Are the Maven Bronze's the way to go if you're buying new? Lighter lever feel than the Silver and Ultimate?
I'd give the current Mavens a go first, and see if you even notice the lever pull issue before going down to the base. I'm 200+ lbs and enjoy how they feel. Even my wife at 140 lbs prefers the lever feel compared to pretty much everything else on the market.
I'd give the current Mavens a go first, and see if you even notice the lever pull issue before going down to the base. I'm 200+...
I'd give the current Mavens a go first, and see if you even notice the lever pull issue before going down to the base. I'm 200+ lbs and enjoy how they feel. Even my wife at 140 lbs prefers the lever feel compared to pretty much everything else on the market.
Personal opinion, I’d never buy anything sram if not ultimate/silver level.
Base might have a nicer pull but they’re on bushings, that will get sloppy and noisy quick, just like everything else they make.
And this is a fact, not an opinion.
Same with having the contact adjust on the higher end maven, if not base I’d 100% recommend those, you can make them softer and they work great.
I have done that dumb pull the lever until contact and check the weight, it was the same as any XT/XTR brake out of the box, so they’re heavy pull when compared to the super light ones ( Hope, Hayes, Trickstuff, Radic, Lewis and so on )
But the fact that they grab so much means you don’t get as fatigued, I hate heavy levers but I get less arm pump from the mavens than from a set of XT with lots less power.
Hey all, can anyone help with a huge dilemma I’m having? I currently run code rsc with 223mm galfer wave and galfer purple pads. These work great and tend to not over heat too badly for me, I also really like the lever feel. However I’m a big guy at 6’4” and 250lbs so have been looking at either some maven ultimates or hope T4V4 for more power, hopefully keeping a similar lever feel in terms of modulation. I’m UK based, but do a fair amount of uplifted riding in the UK and Europe. At this point I’m going round in circles trying to decide which way to go, hope or sram. Can anyone help me out who has tried both brakes? thanks
Hey all, can anyone help with a huge dilemma I’m having? I currently run code rsc with 223mm galfer wave and galfer purple pads. These work...
Hey all, can anyone help with a huge dilemma I’m having? I currently run code rsc with 223mm galfer wave and galfer purple pads. These work great and tend to not over heat too badly for me, I also really like the lever feel. However I’m a big guy at 6’4” and 250lbs so have been looking at either some maven ultimates or hope T4V4 for more power, hopefully keeping a similar lever feel in terms of modulation. I’m UK based, but do a fair amount of uplifted riding in the UK and Europe. At this point I’m going round in circles trying to decide which way to go, hope or sram. Can anyone help me out who has tried both brakes? thanks
Well if it is for modulation, considering you also live in the UK with Hope right next to you, I'd go for the Hopes.
You also have the new Hope Evos to choose from
I have a set of new, unused Hope tech 4v4 in my room that I would be using right now if it wasn't for the luck of grabbing a pair of intend trinity. Dale Stone has a good video on the tech 4v4
Hey all, can anyone help with a huge dilemma I’m having? I currently run code rsc with 223mm galfer wave and galfer purple pads. These work...
Hey all, can anyone help with a huge dilemma I’m having? I currently run code rsc with 223mm galfer wave and galfer purple pads. These work great and tend to not over heat too badly for me, I also really like the lever feel. However I’m a big guy at 6’4” and 250lbs so have been looking at either some maven ultimates or hope T4V4 for more power, hopefully keeping a similar lever feel in terms of modulation. I’m UK based, but do a fair amount of uplifted riding in the UK and Europe. At this point I’m going round in circles trying to decide which way to go, hope or sram. Can anyone help me out who has tried both brakes? thanks
If modulation is a thing Hope 100% If you want a more brutal brake then Mavens
They’re both good, look and quality wise Hopes are hard to beat, and yeah being in the Uk 100% Hope
First day on the XT 8120’s at the bike park in the heat 93F/33C and my first oh shit moment with the rear brake momentarily going to the bar. Only happened the one time and the brakes weren’t even hot yet. That’ll wake you up!
Any fix for this? Bleed feels great, it came right back with two quick pumps… but it’s 2025 and that seems crazy to me.
Hey all, can anyone help with a huge dilemma I’m having? I currently run code rsc with 223mm galfer wave and galfer purple pads. These work...
