Mountain Biking - Shimano disk brakes

Hi,

I am about to buy a new bike this week and after test riding a whole bunch, I really like the Devinci Cameleon. I plan to do some mountain biking but with a screwed up knee, I have to stick to the roads for awhile.

Anyway, it comes with Shimano m475 disk brakes. I have tried searching the net for info or reviews on these brakes and there is almost none.

Are the Shimano disk brakes any good ? I live in the North Vancouver area in B.C. and we get TONS of rain.
Just wondering if the experienced readers here could give me any info on these brakes.

Thanks,

Justen (female)

They're good. If they were optional, I'd go with Hayes or Hope.

Hi,

The Brodie Bruzza comes with 8" Hayes.
The Devinci Cameleon comes with 6" Shimano M475 db's.

I like both bikes. They are both in the $1200.00 range. I just can't decide which one is the best.
Both ride really well - although, when I rode the Bruzza, the brakes didn't seem that good at all. Since I am new to disk brakes, I did not realize at the time that they need to wear in somewhat first before they really start to work well.

arrgghhhhhh......I just don't know which one to go with but I did hear that Hayes Db's are supposed to be pretty good. They just squeal alot from what some people said.

Justen

Hayes will squeal until they are broken in, then they are very quiet, unless they get soaked, but it goes away once they dry.

Hayes are better for the terrain out here. (or hopes) The shimano ones, when broken in, lack the control and power of the hayes. Rain or not. With the control you will need to ride the shore the hayes will handle it better. I haven't ridden both but this is what my friends told me when I was recently looking for brakes for whistler and the shore.

Welcome the bikeforums BTW.

Hi,

Thank you for all the information you have given me so far. I am so glad I found this bike forum and it is great to hear from locals who actually know about Brodie and Devinci bikes. I guess they are not that well known in the US.

I have really tried to do my research on these two bikes - the Bruzza and the Cameleon and I have to admit that I was kind of concerned when I had trouble finding any info or reviews on the Shimano brakes.
Hayes certainly seem to have a better reputation and be more well known.

One other question - when I was test riding the Bruzza, the brakes weren't that great at all. They certainly weren't stopping as quickly as rim brakes. Is breaking in just a matter of using the breaks normally over 20-30 hours or is there a faster way to do it ?

Justen

I replied to your other thread which seems to be abandoned in favor of this one, so i'll just second what danka24 said and add this...... Whatever you do, don't judge any Hayes brakes that haven't been broken in yet. They really do improve MAJORLY both in power and lack of noise after a short time. Till then they'll seem like they're worse than regular V brakes!! (at least mine did...now they're awesome)

Oh, and they don't take anywhere near the 30-40 hours you mentioned to break in. It took mine one ride that was 2.5 miles up and then the same back down. So it WAS a hard braking ride, but i think even on the flats it should take no more than a couple or 3 rides. And it'll take much less than that to stop feeling as horrible as what you experienced on that new bike. The harder you brake the faster they seem to break in. Anyway, don't worry about it, they'll break in much much faster than you're thinking.

Originally posted by Justen

One other question - when I was test riding the Bruzza, the brakes weren't that great at all. They certainly weren't stopping as quickly as rim brakes. Is breaking in just a matter of using the breaks normally over 20-30 hours or is there a faster way to do it ?

Justen

Allow for break in time. To be honest well setup rim brakes have tonnes of power under normal conditions. My gf's rim brakes have wicked power and control. However yes disc brakes have a break in period especially hayes. They will be fine and the demo you rode probably hadn't been broken in yet.

Oh, and they don't take anywhere near the 30-40 hours you mentioned to break in. It took mine one ride that was 2.5 miles up and then the same back down. So it WAS a hard braking ride, but i think even on the flats it should take no more than a couple or 3 rides. And it'll take much less than that to stop feeling as horrible as what you experienced on that new bike.

>> They didn't feel too horrible..just sounded like air brakes...a ssssssshhhhhhhhing sound.
They still stopped okay but not as good as my rim brakes.

It was a bike shop guy from a different store that told me it would take 30-40 hours.

I like to fly down hills in traffic so I imagine it will only take a few sharp stops during a long ride to break them in.

Thanks for your reply. I can't wait to get this bike ! :-) It will be on layaway for the next couple of weeks until I get my next paycheck.

Justen

I replied to your other thread which seems to be abandoned in favor of this one, so i'll just second what danka24 said and add this...... Whatever you do, don't judge any Hayes brakes that haven't been broken in yet. They really do improve MAJORLY both in power and lack of noise after a short time. Till then they'll seem like they're worse than regular V brakes!! (at least mine did...now they're awesome)

>>> Hi,

I heard that they do have to be broken in and when I took the Bruzza out again today, I had a much better knowledge of disk brakes (thanks to the people in this forum) so understood the way they worked. They still are not that bad but I will look forward to increased braking power as they wear in after I take possession of the bike in a couple of weeks.

