Submitted by
danny
a Cross Country Rider
from orange,ca
Date Reviewed: June 13, 2005
Strengths: they stop
Weaknesses: collect alot of mud in the rain,but i live in southern california so uhh big deal
Bottom Line:
Being an auto mechanic disc brakes are far superior in stopping power and effort.However cars dont use rim brakes but drums,i would use these rim brakes on a car if i could
Similar Products Used: xt disc,xt lx deore mechanical,hayes disc
Bike Setup: ironhorse full suspension
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Andro Galero
a Weekend Warrior
from Butuan City, Philippines
Date Reviewed: March 1, 2005
Strengths: -very powerful -very good modulation -very easy to install and adjust -unique looks -price
Weaknesses: -a little heavy for me but still lighter than going disc (460 grams pair)
Bottom Line:
My previous set-up had Avid SD-7 levers but when i switched to Sram brake levers, my Arch Rivals became more powerful and yet i can control how powerful i want it to be. If you haven't tried using Flak Jacket cables or any teflon coated brake cables, use one, it will improve your brakes a lot, its like i have disc brakes without the price and weight disadvantages. Of course, braking performance still goes out the window once you get your rims wet when crossing streams.
It was easy to install, my front brakes squeeked at first but when i had the pads toed out, problem solved. The arch is also beautiful and unique, i get a lot of questions about how my brakes look, I'm the only one who has them. I also got it cheap, $36.00 for the front and rear.
Bottom line... buy it! Its powerful, its beautiful and its affordable.
Submitted by
Cruzader
a Cross Country Rider
from Jersey City, NJ
Date Reviewed: November 3, 2004
Strengths: Great looks, awesome stopping power.
Weaknesses: None
Bottom Line:
If you can't use disc brakes, this is the closest thing you can get to that level of braking power and modulation. I had zero problems setting them up. Like someone else here said, there's no reason not to buy these brakes, especially considering the price. Avid did a great job with these.
Submitted by
Eric L
a Cross Country Rider
from Laguna Hills, CA
Date Reviewed: July 1, 2004
Strengths: Stops on a frickin dime-literally. Very sexy too.
Weaknesses: Something seems to be vibrating-it kinda moves, but it doesnt affect the performance in any way. I dont really like the pads
Bottom Line:
There is no reason not to buy these brakes. I put these on my XC race bike, so im not doing any crazy downhill or nothin, but holy crap they brakes are powerful. The arch is a pretty good and simple design. It seems to serve it purpose of centering. People compare them to the XT but there is no comparison. These are simply outstanding. One of the better rim brakes, even though they dont cost a whole lot.
Similar Products Used: Yo momma? XT(ughh) XTR(what a rip off) Single Digit 7(good, but I need the arch)
Bike Setup: XC hardtail(I built it so it would take wayyy long to list all the crap on it)
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
Buffy Ramos
a Weekend Warrior
from Philippines
Date Reviewed: March 10, 2004
Strengths: Powerful braking and very good modulation of paired with Avid speed dial levers. Shimano levers worked thou, most levers compatible. Color and style, they know they are Avids
Weaknesses: The 2 adjustmnet bolts on the side broke on me during routine cleaning and maintenance. left bolt , broke right on the allen screw crown. Right bolt, poped out while installing the front wheel. Loose threaded bolts. Tried placing some teflon pipe tape to fix the job. Still pops off.
Bottom Line:
Excellent brake for the power and the price. How can you go wrong. light enough for xc use, but strong for the trail and technical courses. 5 chills for the archrivals. BUT Wait!!!!2 chill for durability om stuck with a problem of getting an archrival for the frontbecause of those soft allen bolt adjusters that broke on me. 1 missing bolt head(no adjustment there) and one loose threaded bolt( no bolt there) . Probably , 2 + years is a long time for these brakes, maybe time (bad Timing) has come for me to replace these . So averege of 3 for them. exceptional but hate it when things brake to fast.
Bike Setup: GT avalanche, rockshox judy xc, ea5O seatpost, stem & h bar, velocity rim, lx hub, frnt & rear deraileur
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Submitted by
KGT
a Weekend Warrior
from Bishop Auckland
Date Reviewed: July 28, 2003
Strengths: They stop the bike like you just dropped anchor.
Weaknesses: Debris collection.
Bottom Line:
Im a sucker for new products and would be much richer if I listened to the other guys I ride with. I mess about with my bike and hardly ever ride the same set up twice. (Yes I realise Im a moron) Yet these brakes are the only things Ive left alone. I originally had them on my Zaskar which has become my No.2 ride. Once set up (pretty easy - 20mins) they bring you to a halt as required. Obviously when wet, all brakes suffer, but in all other conditions, these will do the biz. Still thinkin about spending money on discs, but they will have to be a SEVERE improvement on these to make me part with cash.
Submitted by
Lee Taylor
a Racer
from Victroia BC -- Hartland Dump!