Hey all, can anyone help with a huge dilemma I’m having? I currently run code rsc with 223mm galfer wave and galfer purple pads. These work great and tend to not over heat too badly for me, I also really like the lever feel. However I’m a big guy at 6’4” and 250lbs so have been looking at either some maven ultimates or hope T4V4 for more power, hopefully keeping a similar lever feel in terms of modulation. I’m UK based, but do a fair amount of uplifted riding in the UK and Europe. At this point I’m going round in circles trying to decide which way to go, hope or sram. Can anyone help me out who has tried both brakes? thanks
Well if it is for modulation, considering you also live in the UK with Hope right next to you, I'd go for the Hopes. You also have...
Well if it is for modulation, considering you also live in the UK with Hope right next to you, I'd go for the Hopes.
You also have the new Hope Evos to choose from
I have a set of new, unused Hope tech 4v4 in my room that I would be using right now if it wasn't for the luck of grabbing a pair of intend trinity. Dale Stone has a good video on the tech 4v4
Thanks for the advice. I’ll hold out for the hope evos.
First day on the XT 8120’s at the bike park in the heat 93F/33C and my first oh shit moment with the rear brake momentarily going...
First day on the XT 8120’s at the bike park in the heat 93F/33C and my first oh shit moment with the rear brake momentarily going to the bar. Only happened the one time and the brakes weren’t even hot yet. That’ll wake you up!
Any fix for this? Bleed feels great, it came right back with two quick pumps… but it’s 2025 and that seems crazy to me.
Double tap the brakes when you're riding shimanos... first tap will tell you where you're at, second pull will have full power. Most of my bikes have some form of slx, xt, xtr, or saint variant. I don't know how, I don't know why, but double tapping when riding them has kept me from having those oh shit moments.
First day on the XT 8120’s at the bike park in the heat 93F/33C and my first oh shit moment with the rear brake momentarily going...
First day on the XT 8120’s at the bike park in the heat 93F/33C and my first oh shit moment with the rear brake momentarily going to the bar. Only happened the one time and the brakes weren’t even hot yet. That’ll wake you up!
Any fix for this? Bleed feels great, it came right back with two quick pumps… but it’s 2025 and that seems crazy to me.
Double tap the brakes when you're riding shimanos... first tap will tell you where you're at, second pull will have full power. Most of my bikes...
Double tap the brakes when you're riding shimanos... first tap will tell you where you're at, second pull will have full power. Most of my bikes have some form of slx, xt, xtr, or saint variant. I don't know how, I don't know why, but double tapping when riding them has kept me from having those oh shit moments.
If I had to double tap my brakes every time I pulled them, I’d throw them straight in the trash. That’s not acceptable brake operation.
First day on the XT 8120’s at the bike park in the heat 93F/33C and my first oh shit moment with the rear brake momentarily going...
First day on the XT 8120’s at the bike park in the heat 93F/33C and my first oh shit moment with the rear brake momentarily going to the bar. Only happened the one time and the brakes weren’t even hot yet. That’ll wake you up!
Any fix for this? Bleed feels great, it came right back with two quick pumps… but it’s 2025 and that seems crazy to me.
1. Dbl/Trpl check your bleed. Easy to do. Flip the bike upside down and see if the brake starts going to the bar. If so, bleed, baby bleed. We're human. We err. It's part of being in this divine comedy. 2. If no bleed needed, do the piston massage trick as done on the Mavens. Those ceramic caliper pistons generate a lotta stiction due to the porous nature of the material. I posted about this sometime ago, here and elsewhere. It does help with, but not get rid of, the wandering bite point. Side, I'd like to thank Sram for introducing something I started blabbing to people about back in my industry days way over 15 years ago and making it seem like I'm not a kook. The things co's do to not have a 'leaky caliper' new out of the box. 3. and pretty much last resort. Swap the caliper pistons with aftermarket phenolic units found on Amazon/Ali/eBay. Since Shimano refuses to offer service kits and would likely not look at this as a warranty issue you may be on your own. We can leave the 'should I have to do this on new/near new brakes?' debate behind since we all know the answer esp in light of the new and improved brakes. I've used the Xnavi ones without issue. Downside/upside (depending on perspective) is pad gap decreases, so the brake engages way quicker. I loved it and so did the other 2 guys I swapped em out for.
