Quick question for the MTBers.

[XXtwindad]

My daughter seems to like riding in the dirt. So…time to build up my MTB again. I’m a complete noob when it comes to this stuff. (Frankly, I’m not much better when it comes to road bike technology).

I ride mostly fire roads. We have plenty of them here in the Bay Area. Long climbs to epic views. Of course, what goes up… So, with that in mind do I need two piston or four piston brakes? Is it frame dependent (2012 Alliance Ti hardtail) Or rider dependent? (195 lbs roughly)

Thanks for any feedback.

[.RJ]

4 pot front / 2 pot rear seems to be a good balance of weight/cost/stopping power, but, all that said if you can score a set of shimano SLX or XT brakes for cheap (there always seems to be sales) either configuration will be fine.

Dont forget about rotor size either, 180 (front) and 160 (rear) is pretty common.

[Likes2ridefar]

I’ve two piston SLX brakes with 180/160 rotors on my down country full suspension bike and never felt it lacked any power.

Hope has this chart for recommended brakes by weight and the type of riding:
https://www.hopetech.com/products/br...lection-guide/

[Alistair]

Second vote for 4-pot front, 2-pot rear. Saves a few grams over 4-pot all around. And the 4-pot gives you a bit more power and consistency on longer descents.

Last gen SRAM brakes were on sale not long ago. I snagged Guide Ultimate front and Level Ultimate rears for a heavy discount a few weeks ago.

SLX from Shimano is a good budget option. Or XT for a few more dollars.

The current SRAM brakes are nice. Redesigned the lines to stay closer to bar - better for bar bags; looks clean. But not likely to be on sale.

[p nut]

I’m going to disagree with most of the comments and say 4 piston brakes are not necessary for a beginner teenage girl riding XC trails/fireroads. I rode 2 piston brakes for years just fine. I imagine I ride faster and more aggressive than she is right now (for now anyway). She’ll be fine with any good hydraulic brakes.
I’d just get some cheap Deore, SLX or XT brakes. I see them for sale for pretty cheap locally.

[XXtwindad]

Originally Posted by p nut

I’m going to disagree with most of the comments and say 4 piston brakes are not necessary for a beginner teenage girl riding XC trails/fireroads. I rode 2 piston brakes for years just fine. I imagine I ride faster and more aggressive than she is right now (for now anyway). She’ll be fine with any good hydraulic brakes.
I’d just get some cheap Deore, SLX or XT brakes. I see them for sale for pretty cheap locally.

Brakes are for me. I’m much more risk adverse than a teen-age girl.

Thanks for all the feedback!

[XXtwindad]

Originally Posted by Likes2ridefar

I’ve two piston SLX brakes with 180/160 rotors on my down country full suspension bike and never felt it lacked any power.

Hope has this chart for recommended brakes by weight and the type of riding:
https://www.hopetech.com/products/br...lection-guide/

Handy guide. Thanks!

[p nut]

Originally Posted by XXtwindad

Brakes are for me. I’m much more risk adverse than a teen-age girl.

Thanks for all the feedback!

Oh, ha ha. But still, you’ll not get any benefit from a 4-piston set up, in my opinion. And you’ll have 2x $ the pads to replace every time.

[nmrt]

2-pot front and rear should work perfectly well for your weight and where you riding. But when has that stopped us Paceliners from getting something more burly. Yet, I encourage you to get the 2-pot but increase the rotor diameter.

I say veer away from the 4-pistons because depending on the brand of 4-pots you choose, they could be more finicky to set and and completely eliminate brake rub due to them having four brake pads per caliper, for example, Magura MT7 and MT5 (superb brakes btw).

2-pots are simpler to set up, lighter (no that it matters -- cannot believe a true weight weenie like me is saying this) and will have more than sufficient power when complemented with 180 mm rotors.

And no, the 2-pot Vs 4-pot should not be frame dependent.

[Spaghetti Legs]

Ha long time ago I rode those roads with no suspension and very much inexpertly adjusted Shimano canti brakes. I also crashed a fair amount so there is that.

[.RJ]

Originally Posted by nmrt

I say veer away from the 4-pistons because depending on the brand of 4-pots you choose, they could be more finicky to set and and completely eliminate brake rub due to them having four brake pads per caliper, for example, Magura MT7 and MT5 (superb brakes btw).

Wut? Every 4 pot mtb brake I've ever used has 2 pads per caliper, and the 4 pot Hope RX4's on my gravel bike are also 2 pads per caliper.

The upside is better pad wear and modulation, but, we're splitting hairs on that.

[nmrt]

As I mentioned in my previous post, MT5 and MT7.

Originally Posted by .RJ

Wut? Every 4 pot mtb brake I've ever used has 2 pads per caliper, and the 4 pot Hope RX4's on my gravel bike are also 2 pads per caliper.

The upside is better pad wear and modulation, but, we're splitting hairs on that.

[rkhatibi]

2pot Shimano SLX is fine for the riding you describe. If you really want the upgrade, Merlin has 4pot XT for same price as 2pot XT.

https://www.merlincycles.com/en-us/s...et-179622.html

[dan_hudson]

Originally Posted by .RJ

Dont forget about rotor size either, 180 (front) and 160 (rear) is pretty common.

Consider 200/180 instead of 180/160? Seems like more everyday trail bikes are being spec-ed with larger rotors these days, especially if you have longer descents on your local trails. Probably will make a bigger performance diff than 4-pot vs 2. Have made such a switch on my MTBs, hardtail included.

[pwgoode]

Originally Posted by XXtwindad

My daughter seems to like riding in the dirt. So…time to build up my MTB again. I’m a complete noob when it comes to this stuff. (Frankly, I’m not much better when it comes to road bike technology).

I ride mostly fire roads. We have plenty of them here in the Bay Area. Long climbs to epic views. Of course, what goes up… So, with that in mind do I need two piston or four piston brakes? Is it frame dependent (2012 Alliance Ti hardtail) Or rider dependent? (195 lbs roughly)

Thanks for any feedback.

2 pot front and rear with 180 rotor front and 160 rear. Should be plenty of stopping power. I have XT, SLX and Deore on three different bikes right now. The XTs are an older version. I cannot tell much difference between the 3. All work very well. I am still scarred from using SRAM's Juicy and Elixir brakes a long time ago so I can't speak about the more current offerings.