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Submitted by
Brian Ferguson
a Cross Country Rider
from Auckland New Zealand
Date Reviewed: April 4, 2008 | | Favorite Trail: | woodhill | | Duration Product Used: | More than 3 years | | Price Paid: |
$60.00 | | Purchased At: | cycle city NZ | | Strengths: | Super light. Great feel, almost no hassles | | Weaknesses: | Pivot pin came out after a huge crash but no other damage | | Similar Products Used: | Dia compe, shimano | | Bike Setup: | Giant mcm, sid, nukeproof, use, xpedo, lp composites, syntace, tnt, precison billet | | Bottom Line: | Awesome levers. I have had these for ten years and they are still going strong. I have a spare pair that I put away for when these break.
Good for those who are weight weenie geeks like me.
Loctite the pivot pins in and you will never have a problem. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
brian
a Racer
from Los Angeles, CA.
Date Reviewed: July 15, 2004 | | Duration Product Used: | More than 3 years | | Strengths: | engineering | | Weaknesses: | none | | Similar Products Used: | many different levers | | Bike Setup: | XC racing cannondale | | Bottom Line: | Freakin' great levers. I have had my Kooka levers for many, many years. (Rode them on early canti-brakes, then, with Kooka's help, switched to later v-brakes). One of the best components I've owned. They've moved with me from beginning weekend warrior in Washington to years as a XC racer in Southern California. I've used them on many bikes & keep riding them. They've survived many ugly wrecks & even a roofrack collision with the parking garage. Great product. Thanks, Kooka. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
sngltrckmind
a Cross Country Rider
from Northern AZ, USA
Date Reviewed: January 15, 2004 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Purchased At: | online | | Bottom Line: | These levers looked great, felt great and I didn't want to take them off the bike. HOWEVER ... I eventually had to because I could no longer repair them enough to stay on! The pins that hold the lever onto the body fell out and the barrel adjusters broke. These are super light and will not last for people that ride a lot. If you are a lighter, less aggressive rider though, you may want to try them. Otherwise, it's XTR all the way! | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Mike Merlin
a Racer
from Hope Valley RI
Date Reviewed: May 2, 2003 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$69.00 | | Purchased At: | Cambria, istalled at VICTORY CYCLES in Richmond RI | | Strengths: | Light, minimalist design, true onf finger control, grip surface (very tactile), requires light touch to modulate (don't panic or you'll be face planted) | | Weaknesses: | Grips(loose on the lever), horizontal flex, | | Similar Products Used: | Pauls, XTR, Altek, | | Bike Setup: | Merlin Fat TI XL: Pauls Moto Lite Brakes, Gore Ride on Cables, Ritchey Pads, Bontrager Valiant rims | | Bottom Line: | On the first ride I was like "Oh no I think I made a terrible mistake with these levers." By the end of the first ride "This is the 3rd greatest thing I've purchased for the bike!" These little puppies are powerful, it takes a light touch to grab rimful of brake. After getting used to them they felt solid under pressure, although they did feel 'squishy' while stationary. Modulation was positive although again you do have re-adjust your braking style slightly. It'll take you less effort to stop. I can see this being an advantage when your arms are tired from squeezing off the brakes on a loong descent or race.
BOTTOM LINE: Buy them if you're an experienced rider/racer and you have a bit of concern of weight (1st and 2nd greatest upgrades to the bike were: FSA carbon pro ISIS cranks and Action Tec Ti cassette) | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Rob
a Weekend Warrior
from OC, CA
Date Reviewed: October 22, 2002 | | Favorite Trail: | any with dirt | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$45.00 | | Purchased At: | eBay | | Strengths: | Very light. Great grips. Good modulation. | | Weaknesses: | A little slop in bushings. | | Similar Products Used: | Dia Compe, Avid, Shimano, Machine Tech | | Bike Setup: | Superlight, XTR, Kore, King Disc Wheels, Avid Disc, etc. | | Bottom Line: | Great levers for the price. These levers work great with the Avid Discs, good modulation, one finger stopping. Still worth getting if you can find them. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Chris
a Weekend Warrior
from Edmonds, WA
Date Reviewed: June 25, 2001 | | Duration Product Used: | More than 3 years | | Price Paid: |
$85.00 | | Purchased At: | Cambria | | Strengths: | feathery weight and excellent craftsmanship | | Weaknesses: | poor modulation | | Similar Products Used: | LX, XT, Hayes | | Bottom Line: | You gotta be a gram counting geek to love this product. If those 92 grams are the most important thing in life, then you've found Nirvana. If you love psending free time trying to get your brakes dialed in, this is the lever for you. However, if strong braking performance is important to you, I'd recommend looking elsewhere.
