Ways to improve brakes?

p1tse

I've seen on the classifieds quite a few set of Ultegra brakes for sale, what are people replacing it with?

I've got shimano brakes Br-r561
Surely if I changed to Ultegra it will be more for weight and looks or Ultegra noticeably better?

Grill

Erm... Aren't those long-drop calipers?

By all accounts you will notice a difference according to this review: http://roadcyclinguk.com/news/gear-news/cube-peloton-race-review-923.html#slide-1. You would also notice a huge difference if you swapped your pads to Swissstop greens.

p1tse

Thanks
Interesting read

Long drop calipers, not sure and what bearings it has?

Maybe if I start doing more time on it might look to do the upgrade with new pads then

p1tse

Just read this 105 vs Ultegra too
http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/cms/a ... cleid=2151

Vinnyc19

Sram Red, kcnc, planet x or some other light weight brakes probably

Grill

Planet X and KCNC have poor stopping power. Dura Ace is still the way forward for brakes.

Strith

I'm convinced my ultegra brakes look like they flex more than my 105s. That said I see no difference whatsoever in stoppping performance. Pads make a bigger difference imo

LegendLust

Grill wrote:

Planet X and KCNC have poor stopping power. Dura Ace is still the way forward for brakes.

I've found my PX brakes fitted with Swiss Stop Green pads stop very well

Grill

They flex more than Arnie...

CarlosDSanchez

I also think that br r561 are long drop calipers, if so then none of the brakes mentioned above will be compatible with your frame. The "drop" is the distance between the centre of the hole in the fork/frame where your brake is mounted to the centre point of the rim. Long drop brakes are generally 57mm and standard drop (pretty much every brake from every manufacturer) is 49mm. If your frame needs long drop calipers, standard drop wouldn't reach the rim.

p1tse

CarlosDSanchez wrote:

I also think that br r561 are long drop calipers, if so then none of the brakes mentioned above will be compatible with your frame. The "drop" is the distance between the centre of the hole in the fork/frame where your brake is mounted to the centre point of the rim. Long drop brakes are generally 57mm and standard drop (pretty much every brake from every manufacturer) is 49mm. If your frame needs long drop calipers, standard drop wouldn't reach the rim.

Thanks
How do I find out if it's long drop? Also why would it be long drop, reasons for I guess?

If it is long drop what are the options?

p1tse

Bit of googling found r650 which are equivalent to Ultegra as 57mm long drops?

Neale1978

Like with other things its not always what you have its how you use it. As already mentioned pads will make more of a difference compared with switching from 105 to ultegra calipers for example. Improve your techniques FIRST before convincing yourself you need to buy new ones

p1tse

Very true
Braking from the hoods can be relatively unnervy so need to swap to drop bars to apply more pressure even at slower speeds. But think will try pads first
Anyone got any links to good priced swisstop green, assuming all same size for road bikes?

dawebbo

There's only so many ways you can squeeze a brake lever, I'd be interested to hear these ways of improving techniques...

In addition to new pads and clean rims, the other things to check are:
well centred, i.e. use the adjusting bolt to ensure that both pads hit at the same time
ensure the pad are directly opposite each other and not slightly offset
nice cable routing with no harsh angles
well maintained and good quality cables improve performance too

p1tse

Well I'm happy to run mine as is but if there's proof of bettering brakes then I'm all ears too.

It stems from seeing quite a few set of ultegra being sold on classifieds so be interesting to hear from owners why they sold them etc.?

Grill

Probably just upgrading. Only reason I'd get rid of mine is to fit Dura Ace or some high-end TRP.