Things to watch for. 1. torn reservoir diaphragm. If you're using 2 syringes to bleed the brakes it is way easy to tear the diaphragm. I learned that the hard way and I didn't even think I was pulling a big vac. As Shimano doesn't provide spares, you'll need to source the aftermarket ones from the same sites as the phenolic pistons. I did, it worked. 2. Ruptured hose or MC piston primary seal. Both can behave like there's no problem, both can give the same lever to the bar feel under a slow, easy pull of the lever. Diagnosing em requires a bleed block and the bleed cup. It's long-winded to write in an already long-winded reply. If it comes to that, lmk.
1. Dbl/Trpl check your bleed. Easy to do. Flip the bike upside down and see if the brake starts going to the bar. If so, bleed...
1. Dbl/Trpl check your bleed. Easy to do. Flip the bike upside down and see if the brake starts going to the bar. If so, bleed, baby bleed. We're human. We err. It's part of being in this divine comedy. 2. If no bleed needed, do the piston massage trick as done on the Mavens. Those ceramic caliper pistons generate a lotta stiction due to the porous nature of the material. I posted about this sometime ago, here and elsewhere. It does help with, but not get rid of, the wandering bite point. Side, I'd like to thank Sram for introducing something I started blabbing to people about back in my industry days way over 15 years ago and making it seem like I'm not a kook. The things co's do to not have a 'leaky caliper' new out of the box. 3. and pretty much last resort. Swap the caliper pistons with aftermarket phenolic units found on Amazon/Ali/eBay. Since Shimano refuses to offer service kits and would likely not look at this as a warranty issue you may be on your own. We can leave the 'should I have to do this on new/near new brakes?' debate behind since we all know the answer esp in light of the new and improved brakes. I've used the Xnavi ones without issue. Downside/upside (depending on perspective) is pad gap decreases, so the brake engages way quicker. I loved it and so did the other 2 guys I swapped em out for.
Things to watch for. 1. torn reservoir diaphragm. If you're using 2 syringes to bleed the brakes it is way easy to tear the diaphragm. I learned that the hard way and I didn't even think I was pulling a big vac. As Shimano doesn't provide spares, you'll need to source the aftermarket ones from the same sites as the phenolic pistons. I did, it worked. 2. Ruptured hose or MC piston primary seal. Both can behave like there's no problem, both can give the same lever to the bar feel under a slow, easy pull of the lever. Diagnosing em requires a bleed block and the bleed cup. It's long-winded to write in an already long-winded reply. If it comes to that, lmk.
Bleed is good. Done with syringe and cup. It was very dusty and there are no signs of fluid anywhere. All 4 pistons move and retract equally and visually appear to be all extended the same at rest and while clamping the rotor.
First day on the XT 8120’s at the bike park in the heat 93F/33C and my first oh shit moment with the rear brake momentarily going...
First day on the XT 8120’s at the bike park in the heat 93F/33C and my first oh shit moment with the rear brake momentarily going to the bar. Only happened the one time and the brakes weren’t even hot yet. That’ll wake you up!
Any fix for this? Bleed feels great, it came right back with two quick pumps… but it’s 2025 and that seems crazy to me.
Double tap the brakes when you're riding shimanos... first tap will tell you where you're at, second pull will have full power. Most of my bikes...
Double tap the brakes when you're riding shimanos... first tap will tell you where you're at, second pull will have full power. Most of my bikes have some form of slx, xt, xtr, or saint variant. I don't know how, I don't know why, but double tapping when riding them has kept me from having those oh shit moments.
1. Dbl/Trpl check your bleed. Easy to do. Flip the bike upside down and see if the brake starts going to the bar. If so, bleed...
