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Avid Juicey 5 or Upgrade

749 views 8 replies 7 participants last post by  SonJonSon 
#1 ·
Hi

I was just looking for some advice. Some people say the avids arent great, I find them ok, I was just wondering if it is worth upgrading? If so what should I upgrade to? Which is the best brake brand.

Thanks
Robbie
 
#3 ·
Agreed with Shiggy.

Do they work for you?


Any major fade on the downhill? Do you get that dredded "turkey gobble?" Looking to loose some bike weight? Are you having to "mess" with them all the time to keep them working?

If you do decide to upgrade, we'd need more info on what you ride to give you a better recomendation.

And remember, no bike part or gadget is a replacement for bike skills...............which includes braking skills.
 
#6 ·
agree with all above. I have recently rode with my first set of hydros (Juicy 5's) which were used when I got them and I absolutely have no issues with mine. Admittedly, I have no other hydro to compare with, but I have done my own maintenance on them and can not find any fault with them whatsoever, no gobble, I have no issue bleeding them, and have no rub issue (unless my rotor is out of true or the caliper got knocked out of alignment). I do have to keep an eye on the piston and make sure its still able to extend and retract properly from time to time (~1 / season). Running with the oem pads and find the response terrific.

Put your $ where it is going to do the most good (i.e., tires, rims, etc.)
 
#8 ·
As others have said, if you're happy with them & don't need to spend the money on an upgrade, then I wouldn't. No need to fix something that works until it's broken.

With that said, I had Juicy 5's & fought with them to get them aligned & bled properly. I just couldn't get a good bleed, & always had soft levers with a braking feel that didn't exactly inspire confidence (& I'm not a big girl either). So I went to XT (785 Icetech w/Icetech rotors). I just received them today & installed them, & I'll say this: even if the performance were equal to the Avids (& I highly doubt that judging from the stunningly awesome lever feel), these things are so much easier to work on that it's worth it to me just on that count. I was able to shorten the lines with no bleeding, & the front feels absolutely rock solid while the rear is just a touch on the soft side (still waaaaaaay better than the Avids on their best day). So I may bleed the rear just to be sure, but it's so easy to do that I won't mind. And seriously, that lever feel is so good that I'm a little worried about going OTB.

Bye bye Avid. Last summer I upgraded my shifters to XT, & this upgrade may supplant that as the single best change that I've made to the bike.
 
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