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This may seem pedantic but, while it is accurate to say bumping up the rotor size from 200 to 220ish provides "an extra 10% braking surface per wheel revolution", isn't the relevant concern the 10% larger radius of the rotor? That is what gives the extra stopping power. I could see the braking surface area being valuable if we were discussing heat dissipation, but heat didn't seem to be the source of brash's problems with his BR-520s.
P.S. Hello fellow CT rider. Do you hit Case Mountain or Grayville on the regular?
For what it's worth, from what I have read, SRAM suggests that if your rotors are showing a purple or rainbow discoloration, they are running too hot, and you should size up. If the rotors are browned or bronzed, they are at the optimal size. If there's no distinct discoloration, they may not be getting hot enough, and you should consider sizing down, so it it kinda depends on the specific color.
I’m a Grayville local, I was riding there yesterday. I also hit up Case and Blackledge fairly often too.
Announcement from DT Swiss/Trickstuff today, I thought it might be of interest for this forum thread specifically:
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trickstuff GmbH is closing its Pfaffenweiler establishment and relocating its registered office to Oelde
The Board of Directors of DT Swiss Group AG and the Managing Director of Trickstuff GmbH have decided, for economic and strategic reasons, to relocate the registered office of Trickstuff GmbH from Pfaffenweiler to Oelde as of July 1, 2025. The establishment in Pfaffenweiler will be closed as of June 30, 2025. Trickstuff will remain as a brand and provider of high-quality brakes and brake components. Sales, market development and customer service will be based at the new registered office of Trickstuff GmbH in Oelde. Engineering, product management and marketing are handled by DT Swiss AG in Biel. The assembly of Trickstuff products will then be carried out by DT Swiss Polska SP. z o.o. in Oborniki.
The dynamic market development of the last three years and especially the challenges in the MTB market segment make these measures unavoidable. The goal is to continue ensuring the competitiveness and independence of the Trickstuff brand.
"The decision to close the Pfaffenweiler establishment of Trickstuff GmbH in the Freiburg-Im-Breisgau region and thus to make the redundancies was not easy for us. The employees of Trickstuff have worked very hard on the development of the brand and the company in recent years," explains Frank Böckmann, CEO and Chairman of the Board of Directors of AG. He further emphasizes: "We are aware that the enthusiasm of the team and the location in the Black Forest are a large part of the brand's identity. Therefore, it is very important to us to carefully accompany the affected employees. We are conducting individual discussions about their professional future, with the aim of providing individual advice and support."
The business and brand partners of Trickstuff were immediately informed about the upcoming changes after the internal communication on May 5, 2025 to enable a smooth transition. Ensuring service quality and the availability of spare and individual parts are the focus. The existing product portfolio of Trickstuff will continue to be available in consistently high quality and quantity through authorized partners (https://www.trickstuff.com/en/support/dealer-locator) as well as through the Trickstuff webshop (https://webshop.trickstuff.com).
ABOUT TRICKSTUFF
Trickstuff has been a brand of DT Swiss Group AG since 2022 and has been known for outstanding brake pads and brake systems that define new performance categories for several years. The development and assembly of CNC precision parts, which are mainly produced in Germany, contribute to the uniqueness of the brand.
Not even produced in germany then ? That's surprising
The bean counters always win, don't they?
How do you like your new Trickstuffski?
Bummer, especially after the Freiburg bikefest weekend. This is what happens when you sell to big bike companies. Any decent riding in Oelde?
Dang! Was very close to biting the bullet and buying their brakes. A huge selling factor was "made in Germany"... And thats no longer the case it appears.
I wonder if DT Swiss will bother to lower prices... Or will they just be pocketing all that extra margin from cheaper labor/operations/supply chains.
Either way, not the best look DT Swiss. I wish the best luck to all the folks who lost their jobs because of corporate greed.
Trickstuff brakes are Massively expensive, They are trying to get the price down by cutting costs... a company that survives is better than one that Files for bankruptcy. Have to sell products with profit to stay in business, im sure your successful business understands that.
As a Trickstuff owner, they are fantastic but that cost is deadly when they are more than 2 x the price of maven ultimates/hope t4v4.
But will they actually bring the cost down? That has yet to be determined. Ultimately I understand a need for a business needing to survive, but we don't know if they were profitable, we don't know if this was done to save money on DT Swiss's end. From my perspective, the long lead times despite high prices were an indicator that the business was working.
That press release didn't read like it was done for the benefit of the consumer or the former employees for that matter.
My understanding is there was slow production due to scale ability of being made locally, Trying to make local products when you have to wait in line is hard work. Which drove prices of these brakes up, With DtSwiss they have a much bigger ability to create in bulk and go more 'mass production'
The lay off read like they were working in an expensive part of Germany, You remove that expensive part, push through more production(are they still being made by the same supplier but not in bulk order?)
With the DT take over i would assume they can assist in that production and with the ability to bring the lead people inside their own business which creates less cost for that 'department' Normally you get more production and more product being sold, Does this mean lower pricing? Id like to only ASSUME they are trying to bring the price down but it wont happen fast.
bulk selling for less is generally a big business thing - hopefully still made in the same factory but bulk production discount.
