M4's or V2's

XxxBFGxxX

There both about the same price but i cant make my mind up what to get

i love the look of the M'4s with the quad pistons.

Not sure what has more stopping power.

i am a big lad so need power fr my weight

nicklouse

i would get something else.

clarkson

a mate has V2's and when i tried them, only a few laps round the block mind, i wasnt too amazed by them. they were fairly new at the time though so they may not have been bedded in enough.

im sort of looking into M4's for my spesh purely because i want something better feeling, easier to maintain and nicer than my avids. they are expensive though and im not sure how much more power and heat qualities they have over the previous gen M4.

XxxBFGxxX

nicklouse wrote:

i would get something else.

like what mate??

tptvmbircn

Shee Mah Noh 3 words haha, i run shimano deore discs on my main bike, great power and control, price wise great, easy to setup couldnt tell you the weight to be honest but i'm not arsed.

The XT kit with dual control levers are probably my next upgrade, oh there lovely!

nicklouse

XxxBFGxxX wrote:

nicklouse wrote:

i would get something else.

like what mate??

Formula Oro range.

XxxBFGxxX

nick wat ya reckon to the formula the one brakes are they any good they look sexy as hell like

Bobhellen

was one of the best set going

Dobbs

Hmm, I've had Avid Juicy 5's, Formula K24s and M4s.
I now have M4s on the Dialled PA and Tech M4s on the Intense 5.5.
If you like power, it's the M4s all the way. I hated the Juicys and the formula were nice but lacked power. The M4s are easy to bleed (no fancy syringe kit needed), the spares availability is great, tech support is legendary and they're proper one peice metal calipers made in the UK should last ages!
If you want power, it's a no-brainer.

yoohoo999

i think you're always going to get a complete mix of responses when you ask about brakes - it's probably one of the most personal things on a bike.

I've got the Tech M4's on my Pitch, and absolutely love them.

Very easy to maintain, loads of adjustability........but the best thing is the seemingly endless modulation and power.

I tend to one finger brake as much as possible, and it's great for that. The initial bite is enough that you can scrub speed without much effort at all, then there's LOADS of modulation in between, followed by proper eyeball popping slowing down if you grab them.

One thing I will say is that to get the most out of them, you really need to spend a bit of time setting them up (ie pad/rotor alignment, reach, bite point, grip angle, bar position).

I spent about 30 mins tinkering with them one morning and it made a huge difference. There are all things you would have to do with any brake, but the slightest tweak of the M4's can make quite a difference.

Incidentally, they are also the easiest brake I have ever had to bleed.


I'm running 203mm/185mm and it just feels great.

Dobbs

Feeling ya there yoohoo,
I'm running 203/185 floaters on the Techs with braided hoses.
Lovely piece of engineering.
You're right about the caliper/disk alignment though, it's a PITA.

yoohoo999

^ exactly the same set up as mine

I've finally admitted to myself the the floating rotors are more bling than functionality, however the jury is still out on the braided hoses.

I'm pretty sure they make the braking feel sharper, but not sure if it's just placebo effect!

Regardless, it's pennies more in the grand scheme of things and the floating rotors and braided hoses make an already sweet looking brake look even better!

XxxBFGxxX

cheers for ya inut gys i was swang to formulas till ya posted about the m4's. looks like m4s it is then lmfao

yoohoo999

i think it's already been mentioned, but one of the reasons I started buying Hope kit about 10 years ago, was because it's like phoning your mate for help when you need advice/support.

They are immensely approachable and will gladly talk you through exactly what you need to do to fix/tweak/maintain any of their products.

I remember the first thing I ever bought from them was a Hope hub and some D521 rims with the old Open Mini caliper. It was when Wheelpro still did complete builds.

I completely screwed the caliper up trying to get it set up, I had no idea what I was doing.

I phone for some help and described what I had already done. they told me to pop the caliper etc back in the box and send it to them.

3 days later my brake arrived back (they even paid for the return postage), completely fixed, with some free stickers and a note telling me to call them when it arrived and they would talk me through how to set it up.

I have never spent £100ish at a company and recevied that level of service in my life.

All of that on top of the fact that they are world class components, all built just up the road

alaric@epicmtb

The other advantage with Hope is spares availability. I've just rebuilt my 2001 C2's and had no trouble getting a rebuild kit and replacement barrels, even though they stooped making that brake shortly after I got them - 8 years ago!

