1st upgrade, where will it end

[cirian75]

Have not been please with the braking on my Specialized Allez since day one, either the brakes are crap, or the pads a piss poor.

So went looking at pads, not that cheap are they for the good ones.......wait, whats this? Shimano 105 5800 Road Brake Calliper £20.99 on CRC - my 10% British cycling discount = £18.89 result.


arrived yesterday, was easy to fit and set up.




The old POS




Tool kit bought by parent 2 Christmas's ago




went for a short ride, holy moly this is way more powerful, this is not just down to pads, I can actually do an emergency stop.

105 for the back next pay day, then who knows what's next

[anonymous-user]

cirian75 said:

Have not been please with the braking on my Specialized Allez since day one, either the brakes are crap, or the pads a piss poor.

So went looking at pads, not that cheap are they for the good ones.......wait, whats this? Shimano 105 5800 Road Brake Calliper £20.99 on CRC - my 10% British cycling discount = £18.89 result.


arrived yesterday, was easy to fit and set up.




The old POS




Tool kit bought by parent 2 Christmas's ago




went for a short ride, holy moly this is way more powerful, this is not just down to pads, I can actually do an emergency stop.

105 for the back next pay day, then who knows what's next

You are at the same place most cyclists can remember being at... the top of a very long, very slippery and very steep in places slope! Upgrades never end!


Enjoy the ride

[cirian75]

yeah, next month it'll be the rear brake, then the pedals, the rear derailleur etc

It'll be a 105 bike soon

[SixPotBelly]

I saved a few hundred buying a low spec'd bike at the end of last year.

I've only replaced the calipers.

...And the pedals, stem, tyres, wheelset, cassette, gear cables and seatpost. A new saddle is due to arrive today.

I blame the internet.

[bakerstreet]

When I started out in 2010, I never really had any plans to upgrade any items on the bike, then I rode my mates ultegra equipped bike and it was the brakes that left a lasting impression and thats when I decided to upgrade the brakes on my bike.

Going quick is great, but lets face it, stopping is also very useful and my Sora brakes were crap! I've still got them somewhere, but god knows if I will ever fit them to a bike again.

[nammynake]

It will never end. Your next milestone will be spending more on a pair of wheels than your entire first bike cost.

[mikecassie]

nammynake said:

It will never end. Your next milestone will be spending more on a pair of wheels than your entire first bike cost.

Yeah I've been there... It'll end in an overdraft or divorce IMHO ;-)

[tobinen]

It never ends. Much like LeMond's "it never gets easier, you just go faster"

[Zoon]

What makes the caliper better than the old one?
Pads have different compounds which I appreciate has a big effect on braking, but I cannot understand how a leverage based system can be any better.

Any experts mind explaining to a simpleton?

[SixPotBelly]

Zoon said:

What makes the caliper better than the old one?
Pads have different compounds which I appreciate has a big effect on braking, but I cannot understand how a leverage based system can be any better.

Any experts mind explaining to a simpleton?

Leverage ratios?

Like the OP, I replaced the cheap calipers my bike came with and the improvement was very marked.

[AyBee]

I bought a cheap bike a few years ago to commute on, so far it's had:
- front chainring
- rear sprocket
- multiple chains
- multiple bottom brackets
- multiple pad changes
- saddle change
- bar tape
- new wheels (that cost more than the bike originally cost )

Brakes are next

[cirian75]

SixPotBelly said:

Zoon said:

What makes the caliper better than the old one?
Pads have different compounds which I appreciate has a big effect on braking, but I cannot understand how a leverage based system can be any better.

Any experts mind explaining to a simpleton?

Leverage ratios?

Like the OP, I replaced the cheap calipers my bike came with and the improvement was very marked.

yeah, its more than just the pads

and I cleaned the rim to with a kitchen sponge with the green abrasive stuff and then wiped the rims with IPA.

Edited by cirian75 on Friday 10th July 09:57

[Black can man]

I only started up again about 14 months ago , 3 new bikes later , new wardrobe, new sun glasses x5 & lots of gorgeous testicle hugging shorts & i'm still hunting daily for more internet bargains.& i'm approaching 54 years old

These pages on here are best avoided if you want to hang on to you're hard earned.

[Usget]

Zoon said:

What makes the caliper better than the old one?
Pads have different compounds which I appreciate has a big effect on braking, but I cannot understand how a leverage based system can be any better.

Any experts mind explaining to a simpleton?

Not an expert, but to me, when I upgraded my calipers, they felt much stiffer. On the old Tektro monstrosities it felt like if you really squeezed the lever, the caliper arms would flex, rather than applying extra braking force. It felt like a stretchy cable, but with the same cable, the Ultegra calipers are worlds better.