Avid elxir 5 to slx/xt conversion

Caveman_Chris

I'm looking to swap the brakes on my whyte t129s from avid 5s to slx/xt as my confidence is building and so are the speeds.

Is this a just a case of taking the old ones off and putting the new ones on utilising the existing rotors and mounts which are 180mm/160mm?

Will they mount ok with the sram x9 shifters?

And finally, will I need a torque wrench for fitting them or no?


And finally finally, are the XTs worth the extra £16 a pair over the SLXs

Thanks CC

rockmonkeysc

Not really worth the extra.
Your existing rotors and adaptors should be fine.
They will fit fine with X9 shifters as long as you aren't using the brake/shifter dual clamp thing.
You don't need a torque wrench.

Chunkers1980

Defo worth the extra. Slx is for poor people

.blitz

Caveman_Chris wrote:

Is this a just a case of taking the old ones off and putting the new ones on utilising the existing rotors and mounts which are 180mm/160mm?

You won't need the Avid washers just bolt the new brakes straight on to the mounts

Caveman_Chris wrote:

Will they mount ok with the sram x9 shifters?

Surprisingly good actually. There's a little fastener on the underside of the brakes that rests against the X9 shifter pods and positions them at just the right angle

Caveman_Chris wrote:

will I need a torque wrench for fitting them or no?

No, just finger tight with the short end of the hex key

Caveman_Chris wrote:

are the XTs worth the extra £16 a pair over the SLXs

There's absolutely no difference in performance but the XTs have a perceptibly nicer feel to them, more precise and purposeful. If you get the SLXs you'll be reminded of the £16 you saved every time you brake

kajjal

I did the same going from elixir 1's to new XT brakes with matching rotors. They are much better in terms of power and feel. They also are pretty much fit and forget unlike elixirs do not require frequent adjustment. I bought the rotors as well to be sure all was OK and I could just get on with riding. My wife's bike has SLX brakes which also work fine.

Caveman_Chris

Thanks for the feedback everyone. I think I'm going to go for the XTs. The XTRs are nicely too expensive for that to be an option so no regrets from that. Plus, I can always get the sharpie out

I think that I'll hold off on getting some ice tech (?) rotors and see how my steel ones hold up to the heat.

Thanks again for the info guys

CC

mamba80

I had to buy a shimano 180 post mount front fork adaptor as the avid one was a different design, to give correct clearance for avid calipers, would the avid one have done the job? I never tried, kept same discs.
the xt kit it comes with all the bolts/washers you ll ever need.
best upgrade I did on a Canyon ht.

rockmonkeysc

Avid adapters work fine with shimano calipers, thats what I have on my bikes.