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http://www.buildabikesa.com/product/brake-bleeding-course/ Guys who have attended my basic repair courses have asked for it, now available for booking. Learn how to bleed your Shimano brakes, or any other brake using mineral oil hydraulic fluid. Price will be R650, space limited to 4 people. Syringes, tubing and oil included in the price. When should you bleed your brakes? When the lever starts to feel spongyIf you shortened the hose and some air entered the system (or if you need to shorten the hose)If you pulled the brake lever without the wheel in place and one or both of the pistons popped out and leaked fluid.

I want to upgrade from XT M785 brakes to Guide..... Question! What is the major difference between Guide RSC and Ultimate? If I'm correct the Ultimate have carbon levers and calipers? Weight of both and heavier than XT? Advice and feedback will be highly appreciated. Sorry if there are already a topic like this

Hey guys, Just looking for some advice. I have a Cannonade F29 running Magura Mt2 brakes. Experiencing bad vibration and shudder when pulling the rear brake on descents. Vibration is enough that I feel it through the frame and up through the saddle. I've had them serviced, re-bled and had the disc checked. Have sanded down and cleaned up the brake pads and used alcohol to clean the disc. These solutions work for the first couple of minutes on a ride, then its back to the shudder. I have reduced power and hence not much confidence in coming to a stop. Is there anything else I should try, otherwise thinking of replacing them with some SLX's or something similar. Any help would be appreciated, Thanks!

Hi Hubbers! I'm curious to know the stats on which brakes are most popular in SA. Please vote and discuss in the thread

Hi, I am in the market for a new set of brakes and found these that piqued my interest: http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/za/en/clarks-m2-hydraulic-disc-brakeset-bundle/rp-prod135593. From the reviews that I've read, it seems that the standard disc pad that ship with the unit tend to work away quite quickly. I need to get additional brake pads for suture use. Any idea what the recommended pads are for replacing the stock brake pads? Thanks.

When it comes to braking power and control, we believe in freedom—options. We believe that there should be an absolute best solution for every type of rider and every kind of ride; that there really isn’t a One-Size-Fits-Most when it comes to brakes. That’s the concept that led us to the development of Level, a new brake designed for the needs of modern cross-country and trail riders. Click here to view the article

Hi guys Looking at beautifying my wife bike a bit (Cannonade Scalpel), and a minor upgrade. She's running SRAM Avid Elixir 5's atm, which is also integrated to her X9 shifting levers. I'm looking at upgrading to either Elixir 9's or a total change to the Hope Tech 3 V4's. On the Sram Avid Elixir 9's I want to anodise the actual lever and the clamp. On the Hope Tech 3's I will anodise the lever and the reservoir cap. Has anyone removed a lever from the Elixir 5 or 9's, the holding pin looks permanent. I have a set of pink Jagwire brake lines on her Elixir 5's atm, so if I went Elixir 9's then it is a straight transfer, they use the same fittings from what I can see. If I went Hope Tech 3's then it is a total rip and replace. Logic tells me to go Elixir 9's, Whats everyone's experience with them. G

Have just pulled a bike out of storage for a year and the back Avid disc brakes are binding horribly. Have stripped them, checked the pads, checked the alignment etc but no joy, it is as though the gap between pads has reduced or piston not returning properly and they are binding the whole time. Any suggestions on what else to try or possible causes?

