Bicycle Mechanics - cane creek scr 3's vs Ultegra's

I was thinking of changing my Cane Creek SCR 3 to Ultegra's the new ones seem to look better but is this an upgrade? I am not unhappy with the cane creeks but I did pull some breaks on a new bike in the LBS the other day with Ultegra's and I like the way the brakes snapped back.

Have you cleaned and lubed your brakes' pivot points and are the cables and housing in good condition?

The better "snap back" of the Ultegra brakes is probably due to new and clean cables on a new bike.

Yes I did a clean an lube with the cables and the front brake is fine. The back brake does not snap exactly on just a hint of play. Not anything anyone would complain about I am just a perfectionist to get the bike exact to responding to what I like. The bike has about 1500 miles on it one season and this brake has been this way since almost since I got the bike new. I may see about some more lube on the brake pivots. I bought this on the internet and do most of my own work this is minor I just was thinking the ultegra might be a good upgrade but some say no.

Ultegra brakes would be an upgrade but a minor one and the ultimate performance difference will be nearly unnoticable. What really effects brake performance is pad type and rim condition.

As long as you have decent quality calipers (Cane Creek's are) the main differences will be weight, appearance and cost, not performance.

I'd check the cut ends of your rear brake housing to be sure there are no spurs or other interferences and be sure the routing is smooth and not so short that it binds the inner cable.

The upgrade is really in the pads. If you like the way the Ultegras look and want to pay for the visual upgrade, that's cool. But don't expect a stopping ability upgrade based on the calipers. But if you do want to upgrade for the eyecandy, I'd run SRAM Rival because they are cheaper than Ultegras and the look cooler IMO.

If the OP is as picky as he sounds. Just buy the ultegras. He'll be happy.

My new bike came with SCRs, switched them to Ultegra brakes after a week...as the SCRs just didn't have much stopping power..

First off, pad selection/condition and brake system setup do make the biggest immediate difference. So start there and see if that does it for you.

My background is: I'm the kind of rider who notices subtle nuances in my cycling equipment. I ride at high energy levels and like to push envelope. While I hardly use my brakes, I demand their flawless system performance so that I can make sudden minute tweaks to my (racing) line as I ride. I run them with the swapped control setup, (right hand front), and dialed in to a hair trigger touch. It barely takes a muscle twitch to make the pads fully contact the rim, and that's how I like it.

While I've not had a bike with the Cane Creek brakes, but I can vouch for the Ultegra 6600 as an ends all, be all caliper brake. I like the level of accuracy and precision they offer, in addition to the positive feel. For me, the premium is worth it, since I am unwilling to accept any play/stickiness whatsoever, but I doubt that anyone who doesn't have similar demands on their braking system would notice the difference.

To be fair, I've gotten similar results with virtually any dual pivot caliper, (and some single pivots), when rebuilding them to my exacting specification using superior lubrication.

Watch your cable routing for pinching/kinking or unnecessary flex, as that is one of the primary culprits of binding, in the back brake especially. The cable routing should be as fluid as possible going to the caliper. It's good to make sure that the cable is a little long to allow for steering movement. When you rotate the bar to the lock that pulls the cable the farthest, the cable should be less than taut with minimal pulling. See the picture below for a good, if unorthodox, cable routing example that has minimal binding as seamless operation characteristics. Remember, that the good quality/clean/precisely setup cables, calipers, and levers are what are required to get those kind of results.

Perfectionists unite! :D


http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2545/4164073317_941cda5cf1_o.jpg

My new bike came with SCRs, switched them to Ultegra brakes after a week...as the SCRs just didn't have much stopping power..
You changed the brakes when all you had to do was change the pads. Cane Creek brakes are made by Tektro which is famous for poor quality pads. A change to either Shimano or, better, Kools Stop pads would have made all the difference at much less cost.

Per rat fink's quote; " To be fair, I've gotten similar results virtually any dual pivot caliper, (and some single pivots), when rebuilding them to my exacting specification using superior lubrication." That's the essence of it right there.

Thanks Rat Fink I am going to have a closer look. I know exactly what you are talking about because I want those brakes to perform exact. I did lube the back real good and it is much better. I did a whole working over of the brakes and new pads. The Kool pads are much better than the originals they were and immediate difference. I also trued the wheel it was not out much just a spot, now I am ready to give it a try. The problems is the 3 degrees below zero and snow so I ran 10 miles on the treadmill, will have to wait to give it a test ride.

I think if I had a chance at the new ultegras for a good price I might get them but they may not really be any different. Frankly I don't want to spend for that upgrade I have my eyes on Kestel Talon for $1800 new that would be a great road bike and use this a backup.

You changed the brakes when all you had to do was change the pads. Cane Creek brakes are made by Tektro which is famous for poor quality pads. A change to either Shimano or, better, Kools Stop pads would have made all the difference at much less cost.

Per rat fink's quote; " To be fair, I've gotten similar results virtually any dual pivot caliper, (and some single pivots), when rebuilding them to my exacting specification using superior lubrication." That's the essence of it right there.

Actually I did try the pad swap, the SCRs brake arms are like rubber compared to the Ultegra arms...