These things are minimalist works of art. In the four years I've run them they have they have head up well. The foam finger pads remain intact, the barrel adjusters are the best, and the anodizing is perfect.
If you are trying to sqeeze every gram out of your bike as I was, buy the Kooka Rachas. The Mavic Cross Max ceramic rim helps improve the over-all stopping power. However, the LX levers will be a much more effective, and cheaper alternative. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
joshua erde
a Weekend Warrior
from pittsburgh, pa
Date Reviewed: June 19, 2001 | | Favorite Trail: | boyce park | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Purchased At: | colorado cyclist | | Strengths: | light weight, high, coolness factor | | Weaknesses: | don't pull enough cable to be used by themselves (see below) with V brakes. some bushing slop. | | Similar Products Used: | none | | Bike Setup: | OCLV gary fisher, XTR v brakes. | | Bottom Line: | when i first got these levers, i thought they sucked. they didn't pull enough cable to be set up well with V-brakes. when i had them working MODERATELY well, the pads were so close to the rim there was NO room for any error at all. i was getting ready to ditch them and get a lever that pulls more cable when i decided to try those pulley things that go where the noodle thingie goes on the V-brakes (i think they are called 'travel agents' or 'smooth operators' or something like that - most mail order companies have them). well THAT fixed everything!!! now i love these levers, and they are still lighter than pretty much everything else out there even WITH the pulley thing. i'm very glad i have/kept these levers. if you have similar problems, try the travel agent. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jason ` Scarth
a Cross Country Rider
from Missou Mt
Date Reviewed: September 23, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Rivette Lake | | Duration Product Used: | More than 3 years | | Price Paid: |
$250.00 | | Purchased At: | Friend | | Strengths: | Freakin Eye Candy, 92g, simple, strong enough, easy adjustment | | Weaknesses: | About an 1nch of flex that you might develop a taste for | | Similar Products Used: | Avid 1.0, Lx | | Bike Setup: | Well, I bought this weirdly equipped Klein Rascal for 250 bucks, not bad has mass unusual parts like machinetech and paul and these levers | | Bottom Line: | These are sweet light canti levers. The fools that say these suck becuase they don't have power with XTR v brakes, etc. forgot or don't know that these are short pull cantilever specific levers. They weren't even designed for any long pull v brake setups. I used them with older XTR cantis and loved how they performed. Also if you buy a damn multiplier they might work with Vbrakes, ooor, you could buy the long pull version recently designed by kooka and have sweet light levers that pull enough for v brakes. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
sho nuff
a Weekend Warrior
from VA
Date Reviewed: April 6, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Any | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Strengths: | Lightweight, quality materials, smooth feel, and super spiffy looks! | | Weaknesses: | A little flexy (not bad consider weight), a little slop in the bushings (again, not too bad), impossible to get them from slipping on bars... | | Similar Products Used: | shimano, diacompe | | Bike Setup: | Schwinn homegrown carbon FS, Manitou Xvert E, XT, LX, control tech, mavic, yadda yadda... | | Bottom Line: | Nice levers with cool looks. The penalties paid for the light weight are worth it, as they are fairly minor. The only exception to this is the clamps. I have yet to be able to get them tight enough to the handle bars to keep them from swinging and slipping. I finally ended up snapping one of the cinch bolts off at the head. Now I'm on a search for a replacement bolt. Checked the local hardware stores and couldn't find any to match the thread pitch. I then sent e-mail to Kooka customer service to see if they could set me up with some replacements. Still waiting on a reply, although I'm not gonna hold my breath. I contacted them several times when I first bought the levers, and never got a reply. To sum it all up: 4 points for the quality (love the levers grips), take away 3 points for the slippage, and another 10 points off for the customer support (OR LACK THEREOF) and end up with -9...too bad...it's a potential 5 flaming roadkill product | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Dave Seawright
a Cross Country Rider
from GG, Ca. US
Date Reviewed: March 5, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Majesta Grade | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Strengths: | Very Light, Smooth modulation, Comfortable | | Weaknesses: | Probably fragile(very light) Expensive | | Similar Products Used: | Hayes Hyd.,XT, Sram 9.0 | | Bike Setup: | Zaskar LE Single Speed with Avid SD 2.0. (18 lbs.) | | Bottom Line: | I like the modulation that you get with this combo vs. the trigger on/off of my XTR v-brake/XT lever combo. It gives me much more confidence going into loose pebbly downhill corners vs. the other combos I am using. They are obviously not as stong, but that is always the sacrifice for weight savings. Don't know how they work in the rain though. So far 5 chilis. These are cross country specific levers, not intended for jumping or DH. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Scott Fellers
