Brakes, rate them

[bike <3'er]

Can you declare that brake caliper 'A' is more powerful than 'B'?

All things being equal, including the pads, rims etc, would you say that Record or Chorus brake better than say, Centaur, Dura Ace versus Ultegra, SRAM Force, Rival, Red, Mavic and of course, Zero Gravity.

I ride Campy and want the most powerful caliper. A friend is offering me Campy Centaur brakes, not certain about them as I typically use Record or Chorus and with that, I am considering a move away from Campy brakes if there are calipers out there viewed as 'better'.

I will also upgrade the pads accordingly. Weight of the calipers is not a concern, simply want the most efficient/powerful caliper. Ideas? Thanks.

[97CSI]

Centaurs are going to be as powerful as it gets without going to disc. That is, assuming that you are getting dual-pivot front & rear. The dual-pivot frt/single-pivot rear set-up is a bit lighter, but not quite as powerful in the ultimate. That difference, would indeed, be marginal, being that 80% of the braking is done by the front brake. I voted Campy, as that is what I use and always have (except SunTour back in the day). But, feel sure that dual-pivot front from SRAM and Shimano are just as powerful, with any noticeable differences being based on pads/rims used (for instance, bare aluminum is a better braking surface dry than is ceramic coated - with the opposite true in the wet). YMMV.

[velotel]

M5. I gave my Record Skels to my son because not only are the M5s lighter, as light as ZOs, but because they're braking effect is unreal. Forget what you may read about the M5s being off or on with poor modulation. I weight about 70 kgs and have never found the brakes to be anything other than smooth with perfect modulation. You may also read that they're really best for heavy riders due to their grabbiness or something like that but I'm obviously not even close to joining the heavy weight club and I have never found the brakes to be "too powerful". Ever.

[bike <3'er]

This is fantastic feebback thus far, thanks. I weigh in the 180's and love to fly downhill, great brakes are a focus for my new bike.

I will also replace/upgrade the pads w/Kool Stops.

[Ken Robb]

I can lock any wheel any time with 6500, 7700, Chorus dbl. pivots but when I had 7800 DA they required even less effort than the others but still had good modulation too.

I have standard reach Ultegra brakes on my Ramboullet and they are also fine.

Swapping Jaguire pads for stock on my Nuovo Record brakes improved the performance but they are not in the same league as the modern double pivots listed above.

I haven't tried it yet but I think the best brakes might be Campy levers with quick release buttons and Shimano calipers with quick release levers so you could install fat tires without unscrewing the brake adjustor or deflating the tire.

[dave thompson]

Any of the 'better' Shimano or Campy brakes are going to be at least equal to the much higher priced ZG, M5 type brakes. I've found the KoolStop pads make a huge difference in the feel and effectiveness of whatever calipers they're used in.

[palincss]

Can you declare that brake caliper 'A' is more powerful than 'B'?


We were voting on "best", not "most powerful". My vote for "best" goes to the brazed on Paul's Centerpull - not because it's "more powerful" (whatever that means) but rather because its modulation is so far beyond anything I've ever tried before that I feel as though I only thought I knew what brake modulation was until now.

[Z3c]

KCNC has a lower weight, easier set-up, great looks and a lower price. Plus they come with both carbon and alu pads..

Scott

[Bill Bove]

I have grown quite fond of the Shimano coaster brake I have been riding lately.

Beach Cruisers Rule!

Ah, if only Campy made a cruiser grupo...

[ridemoreoften]

I have zero gravity on a bike recently purchased and find them not as good as campy. just bought a set of campy skeleton brakes and intend to ebay the zero gravities.

[caleb]

DA and Mavic SSC are both really strong.

[bike <3'er]

DA and Mavic SSC are both really strong.

Mavic SSC is intriguing in that it uses a lever/leaf spring, not a coiled spring.

http://www.bikemecca.com/mavicbrakes.html

[mike p]

Many of those on the list would be fine but DA 7800 sets the standard for stopping power and modulation.

Mike

[velotel]

Thought I'd add a bit of precision to my words regarding M5 brakes after reading some of the other comments. First, the poll question didn't mention price hence I put that aside, at least for those of you in the states. For me the M5s aren't outrageously priced since I live in euroland. I also was able to buy them wholesale and that made a very sweet difference. If I had to pay full retail in american $s, I doubt I'd have bought the M5s; I would have stayed with my Record Skeleton brakes.
I define power for brakes as the resulting force exerted on the wheel rims relative to the pressure exerted by the fingers. In other words with my M5s, the finger pressure is, to my thinking, remarkably light while the force applied to the wheel rims is all that I could ever dream of having. The result is far less fatigue when braking during long descents. Note that a majority of my riding is done in the Alps where long descents are the rule, not the exception. Grades are generally relatively steep throughout the descent which means lots of braking is required since the roads are never straight.
With the M5s I'm carrying more speed deeper into the turns than I ever have because of the brakes' ability to easily shed massive amounts of speed. The other aspect of their performance that I love is the ease with which I can modulate my braking effort which in the descents around here is important because most of the time I'm still braking deep into the curve, sometimes almost to the exit. But obviously any braking in a turn has to be applied gently and smoothly and usually, but not always, by the back brake and in this I find the M5s to be remarkable. With the M5s, the braking effect is linear to the finger pull, i.e. squeeze more and I slow more without ever feeling like I'm sqeezing more and more and getting less and less increase in the braking pressure.
And finally to put this in perspective, the brakes that were replaced by the M5s were Record Skeletons, which up until I started using the M5s I thought were as good a brake as I could hope to have. I also have years of experience with Chorus brakes and some limited experience with Dura Ace, Ultegra SL, and the Shimano long reach brakes. I have no experience with Zero Gravity brakes but have a friend, an ex-racer who is still quite strong and still races for the fun of it, who ran those brakes for a short bit. He got rid of them because of too much flex and a huge loss in braking effect.

[rockdude]

Switched out my Campy Record for Mavic SSC. Here in the Rockies they are great.

[sg8357]

Another vote for Paul Center Pulls, brazed on.
Shimano DPs always feel like on/off switches when I ride
the Crescent after riding the Kvale with the Paul CPs.

My favorite cantilever are Pauls Touring.

Scott G.

[PoppaWheelie]

I rode Dura Ace for years, then switched to Record in '02. I've been through all the iterations of the Record brakes (incl. Skeletons) and the M5's that I currently use blow them all away by a long shot. They're ugly as sin and expensive as all get out (I thankfully didn't pay full retail) but for my 170lb butt they rock...modulation is no problem and the amount of force they can put into a rim is amazing.

[Kevan]

I think most riders are braking improperly, is what's the matter. Seems folk place too much reliance on the back brake to bring them to a stop when 70/80% should be coming from the front. A good quality brake, on a dry day, should be just about the same. I can't tell any difference in the Campy/Shimano stopping I've done.

Just sayin'

Just saying.

[avalonracing]

I still miss the stopping power of my record 8 speed brakes.