Date Reviewed: August 26, 2002
Strengths: Not to bad of a price, work nice and reliable
Weaknesses: After about 2.5 years of heavy use the washers on the pivots combines with cheap-pot meatal wear and the breaks become useless
Bottom Line:
They were good breakes but after use like anything they just fell apart. I do like the XTR breaks better but I do have them on a new bike. I would recommend these breakes to anyone but if you do heavy riding in BC where there are big hills and wet conditions expect to replace them every couple years.
Strengths: power, true single digit(one finger)brakes!
Weaknesses: people who havnt used them dont have a clue how good they are
Bottom Line:
I had no idea how good theese brakes were because I had'nt had much experience with other brakes before these. But then new bike came in and it had so called SD 5's on it. Halfway through first race and my fore arms were fatigued from having to pull brakes and I was forced to go double digit(use to fingers) to slow down, and it was still difficult. Arch rivals were always true single digit and never fatigued me. I live in Arizona, so wet conditions are never an issue, so I cant comment on that.
Similar Products Used: avid SD 5, various center pull brakes
Bike Setup: k2razorback 3.0, monkeylite x/c, Mars Elite, Rocket shorties, Serfas Terazzo, off with the "SD" 5 and on with the arch rivals.
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Submitted by
Tim
a Cross Country Rider
from Gananoque, Ont, Canada
Date Reviewed: September 20, 2001
Strengths: Stopping Power, looks, easy to setup, always perform perfect.
Weaknesses: I noticed play developing in the front at the linear pivot point, more then I think should be there, but because of the way its used and the way the wheel pulls at the brakes it could be normal wear. I fixed it with some really fine washers.
Bottom Line:
Awesome Brakes. I wouldn't dream of changing them to anything but a newer pair of avids.. stopping power is as strong as anything could be!!
Similar Products Used: just the other crappy brakes.
Bike Setup: 2001 SuperCaliber, XTR everything but cranks and brakes, race face next lp carbon cranks. Sram 9 cassette- lighter then xtr.
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Submitted by
Casey Hodges
a Weekend Warrior
from Bedford, Tx
Date Reviewed: July 2, 2001
Strengths: no slop linkage. I think the arch looks cool. allen head adjusment screws, if you've tried to tune shimano brakes you know this is a plus(or maybe not, but it drives ME nuts). oh yeah, POWER.
Weaknesses: none so far. I am sure they will squeal if I get them wet
Bottom Line:
setup was easy and had no squeal problems from initial installation. I was overall happy with my LX's, but I had self inflicted problems with the rear from the get go, and it was cheaper just get a good deal on a full set of these than to replace the one LX. I don't know what "modulation" means really, but these have good lever feel which is very important to me. oh yeah and they have more power than my old LX's which we're as good as my brothers '98 XT's.
5 chiles for value - $31 plus shipping for the pair, how could they not get 5?
4 overall rating - hey, there are 2 brakes above these in the avid line plus shimano XT/XTR. they could probably use stiffer arms, but I have all the power I can handle as is.
Similar Products Used: old school canti's, entry level tektro, tektro quartz, Shimano LX
Bike Setup: fisher Vandium steel frame, LX/XT drivtrain, Judy T-2, LX/221 wheels, and of course these sweet brakes
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Submitted by
Jacob Landin
a Cross Country Rider
from Sweden
Date Reviewed: June 21, 2001
Strengths: Wicked stoppingpower. I haven't even had the chance to put them to the test for real yet. I've ridden a few times on them but haven't encountered any big obstacle, though... And they look great on my '99 Marzocchi Z3...
Weaknesses: Huh??
Oh, yeah. Squeeky noise, just like all rim-brakes when wet!
Bottom Line:
Great stopping power, got them really cheap, so I think I couldn't have done better! Really awesome looking, strong and absolutely great!
Similar Products Used: XT, SD 5, Tektro (sorry 'bout that)
Bike Setup: Moab with Deore, Z3 Light etc lots of Salsa-stuff
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Submitted by
Yo Dude
a Cross Country Rider
from TEXAS, North America
Date Reviewed: June 16, 2001
Strengths: they stop like RIGHT NOW!!!!
Weaknesses: are you kidding?
Bottom Line:
Holy faceplant, Batman!!! They may weigh a few grams more than the XT setup they replaced, but these work about 200 times better! I have them tied to the XT shift/brake lever combo and they're excellent. Got the pair from a guy on ebay and they came with cartridge pads, so I've never had a noise problem. Setup - well, you COULD screw it up...if you have an IQ lower than your shoe size...otherwise it takes about 10-15 minutes per wheel to make 'em perfect.
The bottom line? If you don't want to fork out the money for discs (or your frame doesn't have tabs) this, or AR50 or Arch Supreme, is the best, most cost-effective solution available. BUY THESE AND BE HAPPY - 5 FRYIN' ROADKILLS!!!