I am so excited !! Getting a new bike is so cool...especially when it's way better than your old one ! :-)

Thanks again for all your help.

Justen

Shimano mechanical discs dont get much of a reputation over here. However Deore and DeoreXT discs get very high marks from everyone in the UK. Magazines praise hope discs. however many hope users complain about squeeeeeeel and other problems. Anyway i like shimano discs (XT) and i love the mineral oil use instead of the Dot.

Hi Math,

Thanks for replying. It sounds like squealing can be a problem for any disk brakes. One bike mechanic told me that some people experience no squealing at all while others cannot get rid of it. I can't help but wonder if there is not something about the set up that can cause this ?

Thanks for the info about Shimano's reputation. I am pretty well settled on getting the Bruzza with the Hayes brakes but am somewhat concerned about the price that I am getting the 2002 model for compared to what the 2003 model goes for. May have to try some negotiation with the bike shop.

Justen

One bike mechanic told me that some people experience no squealing at all while others cannot get rid of it. I can't help but wonder if there is not something about the set up that can cause this ?

As i have said, mine were incredibly noisy and i sanded the pads and cleaned them and the discs with alcohol. Noise gone 100% ! I believe that some squeal and some don't because some are contaminated by handling or fluid while bleeding or any number of possibilities. If 2 people use the same brakes and one is noisy and the other isn't, it makes sense that it can only be the pads at fault, and that it must be contamination of some type.

I'm glad to read that Hayes discs need a break-in period. I just got a new bike with Hayes brakes and have not been that impressed with them yet. They didn't seem much better than V's. I guess I will feel the difference after a couple more rides?

The sqealing is not unlike a common cold. Everyone has a cure for it, and no one is immune to it. Some people say baking your pads fixes it. Still others insist that 'green' pads will rid you of the annoyance. The impression I'm left with is its just going to happen. When disks get wet, they scream.

I say live with it. Try a couple of things if it doesn't work who care. Its only a squeel and definately lets people ahead know you are coming :)

Yeah, thats it! Its not a defect, nor a design flaw, but a feature! Now you can take that silly horn off your handlbars.

Brennan,
I thought the same thing when I took the bike that I am now planning to buy, for a few test drives.
The brakes seemed pretty weak and were actually worse than the v brakes on my current bike.

It takes a few rides with some good braking to break the in and you will start to notice that they get better with each ride. I have. I have taken the same bike out several times now and each time, the brakes are feeling much more responsive and sharp.

Justen

This has been helpful to me. I am looking at hybids. One that I really like has mechanical disc brakes (Specialized Crossroads Comp). This bike also has some nice Shimano Nexave Components. Nexave is supposed to be Shimano's higher end comfort-class stuff, according to the Shimano website.

Other bikes that I am looking at in the same $500 (U.S. dollars) range have lesser components, and none have disk brakes.

At first, I thought "hey, this is really cool - disk brakes." But now I have some experienced people telling me to stay away from them because they are a maintenance nightmare, and are expensive to fix once out of warranty. I want to know if this is true. If it is, should I give up on this bike altogether? I know I don't "need" disc brakes for the light riding I will be doing, but they are neat feature to have.

Other hybrids I have looked at are: K2 Newport, Giant Cypress LX, Giant Cypress DX, Trek 7200, Trek 7300, Specialized Crossroads Deluxe, Devinci Liverpool, and of course the Specialized Crossroads Comp with disc brakes and Shamano Nexave all over.

Note: I really like what I've leared about Devinci as a bike manufacturer, so I hope justine doesn't give up on that Cameleon yet.

Too late, she got the Bruzza last week, but has yet to post some muddy pics.....tap, tap, tap...........waiting for pics...........!

Originally posted by Lightyear
Note: I really like what I've leared about Devinci as a bike manufacturer, so I hope justine doesn't give up on that Cameleon yet.

Ooops...too late now ! :-)
I got the Brodie Bruzza instead but don't have a single regret thus far.

I had heard some not so good stuff about some of the components on the Devinci's and between the two bikes, I found the Brodie just felt right for me. I got an 8" rotor put on the front and so far am liking it.

I have heard so many mixed views on disk brakes. Some like 'em, some hate em' !!!
I really like them so far but have only had the bike a few days so my view may change down the road. I must say though that they are already very responsive and strong. It doesn't take much pressure at all to stop quickly and they work great in extreme wet weather.

Justen

Originally posted by a2psyklnut
Too late, she got the Bruzza last week, but has yet to post some muddy pics.....tap, tap, tap...........waiting for pics...........!




I AM WAITING FOR PICS ALSO!



Because:

http://www.dirtpassion.com/tittywop.gif


!!!11

Originally posted by Jim311
I AM WAITING FOR PICS ALSO!



Because:

http://www.dirtpassion.com/tittywop.gif


!!!11

Pics are on their way !! I'll upload a couple tonight. I don't have any of me on or with the bike yet but will in the next few days. I promise - if you don't have a picture by Saturday, I will....

Justen