Justify the Difference
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Justify the Difference
Can anybody justify the difference in dual pivot brakes? For this example, Nashbar Jail Brakes are more than $50.00 less than Centaur brakes, which is the other choice. They weigh about the same. They're both dual pivot. Would I be asking for trouble, i.e. plummeting down a cliff, because I bought cheaper brakes?
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Quality vs. features.
Generally the difference boils down to manufacturing processes and care and to the quality of the materials used for manufacture. In this case, I imagine the Centaur brake will have better fasteners and fewer burrs etc. That usually results in smoorher, crisper operation.
On the other hand, all brakes do is slow you down so you try not to use them all that much on a road bike. You might not notice any difference at all while you're riding.
Generally the difference boils down to manufacturing processes and care and to the quality of the materials used for manufacture. In this case, I imagine the Centaur brake will have better fasteners and fewer burrs etc. That usually results in smoorher, crisper operation.
On the other hand, all brakes do is slow you down so you try not to use them all that much on a road bike. You might not notice any difference at all while you're riding.
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It might be worth it to order both and return the ones you don't like. The cost of doing this will be minimal. You can then look at them together and decide if there is significant difference visually. If the Nashbar brakes look like significantly lesser brakes, don't even install them. If they look OK, put them on and give them a try. If they don't perform, switch to the others.
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I think you will find that most knockoff/house brand parts to be perfectly fine. A lot of name-brand stuff comes from the same factory. My KHS tandem has no-name brakes and cranks and they work just great.
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centar or veloce brakes are about the best around. I found them more powerful with the stock pads then my shimano brakes with koolstop pads. I got them for 50.00 new.
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Actually, I have reason to believe those Nashbar Jailbrake Calipers are the same as used by Felt on nearly all of their bikes. I ordered a pair of the Nashbar jailbreak brakes when building up a bike and then took the brakes off of a Felt I used to own and low and behold they looked identical, same black color, same blue on the bolt and the same different parts. The Nashbar brakes work fairly well. I ordered another pair for my next project so I must feel kind of safe with them.
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Some house brand brakes may be ok but some really suck. Cervelo branded dual pivot brakes are complete crap even with better pads. With ShimaNo and Campy at least you know what you're getting.
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Do you really want to try and save money on brakes? Surely this would be somewhere where the piece of mind afforded by a name brand part is the a few extra bucks. The name brand stuff is used by thousands of riders and any deficiencies would be well documented, and the finish quality is usually better.
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Campy brakes have the cable tension release on the brake levers, while Shimano and knockoffs have a lever on the brake caliper. Something to think about when trying to use Campagnolo brakes with Shimano levers.
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Originally Posted by BikeInMN
Cervelo branded dual pivot brakes are complete crap even with better pads.
I was wondering what makes a brake better or worse. I started with the same thought as glevii, what's the difference? and I'm still not sure. I have the option to upgrade, at a cost, but I'm not sure what the difference would be. Better stopping power? Smoother brakes? Are some quieter (mine squeal a bit when under medium load, not cool)?
I'm contemplating moving up to Chorus (which will match my groupset) or to the Mavic SSC. I'm not in it for the Weight Weenie upgrade, just want the brakes to work as crisp as the rest of the setup.
So, can anyone give a more detailed "justify the difference"?
Thanks
f
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There are two things I want from my road brakes.
1 - Power, enough that I don't have to pin the lever to the bars when push comes to shove.
2 - Modulation, they need to come on predictably and even.
We have road races with 40-50 mph descents that are followed by hard right turns, not a good time to be questioning your brakes
Cervelo brakes did nothing to instill confidence. They lack the power of good brakes (Record,Chorus,DA,Ultegra - I have not experience with Mavics but have heard good things) and modulation was not predicable unless you consider the lack of power predicable. I’m not sure what is really wrong with them but they don’t work well at all. It could be the cable pull ratio, flex in the brake arms or just not a smooth power curve but they don’t work.
YMMV…
1 - Power, enough that I don't have to pin the lever to the bars when push comes to shove.
2 - Modulation, they need to come on predictably and even.
We have road races with 40-50 mph descents that are followed by hard right turns, not a good time to be questioning your brakes
Cervelo brakes did nothing to instill confidence. They lack the power of good brakes (Record,Chorus,DA,Ultegra - I have not experience with Mavics but have heard good things) and modulation was not predicable unless you consider the lack of power predicable. I’m not sure what is really wrong with them but they don’t work well at all. It could be the cable pull ratio, flex in the brake arms or just not a smooth power curve but they don’t work.
YMMV…
Last edited by BikeInMN; 11-16-04 at 10:14 AM.
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Originally Posted by fore0121
I'm contemplating moving up to Chorus (which will match my groupset) or to the Mavic SSC. I'm not in it for the Weight Weenie upgrade, just want the brakes to work as crisp as the rest of the setup.
So, can anyone give a more detailed "justify the difference"?
f
So, can anyone give a more detailed "justify the difference"?
f
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Originally Posted by BikeInMN
There are two things I want from my road brakes.
1 - Power, enough that I don't have to pin the lever to the bars when push comes to shove.
2 - Modulation, they need to come on predictably and even.
