers matched to M9020 levers and found them grabby. The modulation improved a lot when I went to M8000 calipers. I know not apples to apples but I am curious about your experience. Also, quick correction, Shimano recommends matching the hose to the lever. R785 and RS685 levers with BH59 hoses and R91XX and R80XX with BH90.

To the OP, if your levers don't come with hoses, the SM-BH90-JK-SSR kit comes M9 connecting bolt.

[a4racer]

I'm wondering if I'm just better off running the stalwart RS685s with my 785 calipers...

That having been said (upgrade-itis at play here) has anyone reviewed the 8020s as being better than the 685 shifters? Ergonomically, I'm fully satifisfied with the hood shape of the 685s, which I know some do not love...

[CiclistiCliff]

Hi Cliff,
Have you already set up the M9000 calipers? That is the one mountain caliper that is not designed for servo wave levers. I'm just curious how you like them. I had a set of M9000 calipers matched to M9020 levers and found them grabby. The modulation improved a lot when I went to M8000 calipers. I know not apples to apples but I am curious about your experience. Also, quick correction, Shimano recommends matching the hose to the lever. R785 and RS685 levers with BH59 hoses and R91XX and R80XX with BH90.

To the OP, if your levers don't come with hoses, the SM-BH90-JK-SSR kit comes M9 connecting bolt.

Everything you said, I told the customer. Luckily it's in emails, so if they feel terrible, it's on him.

Shimano tech I spoke with yesterday said it'll work, but lever feel will be different, which is exactly what I told the customer. He did say, match hose to caliper when I spoke with him.

One thing to watch out for is that the banjo bolt itself is different on the caliper when compared to the one that comes with the hose kit, so use the one that came with the caliper.

[zank]

Ahh, didn't realize it was for a customer. Sorry about that.

I wish Shimano made it clear and cautioned that there are two BH90 connectors. They make reference to it in the dealer manual, but I wish it was a little more explicit.

[zank]

I'm wondering if I'm just better off running the stalwart RS685s with my 785 calipers...

That having been said (upgrade-itis at play here) has anyone reviewed the 8020s as being better than the 685 shifters? Ergonomically, I'm fully satifisfied with the hood shape of the 685s, which I know some do not love...

Well, the R8020 levers are about 150 grams lighter and have improved reach and free stroke adjustment. They also don't have the little bump on the underside of the lever body near the bar like the RS685 levers do. I say go for R8020.

[a4racer]

150g is nothing to shrug at...and more refined design, I might have to give it a try!

[CiclistiCliff]

First 'ride' report. After setting this up for a customer, by request, I must say the lever feel is fantastic using bh59 hose.

https://scontent-ort2-2.cdninstagram.com/t51.2885-15/e35/25005584_718922731637028_2561182186510221312_n.jpg

https://scontent-ort2-2.cdninstagram.com/t51.2885-15/e35/25017595_503504563338624_7496770676779384832_n.jpg

And here's that fitting we provided the part number for earlier: Left is new. Right is old.

https://scontent-ort2-2.cdninstagram.com/t51.2885-15/e35/25018675_353291698471179_1945046961572806656_n.jpg

[zank]

Nice. Thanks, Cliff. And my apologies regarding the topic of matching hoses to levers and calipers. I was mistaken. I was going by what one of the mods at the S-tec forum said.

https://us.v-cdn.net/5019841/uploads/editor/z5/pdxlt61ffgin.jpg

[NHAero]

Great to finally see that table! I ordered the right items (still trickling in) but it was hard to figure what connected to what without having the bits in hand!

Nice. Thanks, Cliff. And my apologies regarding the topic of matching hoses to levers and calipers. I was mistaken. I was going by what one of the mods at the S-tec forum said.

https://us.v-cdn.net/5019841/uploads/editor/z5/pdxlt61ffgin.jpg

[dougefresh]

I'm doing the r685 levers to m9000 calipers. my experience is fantastic as well.

[srsoltis]

Just when I start to understand disc brakes, I read new thread. Please forgive my ignorant questions below.

I am considering buying R9120 or R8020 levers with M8000 or M9000 calipers. Do I need the SM-BH90-SBM hose kit for a straight connection at the lever and banjo connection at the caliper? Would I also need the “flange connecting bolt M9”?

Currently, my ST-RS685’s with the RS785 calipers give me plenty of stopping power and feel pretty good. Aside from the weight and price, what are the real-world differences between the M8000 and M9000 calipers?

I have read that M9000 calipers have better modulation yet less stopping power. Zanc, you hint at the opposite. Is that a function of the lever, caliper, or pads? Any recommendations relating to calipers would be welcome.

Thanks in advance!

[CiclistiCliff]

BH59 JK should have the M9 fitting bolt.


M9000 has plenty of bite.

[zank]

Depending on how you purchase the R8020 or R9120 levers, you may or may not get the M9 connecting bolt for the lever. If you purchase the ISTR8020PA1 or ISTR9120PA kit, you get the levers, hoses, cables, housings, and the connecting bolts. If you purchase a pair of the replacement levers (ISTR8020RI and ISTR8020LI or ISTR9120RI and ISTR9120LI), you do not get hoses and connecting bolts. Some of the online vendors sell the pair of individual levers as the "set", so be sure to check or ask for actual Shimano product codes. If you get the individual levers, the only hose kit that includes the M9 connecting bolt and road specific BH90 barbs (yes, there are two different ones) is the SM-BH90-JK-SSR. But, if you get a banjo style caliper (M8000 for example), you need the SM-BH90-SBM hose. So you will end up with a hose that you can't use. My suggestion is the RS785 caliper for post mount applications so that you can use the SM-BH90-JK-SSR hose. I have not seen the M9 connecting bolt offered outside of the hose kit to this point. Maybe it will be available as a replacement part, but it is not listed on the Shimano B2B site yet.