I could be way wrong which ill accept, dont know what i dont know.... but regardless for us consumers we now have trickstuff for sale locally through the dtswiss chain.
I keep Pair's of shimano XT brakes around to go on Bikes i sell because people love that for some reason and i keep the trickstuff brakes.
Did you even read the announcement?
do you believe everything on the TV or only read what you want, does everyone live your life for you?
We work with DTswiss and their supply chain to us... So id like to safely assume their more insider stuff is true than what a press release reads.
When i worked at a previous job, Our Press releases for media were often twisted truths.
Are the Code Rs on my Spartan worth tinkering with to improve? Say, adding Code RSC levers?
Or should I get MT7s, Cura 4s, Dominions, Lewis, Hope, DHRs? (Bonus points to not having to run new brake lines and Matchmaker compatible). There are just so many choices now I'm not sure which way to go, but I have read the Code Rs are bottom tier.
I took it out last night for a post-winter shakedown and though they are noticeably stronger than the Guide RSCs on my other bike, they have never felt adequate for what I use the bike for; I like riding steep jank and tough natural features.
What do you all think?
The Code R's do not have the swing link I think its called and it changes the feel a fair amount.
getting the rsc lever will only polish the turd, still a very meh brake will be and at a big expense, i'd rather pair the calipers with some Tech 4 masters if you really want to change levers only.
Better brakes will definitely improve your riding experience.
and don't be lazy either install the new lines it's a 5/10min job depending on the bike, on the first pages of this discussion there's some reccomendations based on budget and lever feel you're after but any of the options other than Lewis are solid, for what you're riding i'd go for the Hope T4V4, Huge power, Huge Modulation, light lever, look good, easy to service, not too expensive
Yeah that's the impetus behind just getting a set of used Code RSC masters. I'd just change the top half. Easy.
What I'm wondering is if the the performance difference between R and RSC is significant, or marginal. I don't know anyone with Code RSCs so I cannot test them.
The performance difference is tangible for sure. Once you get into the heavier braking the power ramps up more, it feels less “woody” in the middle to end part of the lever stroke compared to the R. If you want a real upgrade in power, Mavens or Hope Tech 4.
My hot take is SRAM brakes that aren't the RSC (now SLV/Silver) model aren't worth using for aggressive riding. The Swing link and Contact adjuster are really key to making them work well. I've owned Code RSCs, rented bikes with Code Rs, and now own 3 pairs of Maven Ults.
Better brake pads than the stock SRAM ones will help also. I found the SRAM sintered pads for Codes to be pretty meh. Just about any aftermarket pad will be better (Galfer, MTX, etc.). The SRAM pads for Mavens got a lot better. And thicker rotors like HS2s.
I have Trucker Co gold pads in the mail that I will try.
If you had Code RSC I'd recommend using the levers with Dominion A4 calipers but with Code R unfortunately you will have to replace the whole brake system to get worthwhile improvements for your money. Code RSC levers will improve performance but for the cost and work involved wouldn't recommend that with so many great options out there.
I've heard nothing but bad experiences with Code Rs from other everyday riders and from enduro racers that have used them because their bike came with them stock.
Yeah I'm seeing that perspective. Full set of A4s or Cura 4s on the other site can be had for about $250. Sets of MT7s for $400. At this point I wonder which brand has better Matchmaker compatibility.
Matchmakers clamps deliver sub-par ergonomics on Hayes, Magura, Formula, and possibly (probably) all twin bolt clamp brake levers. IME it's much better to use discrete clamps.
Sram and Shimano levers and shifters can be combined interchangeably to achieve good ergonomics.
I don't know how well the newer clamps on TRP or Hope levers work.
Formula Matchmaker adapter has more range of rotational adjustment than Hayes or Magura but I know from personal experience that the wolftooth magura shiftmount to matchmaker adapter does work also with formula levers. Not sure if it works with Hayes but I would think so.
If that doesn't work for the exact shifter placement you want than yeah thin split band clamp like bikeyoke split clamp are your best bet.
I think maybe the Cura levers have a thinner master cylinder than Hayes or Magura which helps too. But I gave up trying with Matchmakers when using any 2-bolt clamps.
When I interviewed SRAM's Chris Mandell about the DB8 recently, he said the difference in brake power between a lever with Swinglink and a lever without was slightly less than the difference between bumping up one rotor size (+20mm). So it adds power, but not worlds of power.
Which brings me to another question: what size brake rotors and what pads are you running? I ran 220 HS2 rotors and SRAM metallic pads on the DB8's (no swinglink) and had power for days for all the riding around here, and that's as a decently heavy guy with the heaviest wheels in the world (dual 29" DH tires with Cushcore on alloy rims). I actually liked riding the DB8's more than Mavens for the trails around me, but that would likely be different if I were banging out laps at Whistler or Morzine.
Sram would have to make decent rotors before I take that seriously haha. I do not understand how sram makes such bad rotors.
i mean, the centerline are garbage, the hs2 have a nice braking surface but the spokes are too thin and flexy, they get out of true easily
Very significant.
RS is also very good (had the swinglink), but other than Guides, how many RS brakes were even available?
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