1. Dbl/Trpl check your bleed. Easy to do. Flip the bike upside down and see if the brake starts going to the bar. If so, bleed, baby bleed. We're human. We err. It's part of being in this divine comedy. 2. If no bleed needed, do the piston massage trick as done on the Mavens. Those ceramic caliper pistons generate a lotta stiction due to the porous nature of the material. I posted about this sometime ago, here and elsewhere. It does help with, but not get rid of, the wandering bite point. Side, I'd like to thank Sram for introducing something I started blabbing to people about back in my industry days way over 15 years ago and making it seem like I'm not a kook. The things co's do to not have a 'leaky caliper' new out of the box. 3. and pretty much last resort. Swap the caliper pistons with aftermarket phenolic units found on Amazon/Ali/eBay. Since Shimano refuses to offer service kits and would likely not look at this as a warranty issue you may be on your own. We can leave the 'should I have to do this on new/near new brakes?' debate behind since we all know the answer esp in light of the new and improved brakes. I've used the Xnavi ones without issue. Downside/upside (depending on perspective) is pad gap decreases, so the brake engages way quicker. I loved it and so did the other 2 guys I swapped em out for.
Things to watch for. 1. torn reservoir diaphragm. If you're using 2 syringes to bleed the brakes it is way easy to tear the diaphragm. I learned that the hard way and I didn't even think I was pulling a big vac. As Shimano doesn't provide spares, you'll need to source the aftermarket ones from the same sites as the phenolic pistons. I did, it worked. 2. Ruptured hose or MC piston primary seal. Both can behave like there's no problem, both can give the same lever to the bar feel under a slow, easy pull of the lever. Diagnosing em requires a bleed block and the bleed cup. It's long-winded to write in an already long-winded reply. If it comes to that, lmk.
Bleed is good. Done with syringe and cup. It was very dusty and there are no signs of fluid anywhere. All 4 pistons move and retract...
Bleed is good. Done with syringe and cup. It was very dusty and there are no signs of fluid anywhere. All 4 pistons move and retract equally and visually appear to be all extended the same at rest and while clamping the rotor.
Did you actually flip the bike upside down to check?
About the caliper piston engagement, good, but that's what I'm not referring to. The ceramic pistons bring a lot of retraction to the table. Equal actuation may not be correct actuation. Pumping em out, pushing em in a few times can help generate more seal slip, which means the seals can behave properly under heavy use. I had seal roll issues on my old SLX brakes and that trick worked for a good while to address wandering bite point. Replacing the caliper pistons solved it outright, at least until the MC pistons crapped the carpet.
Double tap the brakes when you're riding shimanos... first tap will tell you where you're at, second pull will have full power. Most of my bikes...
Double tap the brakes when you're riding shimanos... first tap will tell you where you're at, second pull will have full power. Most of my bikes have some form of slx, xt, xtr, or saint variant. I don't know how, I don't know why, but double tapping when riding them has kept me from having those oh shit moments.
You can double tap the brakes in your car as well for a different pedal feel, and drivers do it all the time for different reasons.
You are correct however in those moments where the pedal is hitting the floor with no stopping action, the brake ain't working the way it's intended to.
Double tap the brakes when you're riding shimanos... first tap will tell you where you're at, second pull will have full power. Most of my bikes...
Double tap the brakes when you're riding shimanos... first tap will tell you where you're at, second pull will have full power. Most of my bikes have some form of slx, xt, xtr, or saint variant. I don't know how, I don't know why, but double tapping when riding them has kept me from having those oh shit moments.
You can double tap the brakes in your car as well for a different pedal feel, and drivers do it all the time for different reasons.
in a Modern Everyday road car, that should not happen unless something is loose etc causing the same as below.
However in race cars, especially such as 'supercars' in Australia, Drivers will tap the Brake pedal at the end of a long straight before brake zone to ensure the Pads are close to the rotor/disc, This is often because of the lead up corners putting side stress/flex though the carrier/hub pushing the pistons back.
You are correct however in those moments where the pedal is hitting the floor with no stopping action, the brake ain't working the way it's intended...
You are correct however in those moments where the pedal is hitting the floor with no stopping action, the brake ain't working the way it's intended to.
It wasn't clear to me in the OP that there was no stopping power, so I assumed the oh shit moment was caused by a gap in the expectation of brake force given the lever pull and the amount of brake force delivered.
Besides bleeding again, my only other suggestion on the shimanos is to back out the free stroke screw when bleeding, and then screw it all the way back in when the system is closed.
in a Modern Everyday road car, that should not happen unless something is loose etc causing the same as below.However in race cars, especially such as...
in a Modern Everyday road car, that should not happen unless something is loose etc causing the same as below.