a Racer
from Novato Ca 94947
Date Reviewed: February 3, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Tamelpa | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Strengths: | Uh, mabye that it's light. | | Weaknesses: | Everything. These levers suck! they don't pull enough cable which makes them supper spongy, you have to set the pads so close to the rim that they almost always drag. Until I bought new levers I always blammed this on the McMahon V-Brakes, but then I tried XTR with the same problems. Theses brake levers suck. | | Similar Products Used: | XT v-brake levers, XTR v-brake levers, avid levers, alteck levers | | Bike Setup: | Ibis, with a sid, and XTR, Kooka cranks, McMahon brakes | | Bottom Line: | Don't buy these levers, buy shimano. I know you want to buy american, but don't buy these, buy Avids instead if you have to. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Bryan Elenbaas
a Racer
from Cadillac,Mi
Date Reviewed: October 29, 1999 | | Favorite Trail: |
North Country | | Duration Product Used: |
1 Year | | Strengths: |
lightweight | | Weaknesses: |
these levers suck.No power with xtr brakes.Dont waste your money.Only buy them if you want to run into trees.Modulation?no such word with these dogs | | Similar Products Used: |
xtr.Buy it and leave lightweight garbage,that doesnt work alone | | Bike Setup: |
Klein Adroit/Judy sl/full xtr-it works shut up/Nuke Proof hubs,Bontrager Valient rims | | Bottom Line: | Only buy these levers if you like eating tree bark.One chili is being kind, yech | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Justin Couch
a Cross-Country Rider
from Kalama, WA
Date Reviewed: July 30, 1999 | | Favorite Trail: |
siouxan | | Duration Product Used: |
2 Years | | Strengths: |
LIGHT, Good Feel, Nice Placement, Perfect for summer races. | | Weaknesses: |
Not for wet weather!!
The extra force needed for friction flexes them to the bar. | | Similar Products Used: |
Real, XT, LX, PC-7 | | Bike Setup: |
Ventana MPFS, SID, XTR, Synchros, RaceFace, etc. | | Bottom Line: | Excellent design for dry conditions, X-C racing, very light, durable. They come off my bike when the rains come, they were not designed with extreme power in mind. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
SenorAsada
a Cross-Country Rider
from Dallas
Date Reviewed: June 18, 1999 | | Favorite Trail: |
Cedar Hill or the one Im riding | | Duration Product Used: |
2 Years | | Strengths: |
Light
They work!! | | Weaknesses: |
1 cm of Bushing play | | Similar Products Used: |
Pauls,Avid,Shitmano | | Bike Setup: |
GT Pantera | | Bottom Line: | I have been using the Rachas for 2 years and they work like a charm. The 1 cm of play takes a while to get used to, but once you do you never realize that it is there. I would recommend them to any and everyone. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Goober
a Cross-Country Rider
from Denver, Colorado
Date Reviewed: May 7, 1999 | | Favorite Trail: |
Matthews/Winters, Porcupine Rim | | Duration Product Used: |
2 Years | | Strengths: |
Way light weight, feel | | Weaknesses: |
Not as sturdy as some - to be expected given the weight. | | Similar Products Used: |
LX, SRAM 9.0 | | Bike Setup: |
Trek Y-22, X-Vert R front shock, Fox rear, XT/XTR brakes/drivetrain/wheels. | | Bottom Line: | These superlight levers work very well. The foam grips as they give the levers a nice, grippy feel. I use 'em in conjunction w/XTR V-brakes and the response is great with just one finger. I recommend them if you're gram-shaver and like the trick look of machined, anodized components (my blue levers have not exhibited any of the color fade mentioned below). Be careful if you're tough on equipment or if you tend to crash a lot. Following a minor endo, I discovered a broken barrel adjuster on one of the levers. No biggie. The trade-off with superlight parts is often reduced durability. In this case, your 90 bucks is buying you feathery weight, not bomb-proof construction, so don't buy these levers if you expect to dig hard and have zero equipment damage. 5 steamers for performance, 4 for durability. Ride on! | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Randy
a Weekend Warrior
from Grand Forks, ND
Date Reviewed: March 19, 1999 | | Duration Product Used: |
1 Year | | Strengths: |
Weight
Adjustability (sort of)
Quality machine work | | Weaknesses: |
Age-induced slop
Cheesy foam lever covers
Sticky lever action | | Similar Products Used: |
Paul's Love Levers
Dia Compe levers
XTR V levers | | Bike Setup: |
XT V brakes, standard cable housing, teflon cables | | Bottom Line: | They ARE light, and Kooka sent me new bushings and pivots at no charge - even though I had no proof of purchase. The barrel adjusters don't stay put, the lever arms developed nasty torsional slop, the return is all but gone in the left lever (in other words it sticks part way open despite lubing and overhaul of the lever). The foam lever covers are slowly sliding off and are very hard to slide back into place.
