The R1 isThe Forged radial master cylinder w/ integrated reservoir and flip flop design Split clamp for easy installation, MixMaster available sold separately 1 piece patent-pending forged caliper body Post mount caliper, adapter and rotor sold separately Aluminum backed pads for additional weight savingsTop loading pads Approximate weight 279 grams Adapter and rotor sold separately
How does it look? Hawt! The lever has a very clean, minimalistic lines with red anodized clamps and hardware. The master cylinder itself sports a flat black finish and is complemented with a silver forged lever. The cable is an elegant gray kevlar braid which leads to a flat, textured caliper with red ano accents as well. However, the rotor itself is not of the same aesthetic caliber. The swoopy center lines are abruptly finished by a very round outer rim peppered by dozens of holes. It’s not in the same vein as the classic Oro Puro rotor. Continue reading →
Strengths: Look Awesome. Work Awesome. Great modulation. Great stopping power. Great adjustability.
Weaknesses: None yet
Bottom Line:
Came stock on my Epic EVO. Haven't ant issues at all. Over 500 miles on them so far. A little noisier than my XTR's but not a big deal for me. Did I say Great looks. Mine are "ALL BLACK" with the red adjustment wheel.
Strengths: - Extremely light (dropped considerable weight by replacing my Hope M4's).
- Great modulation, with really good feel at the lever.
- 160mm Rotor easily powerful enough on a 26er (not so much on a 29er).
- Easy lever adjustment.
- Simple, intuitive bleeding.
- Look great!
Weaknesses: - 160mm on the front isn't powerful enough for a 29er.
- Delicate master cylinder.
- Pretty expensive (but you get what you pay for).
- Cant adjust lever firmness (position yes, firmness no).
Bottom Line:
Great brakes! Very light with great feel. As soon as I get hold of a 180mm rotor they should be more than adequate in the power department. I highly recommend these brakes. Their a few years old now, so you can find some great deals on them.
Duration Product Used: Windsor Trail - Santa Fe, NM
Price Paid:
$400.00
Purchased At: Chain Reaction
Similar Products Used: Hope M4, Hope X2
Bike Setup: Santa Cruz Tallboy, DT Swiss forks and shocks, XTR Drive train w/ Race Face crank, DT Swiss hubs w/ Arch EX rims, Race Face and Thomson finishing kit.
Weaknesses: the lack pad clearance is absurd - a real pain in the ass unless you like rubbing & squealing. From the beginning the inboard pistons refused to retract fully. After a year of dealing with these, constantly getting even the tiniest deflection out of my rotors, constantly readjusting calipers, I sent them back to Formula - they replaced the piston seals, which supposedly helps bring the piston back in, as the seals supposedly stay seated on the piston edge and the cylinder wall, and the seals supposedly stretch as piston is forced out (lever squeezed) and when that potential energy put into the stretch of the seal is released (as the master cylinder piston pressure is released when letting go of lever), supposedly the seal takes its original shape back, drawing the piston back with it (I don't know what % this retractive force of the seal contributes to pulling the pistons going back in - I'm quite certain the main force pressing the pistons back in is still atmospheric pressure from air molecules slamming at 14.7 psi against pistons; this "seal" seating is btw why Formula will tell you not to lubricate the pistons with anything but brake fluid, not that I ever did that, but brake fluid is pretty slippery itself, so I have some doubts about the whole seal deformation theory, but I'm not an expert.) Anyway, guess what: after getting R1's back from Formula, there was very little difference - the front was somewhat better, maybe 0.1 mm gap between rotor and pads, but that with pads maybe 1/3 worn down, and the rear brake has only maybe 0.01 mm, ie, no clearance on inboard side - forcing the caliper to be set so that the caliper body is about one micron from rotor - so of course guess what I hear on cornering - the sickening sound of rotor squealing on caliper body.
Bottom Line:
These brakes are exactly one year old as I write. I bought them because I absolutely love my Formula Oro's on an older bike - they are still fantastic after 5+ years of heavy usage - the gap in the caliper body is plenty wide enough enough to handle brand new pads and no rub - but the Oro's are somewhat heavier and don't stop quite as well as the R1's. I think these R1's are "beta" and not ready for primetime. Apparently for 2012 there are changes - larger reservoir for one - I don't know why the two sides of the caliper couldn't be angled differently allowing for more adjustment to compensate for the inboard pistons inability to retract properly (many many people have this same problem.) I'm wondering if The One has this problem? I'm not that much of a weight weenie - another 40 grams would be fine with me if the pad clearance was better. Then again, I shouldn't be in the market for new brakes at all after one year of hassling with these R1's.
