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Chief

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I hate bleeding brakes. I did recently change a couple of bikes from Hopes to Magura. Just too hard to get Hope parts in the US. My cousin lives ten minutes from Barnoldswick, and I might have to get him to go bang on their door to get the parts I need.

Edited by TAF
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1 hour ago, TAF said:

I hate bleeding brakes. I did recently change a couple of bikes from Hopes to Magura. Just too hard to get Hope parts in the US. My cousin lives ten minutes from Barnoldswick, and I might have to get him to go bang on their door to get the parts I need.

I would love to be able to justify upgrading the brakes on my Santa Cruz. I am nowhere near fast enough, or hard-core enough to out ride any components on the bike.

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I hate bleeding brakes. I did recently change a couple of bikes from Hopes to Magura. Just too hard to get Hope parts in the US. My cousin lives ten minutes from Barnoldswick, and I might have to get him to go bang on their door to get the parts I need.

Have you tried contacting James from The Local Bike Shop in Conroe TX? He’s the US Dustributor for Hope and can get you whatever part you need. He’s literally the only one right now with online availability of 200mm orange floating rotors (I’ve been looking) and he’s helped me out with small parts in the past.

I guess none of that matters now that you moved to Maguras, but in case anyone else is in need...

…so about those Hope brakes you’ve moved away from…you looking to get rid of those DOT soaked, useless paperweights?


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39 minutes ago, AustinBike said:

Yep, gonna do mine this week. I have been doing the brake lever bleeds for a while but now I need a real full bleed.

 

I refer to that as a dirty bleed. It only takes about 10 minutes counting pulling out and putting away all the bits. It's good for a quick fix of a soft lever. I probably do that about every 5 or 6 months on our bikes. But occasionally or as needed I'll do the full bottom-up bleed as found in Shimano's instructions--which I follow precisely. It certainly works better but takes about 30 minutes, but most of that is reading and double checking the instructions. 

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1 hour ago, Chief said:

Pretty simple way to get a proper bleed. Don't know that it would work with all brands, but don't see why not. 

 

I found this to be a better guide, more concise and less personal drama about seeing shelves clean or trying to find the right hex key for the calipers:

 

 

 

 

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On 11/20/2020 at 6:15 AM, AustinBike said:

I am generally anti-technology on bikes, but the one thing that does seem to make sense to me is the remote control dropper. I have a friend (really bike smart) and she swears by hers. With all of the routing issues it seems like this would be a no-brainer. I am still cheap so I will wait for that technology to come down in price, but when it does I will be all over it.

I have a 31.6 ks lev (?)  internal routing dropper you can have. It doesnt have a ton of drop but will give you the feel. Just because you are a good guy.

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Usually avoid the syringe as I heard it doesn't play well with servo wave brakes.

Just did a full shimano brake swap on wife's bike, including hoses, and just used the traditional automotive technique. Opened the reservoir and added the funnel full of fluid and then cracked open the bleeder for a bit. Then just pumped the lever and opened/closed bleeder until lever was hard. Two weeks later they are still rock solid.

I also do a bubble bleed as maintenance throughout the year.

Edited by ATXZJ
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The point of the video was to give another method other than the traditional syringe or lever bleed. In the very beginning they mention this was a method recommended by a Shimano team mechanic to get a solid bleed. Bleeding the newer Shimano brakes can be frustrating at times leaving people with a wandering bite point, pump up issue or soft lever feel. I recently replaced a rear brake line on my recent build, I used the syringe at the caliper with the cup at the lever. Filled cup halfway with fluid, filled syringe with fluid and pushed everything up to the top. Brake feels fine but I have done this with Shimano brakes in the past getting varying results. Thought that a gravity bleed was a good method especially if you're performing other services you can let gravity do its thing while you do other things on the bike.

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15 hours ago, Teamsloan said:

Have you tried contacting James from The Local Bike Shop in Conroe TX? 

I'm pretty sure that guy moved up to the PNW someplace. Anyway, neither BSS nor I could locate Hope master cylinder repair parts, so it was easier and a lot quicker to switch em out. Pricier, of course!

I liked the MT-7s so much, I put a pair of MT-5s on my gravel bike. That's some sweet stopping power when you need it.

