Are Expensive Brakes Worth It? - High vs Low Ep. 3

Today I want to find out what the difference is between my $800 TRP DR-R EVOs and a set of moderately priced Tektro brakes. Let’s take a closer look at these 2 Enduro Mountain Bikes and take them out on my test loop to see how these 2 very different MTBs ride on the same trails. In this video series, I’ll be Upgrading everything on the N7 with a $1000 budget to see how close I can get it to feel to a bike Twice the Price. Welcome to High vs Low!
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[@bradsanders6954]

As someone who has ridden late model dirtbikes, with the strongest 1 finger ft brakes to be had..... The SLX brakes on my Canyon Spectral ON are great, the feel is good, one finger on each does it all.....but of course spending more is always better. Buy some XTR's. (locking up brakes is not the way to go fast, and it tears up the trail) Think smooth and fast.

[@peterpositive4565]

There is a reason to love the Sram RSC, veeery nice Modulation and more than enough stopping power

[@Rider-xd9md]

At the same time I ride my xc bike with hydraulic brakes which I bought for $7😂 and Shimano 180 mm rotor. For the city it is enough

[@mtb4life817]

Where did u get them

[@Rider-xd9md]

@@mtb4life817 from one of friends

[@KDubber]

Really enjoying this segment. Taking a well build entry level bike and making budget conscious upgrades to improve the ride. This is not a dentist's build that's for sure!

[@TopToBottomMTB]

That’s for sure! Thx for the support! Glad you’re liking it!🤜🏼🤛🏼

[@jeehoonjones1389]

Nice man! I got a set of 4pot Shimano mt-420 i just replaced the levers with a new set of SLX levers, and it drastically improves the performance. coincidentally my friend did the EXACT same brake combo, just with the slx levers, on his 2021 Siskiu t8!

[@TopToBottomMTB]

Noice!👌🏻

[@haemmertime]

the m640 (zee) brakes are also good, they are the little sibling to the saints. heavy but robust with nice modulation and at the same time offering peace of mind as you can trust in their power. A downside to them is that they don't come in complete sets though so you have to collect the callibers, leavers and so on from different dealers sometimes even or you buy used ones which tend usually come in a full set for about 170-180ish euros.

[@323johnnybravo]

Those 4 piston tektro brakes came on a bike I just bought. I hate the levers. Stoked I can swap them out for Shimano !!

[@TopToBottomMTB]

Yeah! Worked really well and plugged right in!

[@jasonsheridan6222]

I have these same exact brakes on my Polygon Siskiu T8 and the levers are just straight janky! There's no good way to position them for comfortable one finger braking. I'm totally going to do the Shimano lever swap you did. Thanks for posting a really useful video. Any issues to watch out for? Lastly, were those Deore m6100 levers you installed?

[@TopToBottomMTB]

Yeah the newer style Deore levers I believe they’re the 6100.

[@haemmertime]

I'm running shimano zee brakes on my enduro, they have lots of power and are easily usable with one finger. I paid about 260€ for the package without rotors. They are heavy though and often not available as a complete Kit (except used) ao the parts need to be bought seperately.

[@mtbboy1993]

2:39 Looks like there's some paint overspray on the brake mount. Polygon sohuld have covered it better, it's likely so little it does not matter, but if there was a thick layer it would need to be faced.Good it was not. some brands are really bad at it, so bike has to be stripped to fix stuff.

[@ForEverMTB]

I want to buy the brake levers and do the same thing for my T7. Great video keep it up

[@TopToBottomMTB]

🤜🏼🤛🏼

[@bellarogers7202]

This is my issue with my Tektro brakes!! I pulled the trigger for some Magura Trail 4P front and 2P rear. Not looking forward to the internal routing 😳. Magura was $178 for front and rear for Black Friday

[@TopToBottomMTB]

Deore levers… and yes! Plug-and -play!

[@bellarogers7202]

Decided to copy cat your setup. SLX levers. Super excited plus get Ispec ability. Thanks for the great content!

[@TopToBottomMTB]

@bellarogers7202 cheers homie!🤘🏻

[@outsidefootdab4878]

I had the previous N7 and 4 pot Tektro brakes front and rear were standard they were ok until i upgraded the pads to standard shimano metal pads, they made a huge difference. It also seems odd that for a heavy and burly enduro bike they would spec 2 pots on the rear for the new collossus should at least have 4pot rear minimum. Bikes in this category should be standard 4 pot brakes with at least 203 rotors. 180 to 203 weight difference is negligible.

[@ronohiking]

Are there any budget brakes you would recommend?

[@TopToBottomMTB]

Shimano Deore 4 piston… best budget brakes in my opinion

[@crazydriver2202]

if you really are trying to get the most out of your brakes, thicker rotors will help, getting some 2mm thick rotors gives u about 10% more braking power, and some magura mdr-c rotors are about 30 bucks a piece where I live

[@TopToBottomMTB]

I’ll look into those thx!

[@johnsonboys5768]

You should try the new dvo onyx 38

[@Magoo71]

220mm rotors and Hope brakes will stop anything as fast as you want!

