Dissapointed with Juicy 7's

*Pez*

I bought a new bike with Juicy 7's a couple of months ago and was really dissapointed with the adjustment. The levers were pulling in way too far and the red knob did not have the range to fix it.

The 'fix' is all down to the 'self adjusting calipers'.
Remove the brake from the rotor and with it held in your hand pump the brake leaver a couple of times and you'll see the pistons move in and reduce the clearance.

Refit the brake to the rotor and hey presto!!
It's turned my decidedly average Jucy's into an awsome set of brakes.

Hope this helps!!

If you go too far with adjusting, then wind out the red knob and this will give enough 'slack' in the system to press the pistons back out again.

Cheers,
Pez.

nicklouse

did you try the lever adjuster?

NOT the red dial?

the lever reach adjuster is for the problem ye discribe. the red dial is then to adjust the bite point.

dave_s

Didn't have any probs with mine eithe, I adjusted the small allen key inside the lever and got the bite point spot on.

Good tip though, might use that one when I change pads.

*Pez*

Hi Nick,

Yes - the leaver adjuster (you mean the alan key adjustment) only positions the leaver realtive to the handlebar grips, it doesn't change the amount of 'pull' required to get the bite point.

I like my brakes a bit more responsive than they arrived for my style of riding.
I'm not critisizing the Juicy's just thought the tip may help anyone else in a similar situation.

habitrail

move ya brakes in more away from the grips,. i ran Hope brakes for a ages and changed to Avids a few months ago and now have Avids on all of my bikes, bet brakes i have ever owned. It shocks me in the workshop i work in the amount of people that have no idea how to run brakes.

Firstly center ya brakes

use the wee adjuster screw via allen key to move ya levers out to make them feel better if need be

move ya grips n shifter away from ya grips so ya can brake with 1 finger on the end of the lever

i haven't used 2 fingers to brake in about 2 or more years!

it is very important with any disc brake to make sure you are working with setting up a brake to have the pistons moved all the way back in, a screwdriver can help part the pads. refit, pump the lever, hold in place then tighten the bolts down job done.

i may of got the wrong end of the stick but i know no one that has had trouble with Avids, but a wee bit of fluid added or taken away can help as well

*Pez*

With contact points, it's down to personal preference. Guess I'm outvoted on the feel of the Juicy's.

I've laid my hands on several sets of juicy sevens, none of them had a bite point that suits me. All fitted to new bikes (specialized mostly).
On all the brakes, red dial does not seem give enough adjustment to tailor the brakes to a sharp enough setup.


They're a great brake, and even better now they're a bit sharper.
Only had Hayes to compare to previously and 7's a far better brake.

Thanks for the two finger tip - not heard of that one. ;-)

Aux1

habitrail wrote:

move ya grips n shifter away from ya grips so ya can brake with 1 finger on the end of the lever

i haven't used 2 fingers to brake in about 2 or more years!

Yes, that's a very smart thing to do! Leaves more fingers for a better grip on the bars.
And yes, you can swap Shimano shifters with SRAMs because those can be put between the grips and brakes, so they're still under your fingers when you move the brakes away inward. That's what I did on my XC bike.

However, I have Juicy 3's on my other bike with Alivio shifters, haven't moved them in and I don't exactly brake on the edges of the levers but they're still strong enough to stop me with one finger anytime. Had no need to change anything there, those Juicy 3's are a nice surprise! Also maybe because it's more of a FR bike so the center of gravity is lower and more back because of the shorter stem and back-leant geometry, so the brakes have an easier job.

habitrail

at the end of the day, it is about finding parts that work best for you

i have just been really impressed by my avid brakes and thats after running hope brakes for a long time.

It did however take me about 4 or 5 rides for my avid 3's to bed in to a satisfactory bite point that i am happy with, but like i said before i like my brakes to be quite feathery, but not to pull all the way back to the grip, just gotta work on what is the best feel for you.

hope ya learn to love them soon!

Great Ayton

To be honest this is a common problem with all the Avid hydraulic brakes. They are all feel a bit like sponge compared to most of the other brakes on the market. There are a few things you can do to help this.

1. Center the caliper as many are not fitter well.
2. Bleed the brakes. This is as if they came fitted to a bike they tend to just cut the hose and wack it back on.
3. Adjust the lever bite all the way out. This only works on the better ones.
4. Adjust the lever reach to the lever is slightly further away than you would normally have it. This should stop them balling all the way to the bar.
5th and finally can pull the wheels out and pull the brake levers ones. As the Avids self adjust is so shit it will make the pads stay closer to the disc and give you a much better lever. Though your brakes will tend to drag and you will eat pads.

Well there is a 6th, but that is sell your Avids and get a good set of Hope, Hayes, Magura or Shimano brakes. This bit is controversial I know but for my money there all better brakes.

habitrail

Great Ayton wrote:

Well there is a 6th, but that is sell your Avids and get a good set of Hope, Hayes, Magura or Shimano brakes. This bit is controversial I know but for my money there all better brakes.

your having a laugh!

Great Ayton

No, And I know many people that would agree. There is a massive buzz around the avid brakes. But really there no better than there competitors and many people do not like them. If you like them good for you, but not every one will.

rob cole

But really there no better than there competitors and many people do not like them

Avid has several features that make them better...the lever geometry is unique to Avid and means you get constant pressure on your hand/arm as you pull the lever to the bar, other brand have lever geometry that makes it harder to pull the lever the closer it gets to the bar

their bleeding system is the most thought out of any system on the market, and drip-free which is a relief after Hayes!

I've found their piston and lever seals way more reliable than hope or shimano

they are extremely easy to rebuilt if necessary

their rotors and disc mounts are cross compatible with Hayes which makes it easy to find what you need

their CPS tri-align mounting system means you don't actually need to face disc mounts anymore and gives a wider setting range even if dealing with buckled rotors

we find some of the Avid Juicy 3 and 5s need bleeding even from new, especially the rear, to get them working 100%...this only seems to applies to brakes on complete bikes, we find the aftermarket 5s and 7s flawless

remember if you are bleeding 7s to turn the pad contact adjuster all the way out, to allow the system to take on the max. amount of volume, otherwise you'll end up with a very soft brake

if setup right, the Juicy 7 pad contact adjuster should take the brake from very soft to pretty firm across the adjustment range

mine do this, and they work 100% good