Mainly I dislike them because even though I have spent a ton of time trying to get the brake/lever action set up right, I can pull the lever all the way to the bars and the power is just not there. I have the same brakes and pads on my other bike, but Paul's levers, and the Paul's kick butt. None of the Kooka problems. Hey -I very well may have them set up wrong, but I think I'm a pretty good mechanic, and everything on all my other bikes seems to be set up just fine, so...... I'd recommend other levers, definately. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Walt Wehner
a cross-country rider
from LA, NM
Date Reviewed: February 2, 1999 | | Bottom Line: |
These are great levers - perfect for my (small) hands, very smooth, very light. But after only 2 days of riding, I broke one of them... (albeit, in a crash.) Solution: don't crash. If I wanted something indestructible, I would have stayed with my old LX levers. Hopefully they won't break again. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Justin Dickenson
a cross-country rider
from Boulder, CO
Date Reviewed: December 26, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I race, crash, and beat these levers and the only problem I
witness is they are delicate. Those who buy or who have bought should know.
94 grams!!!!!!! Of course they're delicate.
Kooka gave me great service when I broke the barrel nut adjuster. (tree)
Spend the money. Get the color you like. You only get to ride the trail of
life once. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
A
a racer
from SoCal
Date Reviewed: November 13, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
so after having these for a while now i can post a review.these levers are great!!! they are the LIGHTEST of any,have great feel,and as far as any of the previous complaints i have this to offer.
1-ALL anodizing fades(dont worry so much about looks)
2-the pivot bushings are available from KOOKA (no-one else sells parts for thiere levers)
3- they are ONLY $85 from most dealers AND...if you go directly to kooka they can be less(check the site)
if you dont have a valid complaint please dont review a product,im sick of hearing about how something is uncool because its not pretty enough or you dont know how to install it,orits your first experience. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
supalight xc boy
a racer
from dunedin,new zealand
Date Reviewed: July 23, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
These brake levers rock!they don't seem to have as much cable pull as shimano but that just gives them a softer feel.they don't lock up they just stop you like ABS in cars. and at 94gms a pair noones complaining.setup with xtr Vs they are the sweetest Xc setup out there (though i've heard good things about avid archsupremes) | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jayman
a cross-country rider
from Montrose,Co
Date Reviewed: March 1, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
These brake levers are awesome! Some people have had bad experiences with them but I have not yet. There padded levers are really neat and they are all out light. There is no play in mine and they haven't fadded at all. I lost 100 grams of my bike with these and have no complaints. Shimano is good but kooka is much better! | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Bud Merritt
a cross-country rider
from US
Date Reviewed: February 8, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
Been using them for six weeks and no problem at all. The one finger issue and problems with gripshift are probably people who use a two finger position. I've used one finger with my XTR's for some time so when switching to Kookas, I had no problem. They are very minimalist and only time will tell how they will last but for me they are very functional and contributed minus 80 grams to my Heckler lightening up program. 4 chilis since I've only ridden them a few weeks. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
aXe
a weekend warrior
from souhteast mass
Date Reviewed: January 4, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I've been using these for about 8 months and they are as good as they say they are, and just as light. The only problem is they are best suited to rapidfire as opposed to twistshift (someone should let us know this before we buy 'em). You also pay for the weight, or should I say lack of. These levers are very delicate. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Thomas
a cross-country rider
from Marin
Date Reviewed: January 3, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
1) Tons of play has developed in the pivots.