However in race cars, especially such as 'supercars' in Australia, Drivers will tap the Brake pedal at the end of a long straight before brake zone to ensure the Pads are close to the rotor/disc, This is often because of the lead up corners putting side stress/flex though the carrier/hub pushing the pistons back.
Alright this is getting a little off topic - just trying to add color to a guys comment about crappy lever feel on some shimanos. Hope you find a solution, please let us know what works incase my shimanos decide to start acting up on me.
Any car with ABS will give you a different pedal feel when you prime the brakes before a braking event. It's especially noticeable in pickup trucks. Try it on your way home.
in a Modern Everyday road car, that should not happen unless something is loose etc causing the same as below.However in race cars, especially such as...
in a Modern Everyday road car, that should not happen unless something is loose etc causing the same as below.
However in race cars, especially such as 'supercars' in Australia, Drivers will tap the Brake pedal at the end of a long straight before brake zone to ensure the Pads are close to the rotor/disc, This is often because of the lead up corners putting side stress/flex though the carrier/hub pushing the pistons back.
Alright this is getting a little off topic - just trying to add color to a guys comment about crappy lever feel on some shimanos. Hope...
Alright this is getting a little off topic - just trying to add color to a guys comment about crappy lever feel on some shimanos. Hope you find a solution, please let us know what works incase my shimanos decide to start acting up on me.
Any car with ABS will give you a different pedal feel when you prime the brakes before a braking event. It's especially noticeable in pickup trucks. Try it on your way home.
It's been a while since this thread has gotten derailed. Maybe we're overdue :D
I'm curious what the discovery is too. I got hypercritical of brakes a long time ago and thought going with Shimano would end my search. And it did until they started developing all sorts of issues. I am cautiously optimistic on their new lineup but as it seems they're still using plastic MC pistons, at least on the high-end wares, they're still off my braking diet.
Hello brake nerds! I have a very annoying issue with my Dominon A4s that has me scratching my head. I bought the set for my fat...
Hello brake nerds! I have a very annoying issue with my Dominon A4s that has me scratching my head. I bought the set for my fat bike and have been using it a lot this year. When it is freshly bled, the lever free throw is a decent 10-15mm and bite point is crisp. Over the course of a month the free throw grows to a whopping 35+mm where they are nearly touching the bar. The bite is still pretty crisp. I adjust the lever reach as a bandaid fix but eventually the bite keeps going closer and close to the bar. It can't be air trapped in the system otherwise the bite would be spongey right? Could there be a leak somewhere in the system? I noticed two drops of DOT fluid escape the reservoir cap when I was pressurizing them during the last bleed. What the heck is going on with these? It happens to both front and rear at different rates. I am using the SRAM pro bleed kit and the fittings don't leak either.
Heya, let's dig in. Set the lever up so the reservoir is at 12 o'clock on the handlebar. ideally so the reservoir cover screws are perpendicular...
Heya, let's dig in. Set the lever up so the reservoir is at 12 o'clock on the handlebar. ideally so the reservoir cover screws are perpendicular to the floor. Pump the brake lever a number of times and see if it firms up (a little or a lot). If so, culprit is air in the MC. Culprit could be bleed issue or it could be that the drops of brake fluid you're seeing by the reservoir are indicating a res leak, likely from the bladder. I'd remove the cover and inspect the bladder. It should be free from tears. Dependiong on how heavy handed you were pushing n pulling on your syringes, you may have popped the bladder from its grooves or tore it. Haven't seen that with the Doms(yet) but have seen it with other makes/models.
Hey @HexonJuan I finally found out the issue with my Dominion A4s and it was a leaky caliper. During fatbiking your bike is constantly getting washed so I guess the smallest amount of leak would get washed away going unnoticed. Hayes warrantied the front caliper and I has to rebuild the rear as it also started leaking after spending a few months in storage. So both calipers started leaking in under a year. Could it be that the sub zero temps are bad for these caliper seals? I never had issues with SRAM brakes in the winter before so this is interesting. According to my local shop, the dominions are notorious for leaky piston seals so maybe it is just crap quality.
During this process I also found a way to get the best bleed I managed so far:
1) Push-push only. Send fluid from caliper to lever and then back until no bubbles can be seen. Don't create vacuum at lever. 2) Close the system and zip tie the levers to grips for 24 hours 3) Attach the syringes again. Tiny pull of caliper syringe to remove that small air bubble introduced from fitting. Then one long push to remove the air accumulated in the lever.