XxxBFGxxX

am deffo gonna get hope brakes.

just had a look at the v2's in the shop tey look sweet as fuck. the piston is huge and i think it may out power the M4's. still torn at the moment i relay want the M4's but need to look at thepistons against the v2's.

i know on cars the more pistons on a brake the better they are is this the same with mountain brakes. hm i wonder.

scotttomo

i have the m4s on my whyte, and they are good if a little fiddly to set up initially but bags of modulation and power.
The one formula brakes are meant to be even better though. I would get some myself if i could justify the spend but i'm happy with my m4's ........for now. Dont overlook them before you buy some m4's. They have had rave reviews and have the same power if not more than the m4's but weigh less i think, oh and they look the bizz too
Hope i havn't thrown a spanner in the works but seriously consider them. Have a look online at some reviews of em to find out the hard facts and figures.
Regards,
Scott

The Big Cheese

I have V2s on my Quake and they are outstanding. Stopping power is phenomenal, I run 203mm front and rear and they are superb, also as mentioned above - spares are easy to get hold of, easy to maintain and the machining is second to none.

The Northern Monkey

Saints.

The Big Cheese

bigbenj_08 wrote:

Saints.

He he - how did I know you would say that

As much as I love the Saint kit (as you know) I would never change my brakes, I am MORE than happy with them... awesome! Would stop a transit van

The Northern Monkey

Cheesey wrote:

bigbenj_08 wrote:

Saints.

He he - how did I know you would say that

As much as I love the Saint kit (as you know) I would never change my brakes, I am MORE than happy with them... awesome! Would stop a transit van

lol, its my reply to every brake thread

I've tried a fair few different brakes, nothing has compared to the modulation, control or power of the saints.

I'm not sure what brakes my mate has, they're some 4pot hopes. he had a ride on the surge and the 1st thing he mentioned was how powerful and controlled the brakes felt compared to his.

One thing I will say though - I'll never touch a set of avids again.

Wouldn't mind trying formula the one's though... they look shweet!

XxxBFGxxX

Cheesey wrote:

bigbenj_08 wrote:

Saints.

awesome! Would stop a transit van

even wirth a 23 stone geordie

i am hearign what pl are saying realy wana try the formula brakes out there abotu the same price as the V2's and M4's. Butas ppl say there from this country and eas to get replacment parts for them. to many chioces

Joe_Pineapples

I had Hope M4's for years and they were totally crap.
Tried umpteen pads and disc combos, HEL braided lines, and I even shelled out £30 for the Hope bleed kit in an effort to get them to work as they should but to no avail.

Replaced them a few weeks ago with a set of Avid Elixir R's from Merlin for £160 for the full set and the difference is amazing.
I now have the brakes that the Hopes always promised to be yet never were.
Incredibly strong with plenty of modulation, and they're a good bit lighter.
They're also WAY easier to bleed, although you do have to use the proper Avid bleed kit.

I'm soo glad I got rid of the M4's.

Dobbs

I would not recommend Avids EVER!
Underpowered, plastic disposable garbage.
The Formulas were OK, but nowhere near as good as people make out.
I have no idea what M4s the guy above had, but they were not set up properly.

The Northern Monkey

XxxBFGxxX
The Saints would stop a bus.. nevermind a piddly little van

Joe_Pineapples

Dobbs wrote:

I would not recommend Avids EVER!
Underpowered, plastic disposable garbage.
The Formulas were OK, but nowhere near as good as people make out.
I have no idea what M4s the guy above had, but they were not set up properly.

Hi Dobbs, I can guarantee that my M4's were set up properly because once I'd gave up trying to get them working I gave the bike to a Hope technician to have a bash (Willy Bain in Glasgow www.bicyclerepair.co.uk) and they showed only a minor improvement upon their return. All in all I've thrown over £100 at these brakes just on set up and servicing alone.

I'm not saying that Hope don't make good brakes, they do, just not the ones that I had.

ratty2k

Get one of each- I have a Tech M4 up front and a V2 on the back- dont need so much power to lock up the rear- so get a less powerful brake. The Tech M4 is a fantastic brake, lots of power good feel and modulation. You wont be disappointed if you get them.

shin0r

I've never tried the m4s but I have the tech v2s and they are the best brakes I've ever used. They're unbelievably powerful, well modulated, don't fade and are as adjustable as you could ever want. I never have to do anything more than the lightest one-finger braking with them.

Edit: Saying that, there are a number of people on this forum with hardons for Formula brakes, they are supposed to be excellent also.

Oh but just look at the Hopes...

XxxBFGxxX

they look sexy as fook man. i sam aset in the shop the other day and that piston is mahoosive

yoohoo999

my m4's make me smile too

XxxBFGxxX

yoohoo999 wrote:

my m4's make me smile too

very nice hat size rotors ya got mate.

i still cant decide i relay do liek tho look of the M4's