BEST BRAKES (weight weenies, stay away!)

[tsarpepe]

I would like to take a poll on what you would consider, from your experience, to the best brakeset available currently, WITH NO CONSIDERATION OF WEIGHT. Let's hear it!

[johnnymossville]

Dura-Ace are the best I've used, Though I love my Campy Record D-Skeletons

[spartacus]

DA....if you're talking about road caliper brakes. In rain, and winter snow and ice conditions disc brakes are the best.

[AngryScientist]

i have limited experience but from what i've heard the DA brakes combined with the new 7900 levers provide excellent modulation.

that said, a lot of it comes down to the pads and rim surface. i've never ridden anything that worked better than my chorus skeleton calipers with swiss stop pads

[skijoring]

Modolo Professionals :)

Dura-Ace.

[WeakRider]

First tier:
DA 7800 (haven't tried 7900 yet)

Second tier:
TRP R920
SRAM Rival
SRAM Force

Third tier:
Campy Chorus Skeleton
Campy Record Skeleton

1,000th tier:

Zero Gravity
Any cantilever


*Dying to try EE Brakes and TRP R960s*

[Mark McM]

What do mean by "best brakes?"

The best brakes are the ones attached to a vehicle that won't pitch over at only 1/2 g of deceleration or skid the rear wheel at 1/4 g of deceleration.

While there are certainly some awful brakes out there, on a bicycle the brakes themselves can only get so good before they exceed the stopping capabilities of the rest of the bike.

The best stopping, of course, is when braking at just below the maximum limits of the vehicle - but most often the ability to stay at that point is limited by the operator, not the equipment.

[tsarpepe]

What do mean by "best brakes?"



OK, I thought the question was self-explanatory... I said, "in your experience," so this is the ultimate criterium: which brakes do you have absolute confidence in, regardless of conditions, regardless of weight. Obviously, I understand that pads matter, so we throw these out of the equation as well, i.e., let's assume the same kind of pads on the calipers being compared.

[AngryScientist]

for me the "best brakes" means the stiffest - little or no flexing, direct feedback from the amount of brake pressure, and little or no brake fade, largely pad and rim surface dependent.

[Mark McM]

OK, I thought the question was self-explanatory... I said, "in your experience," so this is the ultimate criterium: which brakes do you have absolute confidence in, regardless of conditions, regardless of weight. Obviously, I understand that pads matter, so we throw these out of the equation as well, i.e., let's assume the same kind of pads on the calipers being compared.

Aria drum brake on the rear hub as a drag brake, with Magura hydraulic caliper brakes on the front and rear wheels.

[natextr]

DA 7900 with Yokozuna cable housing and Gore innerwires. BUTTERY!

[merckx]

I have extensive experience with Campy and Shimano, and in my opinion, Mavic SSC brakes top those offerings. They have great stopping power and modulation. However, my guess is that the re-introduction of Campy's duel pivot brakeset will be right up there for those two attributes.

[54ny77]

when i stick my ears out the downforce is incredible.

[shiftyfixedgear]

Isn't this as pointless as asking what the best saddle is ?

[Kirk007]

I only ride with brakes that I have absolute confidence in and that would include dura ace, campy record, chorus, shimano ultegra long reach and mavic ssc. They all work; I don't see any of them being better than the other.

[false_Aest]

I've tried

a metric eff-tonne of OEM brakes
Mavic SSC
Tektro's high end
105
Ultegra
Dura Ace
some kind've Campy something

and am currently using Bontrager SpeedLimits

I'm young (yeah I've never used downtube shifters) and have yet to experience a really crappy set of brakes. Brake pads are a different story.

Then again, I tend to brake in order to go faster not to stop.

I will say this:

Brakes designed for Campy don't seem to pull correctly when you combine them with Sram.



I see people talking about modulation. I don't get it. Yeah there are different spring tensions and all that jazz but how much does that really matter after a few hundred miles or a few hundred lever squeezes?

[CNY rider]

Paul's.
Say it again.
Paul's.

[tsarpepe]

Isn't this as pointless as asking what the best saddle is ?

No, not at all!!! Different buts have different structure. So sitting is a personal thing. Stopping is not!!!