The numbers are promising it could possibly be the most powerful brake so far Curious about the aluminum pistons tho, they should transfer lots of heat to...
The numbers are promising it could possibly be the most powerful brake so far
Curious about the aluminum pistons tho, they should transfer lots of heat to the pads 🧐 but I’m sure they know what they’re doing.
Regardless, I’m curious what kind of price and claim they will give us
Absolutely! That part excites me. I am just eager/optimistic about their take on things and how they may perform.
Aluminum pistons will be interesting but at least they do have a pretty solid background with high performance brakes so we shall see...
Price has me on my toes however based off their original take 20 ish? years ago.. ha.
But I would assume around the $1,000 realm.
I am excited to try them and hope they become available soon.
Hello brake nerds! I have a very annoying issue with my Dominon A4s that has me scratching my head. I bought the set for my fat...
Hello brake nerds! I have a very annoying issue with my Dominon A4s that has me scratching my head. I bought the set for my fat bike and have been using it a lot this year. When it is freshly bled, the lever free throw is a decent 10-15mm and bite point is crisp. Over the course of a month the free throw grows to a whopping 35+mm where they are nearly touching the bar. The bite is still pretty crisp. I adjust the lever reach as a bandaid fix but eventually the bite keeps going closer and close to the bar. It can't be air trapped in the system otherwise the bite would be spongey right? Could there be a leak somewhere in the system? I noticed two drops of DOT fluid escape the reservoir cap when I was pressurizing them during the last bleed. What the heck is going on with these? It happens to both front and rear at different rates. I am using the SRAM pro bleed kit and the fittings don't leak either.
Heya, let's dig in. Set the lever up so the reservoir is at 12 o'clock on the handlebar. ideally so the reservoir cover screws are perpendicular...
Heya, let's dig in. Set the lever up so the reservoir is at 12 o'clock on the handlebar. ideally so the reservoir cover screws are perpendicular to the floor. Pump the brake lever a number of times and see if it firms up (a little or a lot). If so, culprit is air in the MC. Culprit could be bleed issue or it could be that the drops of brake fluid you're seeing by the reservoir are indicating a res leak, likely from the bladder. I'd remove the cover and inspect the bladder. It should be free from tears. Dependiong on how heavy handed you were pushing n pulling on your syringes, you may have popped the bladder from its grooves or tore it. Haven't seen that with the Doms(yet) but have seen it with other makes/models.
Hey @HexonJuan I finally found out the issue with my Dominion A4s and it was a leaky caliper. During fatbiking your bike is constantly getting washed...
Hey @HexonJuan I finally found out the issue with my Dominion A4s and it was a leaky caliper. During fatbiking your bike is constantly getting washed so I guess the smallest amount of leak would get washed away going unnoticed. Hayes warrantied the front caliper and I has to rebuild the rear as it also started leaking after spending a few months in storage. So both calipers started leaking in under a year. Could it be that the sub zero temps are bad for these caliper seals? I never had issues with SRAM brakes in the winter before so this is interesting. According to my local shop, the dominions are notorious for leaky piston seals so maybe it is just crap quality.
During this process I also found a way to get the best bleed I managed so far:
1) Push-push only. Send fluid from caliper to lever and then back until no bubbles can be seen. Don't create vacuum at lever. 2) Close the system and zip tie the levers to grips for 24 hours 3) Attach the syringes again. Tiny pull of caliper syringe to remove that small air bubble introduced from fitting. Then one long push to remove the air accumulated in the lever.
Interesting! I've a few friends riding fatties on A2s and no issues to speak of. Hayes have a 2yr warranty so the other brake (I think) should still be under warranty. I wouldn't think the onus of a rebuild would be on you.
The newer ones are lighter than original, however bases will be enough for 95% of riders(they have a direct link and is easier pull)
I'd give the current Mavens a go first, and see if you even notice the lever pull issue before going down to the base. I'm 200+ lbs and enjoy how they feel. Even my wife at 140 lbs prefers the lever feel compared to pretty much everything else on the market.
Personal opinion, I’d never buy anything sram if not ultimate/silver level.
Base might have a nicer pull but they’re on bushings, that will get sloppy and noisy quick, just like everything else they make.