Hi guys I have XO brakes (non trail version, 2012 XO groupset). I bought the bike second hand last year and initially the brakes were just fine. After 300 - 400km worth of riding the brakes started squealing, which I thought was due to dust etc, but I had the brakepads replaced with organic Avid pads anyway. I'm running the these standard 6-bolt rotors: http://www.wigglestatic.com/images/avid-hs1-rotor-med.jpg?w=430&h=430&a=7 After the pads has been replaced I went for one short ride (tar) and everything sounded okay. I bought a new fork and installed it myself and then went to the Darling Brew Extreme which was VERY wet. The first time I tried to brake, it sounded like a truck using it's air brakes, it was ridiculous! One guy actually started laughing uncontrollably saying that he didn't know a bike could generate such loud noises. It was both the front and rear brakes. Midway during the race the sun came out and the bike got dry and my rear brake mostly stopped the hideous screaming, but the front brake continued its antics. Both brakes still sound like that, but the front is definitely worse. I almost want to say there's a bit of shudder as well if I brake mildly which goes away if I brake hard, leading me to believe it's possibly a rotor and caliper misalignment. The pads have now done only about 80km worth of riding, so should still be new. Please help me with a step by step guide to figuring out the issue? I'm particularly worried that I might not have aligned the front brake correctly when I installed the new fork. Ideally I don't want to brake up the XO groupset, but I am considering buying XT brakes and using the calipers with the XO levers (if possible and only as a last resort) I would just go out and buy a different set of brakes, but the only one's I know of that are really good is SLX / XT and I don't like the look of their levers / oil reservoir Wish we could get Saint brakes cheaply in SA In addition to the loud squealing from the rotors / pads, there's also a softer high-pitched sound that I think (in my limited knowledge) could maybe be worn pistons? Some ideas I have which I'd like comments on: What is the correct way of making sure the caliper is aligned correctly with the rotor when fitting the brakes?How do I know my rotors are aligned correctly?Could the rotors themselves be causing this? (And would a switch to XT Ice - Tech possibly help)?Could the "pistons" be worn out, requiring the brake to be replaced? Or can these be "serviced"Does any specific technician specialize in brakes somewhere around Cape Town?Any other ideas / comments? Thanks guys - PS - If you hear someone coming from 1km away on Majik / Lombards, it's me

Shimano is giving road cycling consumers even more advantages over the pro’s with a new milestone in braking technology. The introduction of Shimano’s new 105 grade hydraulic disc brake, combined with a flat mount caliper, brings high performance stopping power to the sportive rider, making for a safer and superior road cycling experience. Click here to view the article

So my XT brake lever died (M785). I disassembled it (including the parts you are not supposed to disassemble) and basically it's buggered. Frustration is that Shimano do not bring individual levers into the country anymore. sooo does anyone have one going begging somewhere I can buy? Or does someone have one with a broken blade that I can have (or salvage parts off)

Hi, Sorry if this question is going to offend people as a noob question but I am getting desperate. I bought a Giant Revel 0 two years ago - http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-za/bikes/model/revel.29er/12798/59411/#specifications - after my wife talked me into starting MTB. Loving the bike and got it at a good deal. We ride here in Durban particularly Giba Gorge for those that know the area. Anyway long story short after my first service the brakes have never been the same. At the first service they claimed they cleaned the pads as they were "contaminated". They could not explain with what. I got home and test rode the bike and there was NO breaks. The levers came all the way back to the handlebar. Phoned the owner of the shop and he told me to bring back. Took it back they now changed the pads and bleed the brakes. Test rode it at the shop and was great. After first visit to MTB park, back the square one. Phoned the owner and got the impression he was not really interested and said the brakes will come back and the squeaking will get better. It didn't. Take bikes to shop number two for a full service and mentioned the long story about brakes. They assured me they will get this sorted. Picked bikes up and test ride felt good. Sadly I did not ride my wife's bike but back to that later. After two ride my rear brakes is squealing badly, embarrassingly badly. Also I cannot get it to lock not matter how much pressure I apply. My wife's bike is so bad she struggles to stop quickly and both front and rear brakes squeal badly. Now is there anything I can do at home to look into the problem. I have never really worked with hydraulic brakes before so I am a bit nervous to start tinkering. But is there perhaps something I can check myself? Or adjust or clean? I'd love the brakes not to squeal number 1 and 2 to be a bit more reactive. Is there perhaps some guides? Thanks in advance, I am getting a bit frustrated.

Hi there I'm looking at new brakes as the ones that came on my bike just aren't cutting it (Shimano m505) everything else on my bike is SLX so my first instinct is the SLX and they are higher up in the Shimano line so therefore should be 'better'. I want to know from experience what everyone's experience has been and any advice on which ones to go with as I'm looking at the SLX m675 vs the Deore m615. I see online there's about a R700 difference. I ride cross country mostly doing ROAG events around 40km but I want to work towards doing longer races and even a stage raceor two. I'm 178cm and 59kg and currently have 180mm up front and 160mm in the back, I would like to keep it that way but will get new rotors. Also is ICE TECH really worth it especially with me being so light I'm not heavy on the brakes. I looked and can get SLX set with ICE TECH rotors from CRC for about R2 200 and my girlfriend will be in England at the end of the year anyway so is that a good option? (I like supporting local but that is an awesome deal). And with everything being Shimano on my bike I want to keep it that way also for the sake of ease with I-Spec, I like the cleaner look. HELP!!!