The M9000 is supposedly tuned to the linear displacement of the M9000 non-servo wave mtb lever. The M9020 and M8000 calipers (and all road hydro calipers for that matter) are tuned for servo wave levers. I wouldn't read too much into my comment. It could have just been me and how I prefer my mtb brakes to feel. Cliff confirms above that the M9000 levers feel great.

Hope that helps!

[thermalattorney]

Depending on how you purchase the R8020 or R9120 levers, you may or may not get the M9 connecting bolt for the lever. If you purchase the ISTR8020PA1 or ISTR9120PA kit, you get the levers, hoses, cables, housings, and the connecting bolts. If you purchase a pair of the replacement levers (ISTR8020RI and ISTR8020LI or ISTR9120RI and ISTR9120LI), you do not get hoses and connecting bolts. Some of the online vendors sell the pair of individual levers as the "set", so be sure to check or ask for actual Shimano product codes. If you get the individual levers, the only hose kit that includes the M9 connecting bolt and road specific BH90 barbs (yes, there are two different ones) is the SM-BH90-JK-SSR. But, if you get a banjo style caliper (M8000 for example), you need the SM-BH90-SBM hose. So you will end up with a hose that you can't use. My suggestion is the RS785 caliper for post mount applications so that you can use the SM-BH90-JK-SSR hose. I have not seen the M9 connecting bolt offered outside of the hose kit to this point. Maybe it will be available as a replacement part, but it is not listed on the Shimano B2B site yet.


Hope that helps!

Thanks for the detailed info! I'm currently running the R785/RS785 combo and am planning on upgrading to R8070 levers. There's a lot going on and you've cleared up my confusion on the matter.

[alpoon28]

You need BH90 hose and the SM-BH90 flange connecting bolt M9 - pn Y8RD98010


Currently doing 9120 levers to m9000 calipers and you'll need the new connecting bolt for the new levers. Match the hose to the caliper, per shimano, but bh59 will work too.

Hello Cliff,

Which hose / barb combo are you using to connect the 9102 levers to m9000 calipers?

If the hose is bh59, is it just attaching the BH90 barb and hook the banjo to the m9000?

Thank you very much for your time.

[mattsurf]

Apologies resurrecting an old thread. I am just doing a bike build, using 8020 levers and M9000 calipers. My bike is post mount, so can't use 8020 calipers

Even though Shimano compatibility charts suggest it is best to use BH90 hoses, I see that CiclistisCliff did a build using BH59 hoses, I assume for better modulation.

Are there any updates to the build? or recommendations BH90 or BH59?

I have seen a number of other articles about CX riders who combine 785 levers with M9000 calipers mainly for the weight benefit

[thermalattorney]

The BH59 hoses do provide better modulation, but the difference is minimal.

My setup is:
R8070 levers
R8070 front brake, 160mm RT99 rotor, BH59 hose
R785 rear brake, 140mm RT99 rotor, BH90 hose

With a 140mm rear, I appreciate the little extra bit of power offered by the BH90. For the front it's a toss-up. I was finding it hard to one-finger brake with the R8070 brake and BH90 hose (vs. the old R785 combo), so I made the change to BH59 in the front just to see what the difference is. The lever requires *slightly* less force, which makes 1-finger braking a bit easier.

If you're buying a kit I'd start with the BH90 and see how that feels.

[tylercheung]

People have mentioned the Hope RX4 units as well

[mattsurf]

Thanks for the replies.

I ordered XTR M9000 calipers, with BH59 hoses

I bought my 8020 Groupset, which came with Calipers and BH90 Hoses (unfortunately not bayonet fitting), however, I will either use the the 8020 calipers on my road bike which has RS805 Calipers, or I will just use the pads as spares. It worked out much cheaper buying the groupset, rather than the components without the calipers.

I didn't know about the Hope RX4, they might have been an even better option as I think I could have just used the BH90 hoses that came with the groupset

I will post on here after I have built the bike

[mattsurf]

Bike build done.

I had a problem with the rear M9000 Caliper because my BMC Crossmachine CX01 frame didn't have enough clearance on the rear stay, Luckily my mountain bike had M985 Calipers, which are a much better shape for the rear stays on my BMC frame. A quick bit of caliper juggling (and a long overdue bleed and fluid change on the MB), my MB now has an M9000 Caliper on the rear (matching the M9000 lever that was fitted last year), and my BMC has an M985 caliper.

My build has 140mm discs on the rear and 160mm front, with M985 rear caliper and M9000 front Caliper, matched with RX8020 shifters and Leavers and BH59 hoses.

I want the bike to be a Gravel / winter road bike, which meant it needed a double chainset, however, since I live in Switzerland, I wanted to be able to climb mountains, with gradients of 20%+. I went with a 50/34 chainset, and a PG1170 11-36 cassette. Even though Shimano quote compatibility up to 34 with the 8020 rear derailleur, I have read many reports of people using 36 and even 40 tooth cassettes.

First ride after build was up Zugerberg, a 6km, 700m on/off road climb. The 11-36 cassette worked absolutely faultlessly, shifting quality absolutely amazing, probably better than my 6800 Di2 on the road bike.

The brakes are simply amazing, without doubt better than the RX785+805 combination on my road bike. I am so pleased that I used the BH59 hoses, modulation is great, and brakes do not feel at all spongy, neither do they feel grabby. On a long fast descent, the 140mm rear disc felt more than adequate, although I am not heavy at 72kg (159lb)

Bike is not super light, weighing in a 7.9kg (17.4lb), Challenge Strada Bianca 30 tires and Cosmic Pro Carbon wheels are not the lightest, but look awsome