Slowly building up my old DHR bike project and was wondering about brakes. Trying to not spend too much on the bike I was considering the Louise or louise BAT brakes. Is this brakes adequate for downhill? Thank you for any in put.
in the inexpensive brakes category, i think the Formula RX is easily one of the best around. 120 bucks per brake.. use whatever rotors you have or can get cheap.
I was considering the Formula RX, still looking to get the best deal on them. SO far I saw some good deal on Louise BAT. Gotta keep looking for deals....
i would prefer the power of my formula RX's over the avid elixir. given the excellent reliability of formula brakes i've owned, i'm expecting good reliability as well.
I ran the older Louise brakes for a couple years on my trail and DH bikes and loved them. I then bought the new BAT version and was very disappointed. Even the Magura guru admitted they weren't as good as the old ones. The difference, one piece caliper on the old versus two piece on the new.
I ran the older Louise brakes for a couple years on my trail and DH bikes and loved them. I then bought the new BAT version and was very disappointed. Even the Magura guru admitted they weren't as good as the old ones. The difference, one piece caliper on the old versus two piece on the new.
Really? I just replaced my front brake with a BAT, and other than a bit of lever reach, haven't really noted a difference...but then again, I only have 2 rides on it.
I had two sets of Louise and really liked them. I have V2's with bigger rotors now which are nice too, but the Louise where strong, silent, had good modulation and never needed any attention.
i've a 7 yr old pair of Louise FR ('03 model), and a 3 yr old pair of Louise BAT ('07 model).
I've used both for real DH&FR this past summer, and logged lots of aggro AM on them over the years and they've worked REAL well.
The Magura VentiDisc rotors *do* generate more braking force than the drilled-SL rotors (i've used both with the BAT calipers).
The BAT generate more force than the loder FR, which I attribute mostly to the larger pad - it's almost 2x the contact area than the older stuff.
The only limitation I have found is that since my bike can't take an 8" rotor on the back it comes up a little shy in some situations. Specifically, at Plattekill Bike Park I spent two days riding back 2 back and it was the first time I'd used two fingers on my brakes at all in years - and I needed to on both days to control speed - it's just that steep.
Note that I never noticed the brakes *not* working, as in never stopped working from heat build up. My pads never glazed, but I did get my calipers hot enough to boil water on contact.
Of course, if I had the 'nads for it, I could have just used my brakes less and then it would have been fine.
addendum: my FR brakes have had the front hose replaced once (crash damage cut the original) but I have never done anything other than change pads on the rear brake and move it from bike frame to bike frame.
all that said, i'm trying to figure out if I can put together the money for new brakes for next year. Saint M810 and Hope Tech V2 top my list but they're not precisely cheap. I'm looking for something with more heat dissipation/power that I can use with a 7" rotor on the back where I'm limited to that size. ;^(
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