[mike p]

DA...that was easy!

Mike

[torquer]

Modolo Professionals :)
Why all the hate for MoPros?
In 1981 (my second year racing, ready to make the big jump to Cat. 3) I built up an SL-tubed Guerciotti with Campy drivetrain but saved a few lire on Modolo brakes, which I used for over a decade, and I didn't crash any more (or any less, truth be told) than the other guys. Modolo pads were "Sinterized" or some such, which was like going to 11 in those days.
And Modolo, I believe, was the source Mavic used for their brakes, which seem go get a lot of love.
I agree, those weird brifters they made were a horrorshow, but the brakes were fine.

[Uncle Jam's Army]

EE Brakes. Just as much stopping power as DA, better modulation, and lighter weight.

[mpetry]

Paul Racers mounted on Alex Singer "direct to the frame" bosses, with Kool Stop pads, Campagnolo housings, and Velo-Orange roller straddles. Solid feel, great modulation, and arresting hook retardation.

Campagnolo Skeletons are nice too - excellent modulaton. Anybody tried those Bontrager deep section brakes? Can't use 'em with fenders.

Mark Petry
Bainbridge Island, WA

[jeffreyt]

I'd also have to say EE Brakes, but then again I haven't tried DA since I switched to Campy about 10 years ago.

[Jack Brunk]

AX Lightness Orion Brakes

M5 brakes

For me these brakes are the best I've used on the road.

Formula R1 disk brakes are my run away best for the mountain bike.

[Frankwurst]

The kind that stop when I want to. :beer:

[thwart]

DA for absolute stopping power.

Campy Record for modulation + power (for stopping under control, without the back tire sliding).

Best test is panic stopping, IMO. Then again, we don't have mountains here... :rolleyes:

[Louis]

I have to believe that modulation is the key characteristic. Nearly any brake can lock up a wheel. The important thing is to be able to absorb (i.e. convert to heat) as much kinetic energy as possible without locking up the wheel.

So, since you control the amount of force applied, whatever allows you to modulate best would IMO be the best brake.

[Andreas]

I would be happy with any of them, really.
SRAM, Shimano, M5, Campy, Tektro - never had a prob with any of them.

Best? DA for power and modulation.
Paul Racers for modulation.
SRAM second for power and modulation.
Campy third, but good enough.

[Dekonick]

Campy brakes, veloce to record all work just fine. For canti's - Paul. And if your frame will take them, paul racer brakes are awesome.

[krhea]

I'm 205lbs and ride in Portland and surrounding hills. My favs are my M5s and Mavic SSC. We ride the Mavics on our tandem as well and have amazing performance.

KRhea

[Rueda Tropical]

Paul Racer or Racer M's mounted to braze on studs.

[rockdude]

Mavic!!! bought some M5s but went back to Mavic. The EE's sound good but I have all the brake I need right now.

[don compton]

of the 4 bikes that i ride, 3 have std. reach brakes( long reach compared to modern race brakes ). i recently experimented with "koolstop salmon pads". my longreach, spongy brakes are now in the superb category. :beer:
don c.

[jbay]

Aria drum brake on the rear hub as a drag brake, with Magura hydraulic caliper brakes on the front and rear wheels.We use a variation of Mark's suggestion on the weight-no-object (as the OP specified) tandem:

- Arai drum brake on the rear for drag braking (as opposed to drag racing).
- Avid BB7 with 205mm (?) rotor up front.
- Bruce Gordon cantilever for the rear rim brake.

Given that it's a tandem, we can easily outstop solo bikes in the dry, but use a little more discretion when it's wet out.

-- John

[milehighness]

Mavic SSC. Modulation cannot be beat for calipers.

[spartacus]

What do mean by "best brakes?"

The best brakes are the ones attached to a vehicle that won't pitch over at only 1/2 g of deceleration or skid the rear wheel at 1/4 g of deceleration.

While there are certainly some awful brakes out there, on a bicycle the brakes themselves can only get so good before they exceed the stopping capabilities of the rest of the bike.

The best stopping, of course, is when braking at just below the maximum limits of the vehicle - but most often the ability to stay at that point is limited by the operator, not the equipment.