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15 hours ago, TheX said:

I would love to be able to justify upgrading the brakes on my Santa Cruz. I am nowhere near fast enough, or hard-core enough to out ride any components on the bike.

I didn't really view it as an upgrade at the time, although I do now. We simply couldn't locate the repair parts, so it was the only option. Mine's a Santa Cruz, too, although I build em custom so nothing at all is stock.

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17 hours ago, TheX said:

I would love to be able to justify upgrading the brakes on my Santa Cruz. I am nowhere near fast enough, or hard-core enough to out ride any components on the bike.

To be completely honest, I couldn't out ride a Beach Cruiser these days, but I still can't stand ill behaving bikes or components. I spent way too much on a bike that most folks would argue I had I  had no business buying/riding, etc.....I still couldn't stand those freaking SRAM brakes, and couldn't spend enough to rid myself of them. I know they work for a lot of riders, but I had enough of them, and I tried to make them work.

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42 minutes ago, Yosmithy said:

To be completely honest, I couldn't out ride a Beach Cruiser these days, but I still can't stand ill behaving bikes or components. I spent way too much on a bike that most folks would argue I had I  had no business buying/riding, etc.....I still couldn't stand those freaking SRAM brakes, and couldn't spend enough to rid myself of them. I know they work for a lot of riders, but I had enough of them, and I tried to make them work.

Mine don't squeak, or fade, or misbehave. If they start to, they will be gone.

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Am I the only one who's brakes don't change or even get better with time? 

I installed like new take-off SLX brakes on my Mission 4 years ago. The front has always been a firm engagement and has never changed. The rear was slightly soft when I got it because for some reason the PO swore he had to remove the lower banjo in order to remove it from his frame. I always meant to bleed it/get it bled but it was never that bad, just noticeably softer than the front with a slightly spongy stop at the end. I experimented with tickling it and leaving the lever higher than the caliper by storing the bike vertically but only mildly saw any change. Time went on and this past year I noticed the brakes were evenly firm. 🤷🏼‍♂️ 

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11 minutes ago, RedRider3141 said:

Am I the only one who's brakes don't change or even get better with time? 

I installed like new take-off SLX brakes on my Mission 4 years ago. The front has always been a firm engagement and has never changed. The rear was slightly soft when I got it because for some reason the PO swore he had to remove the lower banjo in order to remove it from his frame. I always meant to bleed it/get it bled but it was never that bad, just noticeably softer than the front with a slightly spongy stop at the end. I experimented with tickling it and leaving the lever higher than the caliper by storing the bike vertically but only mildly saw any change. Time went on and this past year I noticed the brakes were evenly firm. 🤷🏼‍♂️ 

Brakes are fine, until they aren't. I prefer an annual flush just to make sure.

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I’ve had good luck with the gravity bleed. Don’t go as far as letting the oil run out everywhere (I use a hose like the syd/macky video), but here’s  a world cup mechanic using the method.
 

 

I love watching the pro mechanics. I’m a stickler for following the manual, but watching wrenches operating in a tent with World Cup points on the line gives you an idea of what matters and what doesn’t. It also shows some cool tips like rubbing wet pads together to clean them. I’ve never seen that before.


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20 hours ago, crazyt said:

I have a 31.6 ks lev (?)  internal routing dropper you can have. It doesnt have a ton of drop but will give you the feel. Just because you are a good guy.

Thanks for the offer. My Lev is a 27.2 on the singlespeed (externally routed) and my FS has a good raceface dropper that I like.

Maybe someone else here can make use of it.

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19 hours ago, Chief said:

The point of the video was to give another method other than the traditional syringe or lever bleed. In the very beginning they mention this was a method recommended by a Shimano team mechanic to get a solid bleed. Bleeding the newer Shimano brakes can be frustrating at times leaving people with a wandering bite point, pump up issue or soft lever feel. I recently replaced a rear brake line on my recent build, I used the syringe at the caliper with the cup at the lever. Filled cup halfway with fluid, filled syringe with fluid and pushed everything up to the top. Brake feels fine but I have done this with Shimano brakes in the past getting varying results. Thought that a gravity bleed was a good method especially if you're performing other services you can let gravity do its thing while you do other things on the bike.

Valid point.

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