2) One return spring sprang out during a ride (nice).
3) Those silky barrel adjusters never ... ever stay adjusted.
4) The day I installed them, the little plastic cable guides, in the barrel adjusters, both popped-out. They ARE light, and I like the padded lever.This product simply does not work as well as I'd expect (for $100). If fact, all
of my complaints are focused on the moving parts (pivots, springs, adjusters). Sorry Kooka, but I am just not happy. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Tim
a cross-country rider
from Gardiner, Maine
Date Reviewed: December 17, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
I bought these after my shimano LX front lever broke in a car accident. They are super light and the only failure I have had so far was the adjuster after a pretty nasty fall. I called Kooka direct and they sent me a replacement free with absolutely no hassle. The only gripe I have is limited finger clearance with a Grip shift. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Brian C
a cross-country rider
from NH
Date Reviewed: October 2, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
I bought a red anodized pair of these levers, but now after a couple of months, they look pink! The anodizing has faded badly. Also, the levers have developed quite a bit of play at the pivots. Still, the levers perform well with XTR brakes as long as you use ride-on cables(This is important because these levers have extremely weak return springs). | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jeff Kuo
a racer
from Lithonia GA
Date Reviewed: September 7, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
These things are great! They're super light and really cool looking. They work great too. I heard a lot of bad things about these levers breaking all the time, but so far mine have held up. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Mark
a racer
from Castle Rock, Colo
Date Reviewed: August 15, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
Been using these or the previous version now for 3 seasons, no problems. Work great with the grip shift and as long as you keep them a LITTLE loose on the handle bar they should never break. I've never had a single problem and man are they light, helping to keep my racer under 22 pounds! | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Scott
a racer
from Seattle
Date Reviewed: August 6, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
Ergonomically speaking, these levers rock. HOWEVER, I broke both levers at the same time while riding on a bike path (I have witnesses!). I guess I should have stayed on the dirt. So far, every KOOKA product I have purchased has turned out to be of a quality found on Huffys but much prettier (i.e. total shit). I am thinking of buying back the seatpost I sold to a friend before he hurts himself and hates me forever. I will say that they make nice sweatshirts though, not that I wear mine anymore. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Freddy Edgemon
a racer
from Tennessee
Date Reviewed: August 5, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
Hey they look cool and all, but for 100$ there not worth it.
Mine broke at the handlebar clamp and it's not from over tighting it.
Stick to Shimano. Shimano never fails.
Kooka sucks! | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Mike
a cross-country rider
from Palmdale,CA
Date Reviewed: August 1, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
I was deciding on these levers or the Avid SD-Ultimate. The Avids are nice, but they look like the belong on a motorcycle and the lever looks too long. Also they should color anodize the body and leave the levers silver.
Back to the Kookas... I got the black ones and they look and work great. The stubby two finger lever is the right length for V-type brakes. They integrate perfectly with my Sachs shifters. Despite their light weight and appearance they are very strong, being machined from a solid block of aluminum. Their finish and quality is of the highest caliber and they are not overpriced, in my opinion. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
June Bug
a racer
from New England
Date Reviewed: July 1, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
This lever is awesome, the best, light. doesnt even feel like its on the handlebar, and strong with shimano v-brakes, get them, they are way better than avids or shimano. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Nick Lasure
a racer
from Terre Haute, IN
Date Reviewed: May 26, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
These levers kick ass! They work almost as good as normal Shimano levers with Shimano V-brakes (nothing works better than Shimano levers though) But for the weight (90 grams) and the total coolness factor (any color you want) there is no other way to go with V-levers! 5 of those tamale or pepper thingies for sure!!!!!! | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Doug Mastri
a racer
from New York
Date Reviewed: May 15, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
I hounded my local bikeshop for weeks to get these and they were worth the weight -90 freakin' grams, perfect for small-medium sized hands, silky barrel adjusters, with my marinovative cheap tricks and aztec mag brake pads, I don't think there's a lighter v-brake/lever combo-and they work...Weight weenies and gram geeks rejoice ! | | Overall Rating: |
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