[@mtbboy1993]

2:59 These Shimano levers are a horrible upgrade, they are actually a down grade. I will try to explain it, the lever on the Tektro is directly connected to the push rod, pushing the piston in the master cylinder. On Shimano Deore it's not, if you adjust the reach on the Shimano Deore brakes, the power is effected, so these only work properly adjusted all the way out, so only people with long fingers can use them and get full power. This is due to the reach adjustment adjusting the lever in and out on the Servo Wave mechanism. There's no counter adjustment, the mechanism stays at the same position at the push rod. The brakes are rendered useless adjusted for a child or super short fingers, the pads will barely touch the rotor at full squeeze. For me how they come out of the box is perfect fit for my fingers, but then they don't give the power I want. I need them all the way out for it to work. Such absurd design should be illegal.

[@tehalexy]

2:26 2 piston -> 4 piston = double the power? why are there no 6 or 8 piston brakes now?

[@TopToBottomMTB]

There are… I’ve seen dirt bikes and motorcycles with 2x rear 4 piston callipers biting onto the same disc.

[@TheKez1a]

Its more about total piston surface area vs number of pistons. More pistons add complexity which can make bleeding and servicing a pain. Most WSBK/ BSB/ GP bikes run only 2 piston rears and 4 piston fronts, some brake companies have used 6 piston designs (ISR and a few OEM's) but they are not the norm. Hope made 6 piston calliper prototype DH brakes which Adam Brayton ran for a bit before moving back to 4 piston callipers.

[@TheKez1a]

@@TopToBottomMTB Those would be stunt bikes whom require as much rear brake as front due to the need for fine wheelie control, race bikes at the top levels tend to run dual calliper rears (with front thumb/ scooter style levers and master cylinders) .

[@WStar4Life]

I upgraded both front and rear brakes on my Rift Zone 2 to XT 4 piston with ice tech rotors for $320. Literally came with everything (levers, hoses, calipers, and rotors), all for $325! I buy my parts overseas from Lordgun as they are cheaper and I don’t have to worry about them being counterfeit like some eBay stores 👍🏻 I may try some MTX ceramic pads once the OE Shimano pads need replacing as they supposedly cool faster and bite just as hard as metal but are quieter? Guess I’ll have to try em 🤷‍♂️

[@mtbboy1993]

it depends on the ''expensive brakes'' Magura MT5 plastic junk, crash or bike falls over and lever body is ruined. Shimano, leaks, no spare parts, bike shops hate them, warranty boxes full of them. And of course ceramic pistons that shatter. TRP also no spare parts. They do offer spare pistons for Spyke and Spyre mechanical brakes, but other than that no spares apart from pads of course. Their semi metallic pads are great, they bite as atleast as well as Shimano metallic, but unlike those they don't crack. I've cracked too many Shimano pads to count. Some of the TRP pads are same sizes as some Shimano pads, so if that's the case it's a great upgrade. Magura no spare parts, have to send in for service, Shimano does not even offer that. But you can at least send them back to Magura in Germany, but who wants to send the brakes to Germany. Formula: I have Formula Cura 4, I can't recommend them, only good if you upgrade the lever, I upgraded mine with RG Components lever with bearings, I had to file down the stock pin, I filed and test fitted until it fit all trough. But they are out of stock. The bushings on the original levers wore out in less than 400km, at 400 km there was horrible play and dead throw. The Formula Resin pads are actually good, yes they wear quicker, but they still bite really well. But I still prefer metallic or semi metallic. Lewis brakes look promising, It's a new brand on the market. looks similar to Trickstuff but less than half of the price, and it has a bleed port at the top, not on the side like Trickstuff which requires lever to be pointing up during bleed, so need a repair stand or a vise with a handlebar or a tube of some kind. so not as user friendly. Lewis has more adjustments than any brake I've seen, reach, bite point and leverage.

[@TheKez1a]

Those Lewis brakes look really good, especially the ones that use a radial design! Braking brakes from Italy are also worth a look - they are know for their motorcycle brakes and have made some seriously nice looking MTB brakes.

[@mtbboy1993]

@@TheKez1a If Braking is interesting, then Bca Performance might interest you. I think they designed the lever for them don't quote me on that I'm not sure if I remember it right. Their lever body looks the same, but their caliper is different, it has machined out fins on the side of caliper.

[@darkness789]

Just like wheels spending money on brakes is completely worth it

[@TopToBottomMTB]

Best way to increase speed and confidence in a weird way…🤷🏻‍♂️

[@topchoice1621]

The one finger on the lever just kills me I can’t ride like that

[@TopToBottomMTB]

Only way to ride!

[@topchoice1621]

@@TopToBottomMTB only way to ride is whatever makes you comfortable

[@s14tat]

​​​@@topchoice1621you are not going to get good modulation if your middle finger is involved with the braking. You will also get more arm pump due to 3 fingers from the middle finger to the pinky sharing the same tendon up your forearm. This is biomechanically proven and why all high end brakes and racers use only the index finger to stop. If you can't ride with 1 finger braking, it's because your brakes suck. The levers are literally designed like hooks so you can pull with 1 finger.

[@LaurentiusTriarius]

Absolute black is total scam (considering pricing) these pads are meh at best, TRP metallic pads are probably way better. Personally I run ferodo pads on my sram brakes but stock pads on the TRP DHR's

[@TopToBottomMTB]

Tried both metallic and reg pads from Tektro and the absolute black are way better at not getting break fade on long hot days. Pricy but so good! Metallic pads for short runs.👌🏻

[@pinnaplepinna]

first but very good vid

[@TopToBottomMTB]

Cheers!🤜🏼🤛🏼