Hi there guys. i was wondering if anyone has some advice for me on getting my brake levers replaced with shorter levers. Basically when i grip the handel bars i just leave one finger on the lever. At the moment the levers are the full length. Based in pta if you could advice on a cycle shop that could help which is not only concernd with there "high end" clients. Or a DIY kit i can Purchase. I have hydraulic brakes brand is " tektro auriga comp brakes " on my Mongoose tyax Super.

I've currently got Shimano M395 disc brakes with Shimano B01S resin brake pads. Where will I be able online to buy a set of the brake pads, I have tried BUYCYCLE, EasyBike and Cyclelab's online shop but I can't find it on any of them. Or is there maybe a different type of resin brake pads that I can replace it with?

Hey guys. I'm having some problems with my M615 Deore hydraulics. Had the bled recently, and found that the stopping power was next to nothing. Lever would go almost to the bar and nothing would happen. Inspected the calipers and found the pistons to be "sticky". Cleaned and lubed the pistons on the front brake, and it fixed the problem. Much better braking force and the lever bites hard almost instantly. Tried the same with the rear brake, and although it did improve it a little, it did not completely fix the problem. Is there anything else I could try, or should I just keep trying with the aforementioned method? Any help would be greatly appreciated, thanks.

SRAM recently released the Guide family of brakes that supercedes the Avid range of brakes. SRAM claims its been designed from the ground up to essentially address all the long standing problems that plagued Avid brakes. I recently received the RSC model to find out if SRAM has succeeded. Click here to view the article

I have 2 sets of brakes, but can only keep one set. The XT are nice and easy to service with Mineral oils, the XX are also nice brakes light and work very well, but need to be more carefully with bleeding with DOT5.1. What would be the better set to keep.

Hi Gents, need some help here from the tech guys. Okay, first, I'll admit, I also own a mtb, for those who didn't know. Long story short, I cant get the rear brakes to center. The bike stock comes with 140mm rotors, however when I bought it it had 160mm rotors and the caliper was bolted onto one of those 140->160 thingies. I've taken the calipers completely off, tighten them again but as soon as I do that, the whole bracket underneath the screw moves the caliper against the rotor, with a half a turn back it rectifies itself, however it moves again when I ride. and I have constant friction between pad and rotor. I've given up riding with my 29er for now, and riding my trusty 26er without issues. So please advise what else there is I could do. Thanks, have a great Friday and an absolute brilliant weekend.

Say hello to SRAM Guides. Spotted here on Velovert.com, it looks like SRAM are finally releasing a new brake to their lineup. Or are they ditching the old Elixir lineup altogether? Click here to view the article

Think it's time to upgrade the brakes on my 26er dualie. It's currently got Avid elixir 5's on it and the are suffering the usual Avid issues (play before engaging, pistons binding, probably worn o rings all that jazz). Question is is it worth getting them serviced as the kit is fairly pricey and then there are always some added extras. Chatted to my mechanic and just reckons I take the money and get a new / used set and a different model rather than try to fix it as the pistons can often collapse in the process causing more parts, labour ect. I trust the guy and he's just mechanic, not part of a shop so no hidden agenda. What would you go for? I was thinking SLX and wondering if anyones seen any deals going? If not then want else are hubbers liking?

I am converting a roadie frame into a single speed commuter. I have been been given a Shimano MTB crankset for free. But now I am confused as to which BB to put on the bike. Do I put on a MTB BB and the put the spacers on the frame side? Or do I put on a road BB to fit the frame and then put the spacers on the crank side (outside) of the BB? Have I made a boobie by having to choose a BB? PS: if anyone knows where I can get a set of FREE road brake callipers you would rock a lot!

I've recently brought an secondhand 2011 Giant Anthem that has Avid Elixir CR brakes. Needless to say, I'm not very happy with the performance of the brakes .. besides the fact that they are almost never quiet. Is there something one can do to fix the performance and noise issues ? Does not look like the brake pads needs replacing, but maybe there is a better brake pad that does the job better? My first instinct is to chuck 'em and go XT, but the budget is not looking so great right now. Then again .. I would prefer to leave the tree-hugging (due to bad brakes) to the greenies. What do you recon?