We have road races with 40-50 mph descents that are followed by hard right turns, not a good time to be questioning your brakes
Cervelo brakes did nothing to instill confidence. They lack the power of good brakes (Record,Chorus,DA,Ultegra - I have not experience with Mavics but have heard good things) and modulation was not predicable unless you consider the lack of power predicable. I’m not sure what is really wrong with them but they don’t work well at all. It could be the cable pull ratio, flex in the brake arms or just not a smooth power curve but they don’t work.
YMMV…
1 - Power, enough that I don't have to pin the lever to the bars when push comes to shove.
2 - Modulation, they need to come on predictably and even.
We have road races with 40-50 mph descents that are followed by hard right turns, not a good time to be questioning your brakes
Cervelo brakes did nothing to instill confidence. They lack the power of good brakes (Record,Chorus,DA,Ultegra - I have not experience with Mavics but have heard good things) and modulation was not predicable unless you consider the lack of power predicable. I’m not sure what is really wrong with them but they don’t work well at all. It could be the cable pull ratio, flex in the brake arms or just not a smooth power curve but they don’t work.
YMMV…
Anyone else?
f
#16
Made in Norway
Here is a (non)typical campa product.
Invented in 1966 by campanolo himselves
The brakes ? Think theire supose to be good as well.
Invented in 1966 by campanolo himselves
The brakes ? Think theire supose to be good as well.
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I was test riding bikes at a shop that had a big hill that came down to a stop sign at a very busy street. I rode a couple Shimano equipped bikes, no problem. Then I rode a bike with some no-names. I had to squeeze so hard that I thought something was going to break before I could get that bike to stop. I was actually getting close to bail out mode. Shimano for me, thanks.
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i bought an '05 Cervelo Soloist Centaur last week after considerig and trying out several other possibilites. i have been really enjoying it and am very happy with the Soloist.
my LBS guy told me that Cervelo had improved the spec brakes they use on '05s v. what was used on '04s. he said in the past he would swap out the Cervelo brakes for 105 brakes and charge a small premium. during my ride yesterday there was a need to stop somewhat quickly going down a steep hill and i felt more scared than i should have. it made me wonder if the '05 Cervelo brakes were actually improved enough. if i decided to switch to different brakes should i change the brakes, the pads or both to make a significant enough difference. how much should this kind of upgrade cost cost me if i purchased the bike 10 days ago? thanks for any help.
my LBS guy told me that Cervelo had improved the spec brakes they use on '05s v. what was used on '04s. he said in the past he would swap out the Cervelo brakes for 105 brakes and charge a small premium. during my ride yesterday there was a need to stop somewhat quickly going down a steep hill and i felt more scared than i should have. it made me wonder if the '05 Cervelo brakes were actually improved enough. if i decided to switch to different brakes should i change the brakes, the pads or both to make a significant enough difference. how much should this kind of upgrade cost cost me if i purchased the bike 10 days ago? thanks for any help.
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Originally Posted by BikeInMN
There are two things I want from my road brakes.
1 - Power, enough that I don't have to pin the lever to the bars when push comes to shove.
2 - Modulation, they need to come on predictably and even.
YMMV…
1 - Power, enough that I don't have to pin the lever to the bars when push comes to shove.
2 - Modulation, they need to come on predictably and even.
YMMV…
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I've heard good things about tektro brakes.
https://www.lickbike.com/searchsite.asp?SEARCH=tektro
you are correct in that campy brakes are overpriced. another option would be to go Shimano 105, slightly cheaper than Veloce. if you don't mind mixing component manufacturers.
https://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?c...eid=&pagename=
that said, I got a pair of Centaur brakes that were used for a single ride for $60 off eBay. Veloce and Centaur brakes seem to go for pretty cheap there.
https://www.lickbike.com/searchsite.asp?SEARCH=tektro
you are correct in that campy brakes are overpriced. another option would be to go Shimano 105, slightly cheaper than Veloce. if you don't mind mixing component manufacturers.
https://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?c...eid=&pagename=
that said, I got a pair of Centaur brakes that were used for a single ride for $60 off eBay. Veloce and Centaur brakes seem to go for pretty cheap there.
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Originally Posted by Triguy
Actually, I have reason to believe those Nashbar Jailbrake Calipers are the same as used by Felt on nearly all of their bikes. I ordered a pair of the Nashbar jailbreak brakes when building up a bike and then took the brakes off of a Felt I used to own and low and behold they looked identical, same black color, same blue on the bolt and the same different parts. The Nashbar brakes work fairly well. I ordered another pair for my next project so I must feel kind of safe with them.
#22
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Don't forget about the wheel rim, not all rim surfaces are the same, and it is the other half of the complete brake system. Different rim surfaces can make a huge difference in brake pad friction and their stopping power.
Last edited by VeganRider; 07-04-05 at 02:38 PM.
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Originally Posted by hmai18
One of the easiest things to do to improve modulation is adjusting your brakes so that they sit a little further away from the rim so it takes a little more lever travel to get them to engage. You get more power in your grip the more your fingers are bent, plus this will allow you finer control of your braking instead of squeezing the levers slightly and having the calipers bite in all the way.
Don't get me wrong, I love Cervelo bikes, but the *****ty house brand brakes they use are nothing more than a cost cutting measure to hit a price point. The new P3SL TT rig I'm on this year came with the same crappy brakes and I had them pulled for the new Ultegras before I even picked it up. I think my cost on the Ultegras was around 80 bucks which is worth every penny if I don't have to use the Cervelo house brakes.