A front brake should provide a maximum of 0.66 g of stopping force before the rear wheel begins to lift of the ground. The back brake 0.33 g before the rear wheel begins to skid.

[dave thompson]

Good to know that. I'll be installing an accelerometer on my bars first thing tomorrow.

[dookie]

I have extensive experience with Campy and Shimano, and in my opinion, Mavic SSC brakes top those offerings. They have great stopping power and modulation. However, my guess is that the re-introduction of Campy's duel pivot brakeset will be right up there for those two attributes.

+1 for the current dual-pivot SSCs. hands down the 'best' calipers i've ever used (including various iterations of DA/record/chorus, sram red, ZG, M5 and feather).

[alancw3]

best brakes ever! that could have different meanings. hmm from a functional standpoint dura ace 7800. from a totally asthetic standpoint campagnolo delta's!! they are the most beautiful brakes ever produced imho. i understand they were a b*tch to tune though.

[Mark McM]

A front brake should provide a maximum of 0.66 g of stopping force before the rear wheel begins to lift of the ground. The back brake 0.33 g before the rear wheel begins to skid.

The actual limits are specific to the geometry of both the bike and the rider. For a short rider on a long wheelbase frame it may be larger, and for a tall rider on a short wheelbase frame it may be smaller.

And in any case, the stopping time/distance of a bicycle is much larger than for a car or motorcycle, which can typically decelerate at about 0.9 g (or sometimes greater).

(As a side note, here in Massachussetts, by law bicycles must be able to stop from 15 mph in 30 feet, which is a deceleration rate of 0.25 g. A single rear wheel brake can typically accomplish this so just about any bike with a working brake is fine. But a fixed gear bike without a brake is unlikely to be able to be stopped this quickly, so despite their popularity with courriers and hipsters, a brake-less fixed gear bike would actually be illegal on Massachusetts roads.)

[Ramjm_2000]

I'm riding Zero G's but I'm really thinkning about putting my SSCs back on. Less fuss, great modulation. Best brake I've used.

[RPS]

What do mean by "best brakes?"

The best brakes are the ones attached to a vehicle that won't pitch over at only 1/2 g of deceleration or skid the rear wheel at 1/4 g of deceleration.

While there are certainly some awful brakes out there, on a bicycle the brakes themselves can only get so good before they exceed the stopping capabilities of the rest of the bike.

The best stopping, of course, is when braking at just below the maximum limits of the vehicle - but most often the ability to stay at that point is limited by the operator, not the equipment.
I have Ultegra calipers on my Co-Motion tandem and I can apply much more stopping force than I can on my single bikes with same brakes. That doesn't make them the "best" by any means, but I trust they can take a lot of stopping force compared to what I can use on a single bike.

[tsarpepe]

best brakes ever! that could have different meanings. hmm from a functional standpoint dura ace 7800. from a totally asthetic standpoint campagnolo delta's!! they are the most beautiful brakes ever produced imho. i understand they were a b*tch to tune though.

If this is a question about what I meant, then the answer is: strictly functional.

[velotel]

M5, Record Skeleton

[sean]

Record Skeleton with Kool Stop Salmon pads

Paul Cantis, Front neo retro, rear touring with Dual Compound Thinline pads and a hunter barrel adjuster.

[Ahneida Ride]

One can't really talk about brake and not include a discussion of brake pads.

Replace crappy OEM Shemanno and Crampy pads with salmon Kool Stops
and then formulate an opinion.

In my opinion, OEM pads suck. :no:

Imagine a 911 on tires designed for a Hugo.

[sean]

I'm a huge fan of Scotty/Kool/Yokozuna- they take the worst of brakes and make them millions of times better.

[rice rocket]

madcow @ Fairwheel Bikes posted a brake shootout. It is somewhat weight focused, but he rates them by power and modulation as well.

http://fairwheelbikes.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=104&t=7582

[Frankwurst]

Paul Cantis, Front neo retro, rear touring with Dual Compound Thinline pads and a hunter barrel adjuster.