And this is a fact, not an opinion.
Same with having the contact adjust on the higher end maven, if not base I’d 100% recommend those, you can make them softer and they work great.
I have done that dumb pull the lever until contact and check the weight, it was the same as any XT/XTR brake out of the box, so they’re heavy pull when compared to the super light ones ( Hope, Hayes, Trickstuff, Radic, Lewis and so on )
But the fact that they grab so much means you don’t get as fatigued, I hate heavy levers but I get less arm pump from the mavens than from a set of XT with lots less power.
And I’m a brake dragger too
Hey all, can anyone help with a huge dilemma I’m having? I currently run code rsc with 223mm galfer wave and galfer purple pads. These work great and tend to not over heat too badly for me, I also really like the lever feel.
However I’m a big guy at 6’4” and 250lbs so have been looking at either some maven ultimates or hope T4V4 for more power, hopefully keeping a similar lever feel in terms of modulation. I’m UK based, but do a fair amount of uplifted riding in the UK and Europe.
At this point I’m going round in circles trying to decide which way to go, hope or sram. Can anyone help me out who has tried both brakes?
thanks
Well if it is for modulation, considering you also live in the UK with Hope right next to you, I'd go for the Hopes.
You also have the new Hope Evos to choose from
I have a set of new, unused Hope tech 4v4 in my room that I would be using right now if it wasn't for the luck of grabbing a pair of intend trinity. Dale Stone has a good video on the tech 4v4
If modulation is a thing Hope 100%
If you want a more brutal brake then Mavens
They’re both good, look and quality wise Hopes are hard to beat, and yeah being in the Uk 100% Hope
First day on the XT 8120’s at the bike park in the heat 93F/33C and my first oh shit moment with the rear brake momentarily going to the bar. Only happened the one time and the brakes weren’t even hot yet. That’ll wake you up!
Any fix for this? Bleed feels great, it came right back with two quick pumps… but it’s 2025 and that seems crazy to me.
this is the way to fix those: Mavens/TRP/hope.
If I was riding that bike more I would.
i sold all of my bikes that I couldn't afford to set up correctly.
I don’t think that’s as impressive sounding as you think it is.
I think its a good idea, No point owning mediocre bikes when you can have 1 or 2 with the parts you want.
Yeah it’s a bit tongue in cheek
Thanks for the advice. I’ll hold out for the hope evos.
Double tap the brakes when you're riding shimanos... first tap will tell you where you're at, second pull will have full power. Most of my bikes have some form of slx, xt, xtr, or saint variant. I don't know how, I don't know why, but double tapping when riding them has kept me from having those oh shit moments.
If I had to double tap my brakes every time I pulled them, I’d throw them straight in the trash. That’s not acceptable brake operation.
more info being released on instagram from Brembo. Sound solid! Hope they are available soon...
1. Dbl/Trpl check your bleed. Easy to do. Flip the bike upside down and see if the brake starts going to the bar. If so, bleed, baby bleed. We're human. We err. It's part of being in this divine comedy. 2. If no bleed needed, do the piston massage trick as done on the Mavens. Those ceramic caliper pistons generate a lotta stiction due to the porous nature of the material. I posted about this sometime ago, here and elsewhere. It does help with, but not get rid of, the wandering bite point. Side, I'd like to thank Sram for introducing something I started blabbing to people about back in my industry days way over 15 years ago and making it seem like I'm not a kook. The things co's do to not have a 'leaky caliper' new out of the box. 3. and pretty much last resort. Swap the caliper pistons with aftermarket phenolic units found on Amazon/Ali/eBay. Since Shimano refuses to offer service kits and would likely not look at this as a warranty issue you may be on your own. We can leave the 'should I have to do this on new/near new brakes?' debate behind since we all know the answer esp in light of the new and improved brakes. I've used the Xnavi ones without issue. Downside/upside (depending on perspective) is pad gap decreases, so the brake engages way quicker. I loved it and so did the other 2 guys I swapped em out for.
