Hope MTB brakes
Discussion
I've just sold my Hope X2 Brakes, good looking but always felt they lacked power.
Swapped them for some SLX's after experiencing the Deores on both my 29er and my Wifes Bike - You can pick up the Deores for a little over £60 and I paid £81 for the SLX's - I don't think there is any difference between the two except the Reach adjustment is tool free on the SLX's.
The Shimano brakes feel like they have so much more power (too much at times) and value for money wise I don't think they can be beaten.
Swapped them for some SLX's after experiencing the Deores on both my 29er and my Wifes Bike - You can pick up the Deores for a little over £60 and I paid £81 for the SLX's - I don't think there is any difference between the two except the Reach adjustment is tool free on the SLX's.
The Shimano brakes feel like they have so much more power (too much at times) and value for money wise I don't think they can be beaten.
I have X2's on one bike, XT's on another. I like both but they're very different. Personally I don't think you can beat Shimano brakes value for money and ultimately the XT's are probably 'better', with immense power compared with any other brake I've used.
However, the X2's have more feel and have sufficient capability for everything I ride, including the occasional alpine week. The whole Made In Britain thing has a certain appeal to me too. Oh, they look very nice too
However, the X2's have more feel and have sufficient capability for everything I ride, including the occasional alpine week. The whole Made In Britain thing has a certain appeal to me too. Oh, they look very nice too
I had formula r1's on my last bike ...they were crqp kept sticking...didn't rate them and I test rode an orange 5 that had the hope x2 on it weren't as good at stopping as the formula.
I now have xt's on the new bike and all I can say is outstanding ,miles better than the hope or formula and great value
I now have xt's on the new bike and all I can say is outstanding ,miles better than the hope or formula and great value
I've got Race Evo X2's on my Orange 5, I upgraded to them from the factory as they had floating rotors which look sexy and they were lighter than the standard Hope's it came with (M4 if memory serves) They've been to the Alps, a few uplift days and plenty of trail centre's. I've found that as I've improved my riding in the last 3 years and got faster they're becoming a little under braked at times. That being said slowing 18.5 stone of me down an Alpine trail isn't going to be easy for any brakes I suspect.
king hateful squealy things) for Shimano. 4-pot Zee on one bike, XTR on the other. Happy, very happy!I've always been a huge fan of Hope brakes to the extent that both of my MTB's have Hope X2's fitted and my CX bike had Hope V-Twins fitted.
I've just built up a new hardtail and I was undecided about new brakes. I've previously rode a mates bike with XT brakes and found them to be very on/off and didn't like them much so I've always avoided Shimano brakes because of this.
After reading loads of good things about the new Shimano brakes I decided to go with some new M9000 XTR brakes and I'm glad I did! The XTR's are running with lightweight KCNC 160mm rotors and my previous Hopes ran Hope floating 183mm/160mm rotors and despite this the XTR's still offer plenty of stopping power and they have great feel to them.
Needless to say, I'm hugely impressed with the Shimano brakes over my Hope X2's to the extent that I'm seriously considering changing the brakes on my other MTB from Hopes to XTR's, something I never thought i'd do.
I've just built up a new hardtail and I was undecided about new brakes. I've previously rode a mates bike with XT brakes and found them to be very on/off and didn't like them much so I've always avoided Shimano brakes because of this.
After reading loads of good things about the new Shimano brakes I decided to go with some new M9000 XTR brakes and I'm glad I did! The XTR's are running with lightweight KCNC 160mm rotors and my previous Hopes ran Hope floating 183mm/160mm rotors and despite this the XTR's still offer plenty of stopping power and they have great feel to them.
Needless to say, I'm hugely impressed with the Shimano brakes over my Hope X2's to the extent that I'm seriously considering changing the brakes on my other MTB from Hopes to XTR's, something I never thought i'd do.
Mr Gearchange said:
I've got XT's having swapped them out from Elxir 9's. They are better in every way.
