Originally Posted by
city_cowboy
There's a thread about the Nashbar 105 Carbon Road bike which has led to a second, detailed thread, so I thought I'd create a new thread here.
The question is how entry level tektro's (tektro 312's) compare to a step up shimano caliper, tiagra.
I can't vouch for shimano tiagra brakes, but I was not impressed by the tektro 312's I tried (on a Giant Contend). For what it's worth, tiagra's received a 4.6 star rating vs. a 2 star rating on chainreaction. Seems like a nice upgrade for a fair price ($60).
To have proper braking you need a brake that is designed with the cable pull of the lever in mind. Newer Shimano levers pull more cable than SRAM and Campagnolo. Therefore you need either a Shimano brake or a third party brake made for Shimano. Im betting thats the reason the Tektros is does not work well on the Giant. I too had a Giant with some Tektros and I wasnt impressed either. Better (shimano) brake pads helped some, but it was never great. Imo, just get it over with and get a pair of 105 5800 calipers. Im sure the Tiagras is an upgrade too as they are designed with the correct cable pull in mind. I amazed no one else mentioned this.