mechanical disc brakes:worth it?

Boffington

I own an stp2 and i am thinking of upgrading the rim brakes to discs. i am keen on avid bb5s or bb7s due to ease of use and the fact that they are cheaper than hydros and i won't be worried every time i crash. i have had mixed reports on these brakes, i heard that mechanical brakes don't have much more power than well set up v brakes in the dry and only show their worth in the wet and under heavy braking. however i have heard that bb7s have phenominal stopping power considering they are mechanical. what should i do?
ps. keep in mind i am skint but will probably be doing some winter riding (should this be in the Tech section?)<font color="teal"></font id="teal">

Drfabulous0

Well if you're going for mechs the Avids are the best choice. I used to run a pair with 180 rotors and they were superior to the likes of the hope mini. They are not much cheaper than hydraulics though, once you have bought decent levers and cables to go with them.

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BTR

My mate has Hayes MX-2's, and they are easily the best mechanical disk brakes I've ever used. Much better than some hydraulic disc brakes I've had a pull on.

But looking at them, they are œ40 for the brakes, and the Avid BB7's are œ55 for the brakes.
Now looking at a nice set of levers, they're around œ15-œ20 for a pair.
Now looking at a decent set of cables, they're around œ8.
So, minimum you'll be spending on a brand new brake is about œ55, on the brake and budget cables/levers. You could spend about œ90 on just the brake, as in the Avid BB7, a pair of XTR cables, and Avid Speed Dial 7 levers.
Which would be a waste considering you can get a brand new Avid Juicy 5 for œ80, and even a Shimano Saint for about œ58.

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gravityengine

You can get Deore M535 hydraulics for œ50 each end, cheaper than BB7's, & not much more than the BB5's

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Boffington

about the juicy 5s. do you get the levers and hoses and everything or œ80? also i have deore levers could i use them with avd or hope mech discs

BTR

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Boffington</i>

about the juicy 5s. do you get the levers and hoses and everything or œ80? also i have deore levers could i use them with avd or hope mech discs
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Everything.
Levers, hoses, caliper, instructions, rotor.

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<center>Static Plan B</center>

Boffington

hmmm yet u don't get that with mechanical discs

Boffington

so are mech discs worth it? if so which should i get? if not what should i do?

joed05

and hope don't make mech discs for future reference

mmm_pie

No mechs are not worth it, they just cause problems, especially in mud when the cables get clogged. Just stick with V's or get hydros.

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by haleybunny</i>

Sometimes it overheats. You have to make sure it's in a ventilated place all the time.
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Boffington

even though they they cost a minimum œ30 more and are harder to service/set up and costore to fix if you break them

nicklouse

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by joed05</i>

and hope don't make mech discs for future reference
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Hope did make mechs and they ocasionaly apear here and there.

nick
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