Hang on when you decide to throw out the hooks. I have this setup on a couple of bikes and if you need to stop any faster your in way to deep. :beer:

[tsarpepe]

madcow @ Fairwheel Bikes posted a brake shootout. It is somewhat weight focused, but he rates them by power and modulation as well.

http://fairwheelbikes.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=104&t=7582

Thanks for posting this. I wasn't aware of it. The person did a great job, but the test is a bit strange nevertheless. Only the top dogs in weight/price are in the race, with DA 7900 included DESPITE its weight. The Mavic SSC (which is a favorite in this thread) has not made it.

[champ]

+1 on the Mavic SSC's if you ride Campy.

[19wisconsin64]

I'm very happy with my SRAM Red calipers. Just switched from Dura Ace 7800. They seem to have slightly better modulation. Just my 2 cents.

[54ny77]

I decry the lack of machismo here.

Be a man, take the brakes off your bike.

[climbgdh]

I decry the lack of machismo here.

Be a man, take the brakes off your bike.

POTD..... good one!! :beer:

[Mark McM]

I decry the lack of machismo here.

Be a man, take the brakes off your bike.

Brakes? Who needs brakes? Brakes just slow you down!

[Kirk007]

Seems to me this thread proves that there are many good brakes out there and trying to subjectively pick the best is an exercise in futility. Perhaps I'm simply lacking in sensitivity, but at 6'3" and 205-220 lbs depending on the season and a propensity for bombing down Western mountain passes, both steep and straight and steep and twisty, I do tend to pay attention to whether I'm able to stop or slowdown the bike. And between various campy record (skeleton and prior) ultegra long reach, current Mavic SSCs, I've always stopped and slowed down just fine. Unlike many here, I find the Mavic's to be less to my liking than the others.

The Fairbikes shootout is interesting, but to me its most interesting only to find out how much you can more $$ you can pay in order to stop your bike to save a few grams of nonrotational weight.

Huh, either I'm getting old and cranky, more fiscally responsible or just boarded sitting in the Missoula MT airport....

[RkyMtn]

Of the brakes I have run: Shimano, Campy, Mavic, Feather, Modolo, and the many I have tested on test rides, I have the Mavic SSC brakes at the top of my favorite brake list. Light, smooth action and stopping power really set this brake apart from the others.

[oldpotatoe]

best brakes ever! that could have different meanings. hmm from a functional standpoint dura ace 7800. from a totally asthetic standpoint campagnolo delta's!! they are the most beautiful brakes ever produced imho. i understand they were a b*tch to tune though.

Hear, hear!!!

I use Deltas(last gen, 5 pivot) almost everyday. Speed modulators..the closest thing to ABS on a bicycle.

Not that tough to set up, but more difficult than most. least favorite are mavics..seem wimpy compared to Campagnolo or shimano.

[dimsy]

i've only used 3 different kinds of brakes and as far as power is concerned, they go in this order from best to least best...

Dura Ace 7800

Campy Record pre skeleton

Ultegra 6600

I used the brakes in the reverse order of the list above. so they progressively got better, and noticeably so.

[TAW]

Converse all-stars. Or a pump in your spokes--no modulation however. ;)

[sg8357]

Gawd, 4 pages and no testimony for Campy Deltas ?

No love for Universal 61s ?, how 'bout a shoutout for Resilion ?

I vote for the style leader pre-war LAM brakes with the matching levers.

[ColnagoLightxx]

I ride Campy Record brakes..and they work perfectly well. Just replace the OEM pads with Swiss stops..or Kool stops..then your set, no need to pay $500 for a set of brakes.

[choke]

Hear, hear!!!

I use Deltas(last gen, 5 pivot) almost everyday. Speed modulators..the closest thing to ABS on a bicycle. +1 I've never felt the need for anything other than Deltas, they work perfectly fine for me.

[cincytri]

I have always really like Dura Ace 7800. They seem to be very easy to set up and adjust if needed when swapping wheels. I tried the Zero Gravity Negative G's, and while they were very light and sweet looking, they were a lot more trouble keeping centered. Every ride required a bit of tinkering. I know others were able to get them right and loved them, but I just never had the time or patience to fool with them for very long. Dura Ace from now on...