I keep thinking I should upgrade to Saint's for my DH riding - but I've never been short of power with the standard XT's
Word. Saint is better in every way. Mostly because of the gold bits. IMO of course. I keep thinking I should upgrade to Saint's for my DH riding - but I've never been short of power with the standard XT's
They're not bad by any means, they look great, work well and are British of course. They're not perfect, but there's thousands upon thousands of sets out there so you're bound to hear some complaints from time to time.
Their biggest problem, and it's a big one is that for £50 an end, or even less you can buy Shimano Deore brakes, which are brilliant.
If you're after perfection you can pay a bit more and get SLX which have finned pads (which can be fitted to Deore brakes), ceramic pistons to further aid heat management (which isn't really needed in 99.9% of situation) and tool free lever position adjustment (which most rider adjust exactly one, so using an allen key isn't a hardship, and there's potential to break them off in a crash).
Pay a bit more and you can have XT, which add screw-in bolts to replace the split-in on the Deore and SLX (again, which can be retro fitted to either of the above) and bite point adjustment which is really handy, but unlike say Avid brakes where they have a bite point which varies from set to set Shimano ones are usually bob on, so you can use it to adjust where you want it, but you don't NEED it to make them bite at the same point a-la Avid. They have banjo bolts so you can adjust the angle the hose goes to the brake for a neater install. They also look a bit flashier.
Over and above that you have Saint, XTR Trail and XTR XC brakes, which is as high-end as you need to get to reach the price point of Hope - I've haven't had the privilege to use either - but they must be about as close as it's possible to get to braking nirvana.
I've nothing against Hope brakes, I've owned 2 sets and they were both great, but I bought a set of Deore brakes 2 years ago as I was in a pinch, skint, and that's all they had in the LBS - and nothing I've bought in over a decade of riding has impressed me as much, even setting aside the pocket-money price of them - they're bloody brilliant - 2 years, endless trips to the trail centres, endless runs at BPW and two trips to the Alps, I've never bled them and they work perfectly every single time.
Their biggest problem, and it's a big one is that for £50 an end, or even less you can buy Shimano Deore brakes, which are brilliant.
If you're after perfection you can pay a bit more and get SLX which have finned pads (which can be fitted to Deore brakes), ceramic pistons to further aid heat management (which isn't really needed in 99.9% of situation) and tool free lever position adjustment (which most rider adjust exactly one, so using an allen key isn't a hardship, and there's potential to break them off in a crash).
Pay a bit more and you can have XT, which add screw-in bolts to replace the split-in on the Deore and SLX (again, which can be retro fitted to either of the above) and bite point adjustment which is really handy, but unlike say Avid brakes where they have a bite point which varies from set to set Shimano ones are usually bob on, so you can use it to adjust where you want it, but you don't NEED it to make them bite at the same point a-la Avid. They have banjo bolts so you can adjust the angle the hose goes to the brake for a neater install. They also look a bit flashier.
Over and above that you have Saint, XTR Trail and XTR XC brakes, which is as high-end as you need to get to reach the price point of Hope - I've haven't had the privilege to use either - but they must be about as close as it's possible to get to braking nirvana.
I've nothing against Hope brakes, I've owned 2 sets and they were both great, but I bought a set of Deore brakes 2 years ago as I was in a pinch, skint, and that's all they had in the LBS - and nothing I've bought in over a decade of riding has impressed me as much, even setting aside the pocket-money price of them - they're bloody brilliant - 2 years, endless trips to the trail centres, endless runs at BPW and two trips to the Alps, I've never bled them and they work perfectly every single time.
themanwithnoname said:
Mr Gearchange said:
I've got XT's having swapped them out from Elxir 9's. They are better in every way.
I keep thinking I should upgrade to Saint's for my DH riding - but I've never been short of power with the standard XT's
Word. Saint is better in every way. Mostly because of the gold bits. IMO of course. I keep thinking I should upgrade to Saint's for my DH riding - but I've never been short of power with the standard XT's
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