Things to watch for. 1. torn reservoir diaphragm. If you're using 2 syringes to bleed the brakes it is way easy to tear the diaphragm. I learned that the hard way and I didn't even think I was pulling a big vac. As Shimano doesn't provide spares, you'll need to source the aftermarket ones from the same sites as the phenolic pistons. I did, it worked. 2. Ruptured hose or MC piston primary seal. Both can behave like there's no problem, both can give the same lever to the bar feel under a slow, easy pull of the lever. Diagnosing em requires a bleed block and the bleed cup. It's long-winded to write in an already long-winded reply. If it comes to that, lmk.
Bleed is good. Done with syringe and cup. It was very dusty and there are no signs of fluid anywhere. All 4 pistons move and retract equally and visually appear to be all extended the same at rest and while clamping the rotor.
You can double tap the brakes in your car as well for a different pedal feel, and drivers do it all the time for different reasons.
Did you actually flip the bike upside down to check?
About the caliper piston engagement, good, but that's what I'm not referring to. The ceramic pistons bring a lot of retraction to the table. Equal actuation may not be correct actuation. Pumping em out, pushing em in a few times can help generate more seal slip, which means the seals can behave properly under heavy use. I had seal roll issues on my old SLX brakes and that trick worked for a good while to address wandering bite point. Replacing the caliper pistons solved it outright, at least until the MC pistons crapped the carpet.
You are correct however in those moments where the pedal is hitting the floor with no stopping action, the brake ain't working the way it's intended to.
in a Modern Everyday road car, that should not happen unless something is loose etc causing the same as below.
However in race cars, especially such as 'supercars' in Australia, Drivers will tap the Brake pedal at the end of a long straight before brake zone to ensure the Pads are close to the rotor/disc, This is often because of the lead up corners putting side stress/flex though the carrier/hub pushing the pistons back.
It wasn't clear to me in the OP that there was no stopping power, so I assumed the oh shit moment was caused by a gap in the expectation of brake force given the lever pull and the amount of brake force delivered.
Besides bleeding again, my only other suggestion on the shimanos is to back out the free stroke screw when bleeding, and then screw it all the way back in when the system is closed.
Alright this is getting a little off topic - just trying to add color to a guys comment about crappy lever feel on some shimanos. Hope you find a solution, please let us know what works incase my shimanos decide to start acting up on me.
Any car with ABS will give you a different pedal feel when you prime the brakes before a braking event. It's especially noticeable in pickup trucks. Try it on your way home.
It's been a while since this thread has gotten derailed. Maybe we're overdue :D
I'm curious what the discovery is too. I got hypercritical of brakes a long time ago and thought going with Shimano would end my search. And it did until they started developing all sorts of issues. I am cautiously optimistic on their new lineup but as it seems they're still using plastic MC pistons, at least on the high-end wares, they're still off my braking diet.
Hey @HexonJuan I finally found out the issue with my Dominion A4s and it was a leaky caliper. During fatbiking your bike is constantly getting washed so I guess the smallest amount of leak would get washed away going unnoticed. Hayes warrantied the front caliper and I has to rebuild the rear as it also started leaking after spending a few months in storage. So both calipers started leaking in under a year. Could it be that the sub zero temps are bad for these caliper seals? I never had issues with SRAM brakes in the winter before so this is interesting. According to my local shop, the dominions are notorious for leaky piston seals so maybe it is just crap quality.
During this process I also found a way to get the best bleed I managed so far:
1) Push-push only. Send fluid from caliper to lever and then back until no bubbles can be seen. Don't create vacuum at lever.
2) Close the system and zip tie the levers to grips for 24 hours
3) Attach the syringes again. Tiny pull of caliper syringe to remove that small air bubble introduced from fitting. Then one long push to remove the air accumulated in the lever.
The numbers are promising it could possibly be the most powerful brake so far
Curious about the aluminum pistons tho, they should transfer lots of heat to the pads 🧐 but I’m sure they know what they’re doing.
Regardless, I’m curious what kind of price and claim they will give us
Absolutely! That part excites me. I am just eager/optimistic about their take on things and how they may perform.
Aluminum pistons will be interesting but at least they do have a pretty solid background with high performance brakes so we shall see...
Price has me on my toes however based off their original take 20 ish? years ago.. ha.
But I would assume around the $1,000 realm.
I am excited to try them and hope they become available soon.
Interesting! I've a few friends riding fatties on A2s and no issues to speak of. Hayes have a 2yr warranty so the other brake (I think) should still be under warranty. I wouldn't think the onus of a rebuild would be on you.
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