These brakes are simply magnificent. Once you get over the price (you do get what you pay for here), these brakes leave me impressed and smiling on every ride. I have ridden various trails of various degrees of difficulty and I've never had to apply more than one-half pressure of one index finger to stop as I've needed. They're easy to adjust, pretty much maintenance-free, they look sharp, and they took a full half-pound off my bike switching from Avid Elixirs.
These brakes are simply magnificent...there's nothing else to say...
Similar Products Used: Various Hayes, Shimano, and Avid brakes over the years
Bike Setup: GF Superfly 100
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Submitted by
mbrennwa
a Cross Country Rider
from Zurich, Switzerland
Date Reviewed: April 1, 2012
Strengths: Great stopping power, fantastic feel. I crave brakes with good modulation, and this is by far the best I've used so far.
Weaknesses: Pricey (but in this case you get what you pay for). Adjustment is tricky because of the low clearing between calipers and disc. With my second set of brake pads (Swissstop brand instead of original Formula) the brake improved (even better modulation, adjustment got easier).
Bottom Line:
I needed the best brake I could find because I use my bike every day. So I tried the R1, and was happy ever after (even after years of use and hardly any maintanance).
Similar Products Used: Formula RX, Avid hydros and mechanicals
Bike Setup: Commuter bike
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Submitted by
ddprocter
a Cross Country Rider
from San Carlos
Date Reviewed: February 7, 2012
Strengths: Very strong, well modulated, light brakes. They don't fade. They are strong wet or dry. Pads very easy to change. Reach adjust works perfectly. Bleed it straightfoward.
Weaknesses: Would like some control over stiffness, no adjustment for modulation (although there is plenty of reach adjustment)
Little noisy even with organic pads
Had to replace rear pistons due to sticking piston on one side, but, bought used, have no way to confirm the prior history of these brakes
Bottom Line:
Lightest, strongest brakes out there. Had some maintenance issues, but they were used, so hard to judge real longevity
Submitted by
Cap'n Chris
a Racer
from Dana Point, CA
Date Reviewed: January 3, 2012
Strengths: Light weight, great looking, durable. The stopping power is amazing, and the modulation is CRAZY good when the added pad adjustment dial is added.
Weaknesses: None yet!
Bottom Line:
If you want the best XC/trail stoppers out there, the R-1's are the real deal. The price is so worth it, once they are mounted you will never even think or it again. With the additional pad reach dial and carbon lever upgrade, the brakes are light and extremely worthy of high end race bike set ups. IDEAL for XC racers or endurance trail riders looking for sizzling power in a stupid-light package.
Similar Products Used: Everything from Avid BB7's to Magura to Hayes
Bike Setup: Which one?
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Submitted by
bsdc
a Cross Country Rider
from Austin, TX
Date Reviewed: October 15, 2011
Bottom Line:
For what it's worth, I ride Juicy 7's. They've worked great for me for many years. I haven't ever thought of replacing them.
I just got back from Outerbike where I got to ride a lot of bikes. I really wasn't there to evaluate brakes, but I did ride a couple of bikes with Formula R1 brakes and they really stood out to me. I'm not one to nitpick components a lot. All the other brakes on the other bikes were fine. It's just somehow the R1's really impressed me. I'm sure some of it is personal preference, but they just fit right (I have relatively small hands) and had real nice modulation.
I've got no plans of replacing something that's not broke, but my next bike will have Formula R1's or something very similar.
Similar Products Used: Juicy 7 and tested a lot of others.
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
DmD
a Cross Country Rider
from Southern California
Date Reviewed: September 3, 2011
Strengths: Good stopping power, nice modulation, looks, very light weight, and easy to bleed. No annoying noise or vibration like Avids.
Weaknesses: Price.
Bottom Line:
These are a pricey set of brakes. But they work really well. I was tired of dealing with the many problems with Avid Disc Brakes particularly the Elixir CRs and Juicys. So far I have not had any problems with the R1 and The Ones. The R1 stopping power is not as strong as The Ones, but the R1s are cross country brakes. The R1s look stylish with a minimalist look. I like the braided hoses. Bleeding is fairly easy. Im using the R1s with 160 mm Hayes V-cut rotors which seem to work well.
Similar Products Used: Formula The Ones - awesome brake. Problematic Avid Elixirs and Juicy Ultimates. Hayes 9s, Hayes El Camino.
Bike Setup: Pivot Mach 4
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Submitted by
las-palmas
a Cross Country Rider
from Las Palmas, Spain
Date Reviewed: March 13, 2011
Strengths: Stops the bike better than XT, XTR.
Easy to dose, stop without blocking is easy.
Weaknesses: After 6 month up and down the mountains here: None.
Bottom Line:
Having had hydraulic disc brakes for more than 10 years now I have finally found brakes that are easy to use; not too much stopping power, not too little, just enough; all the time.
Even when hot they still function. Julie and the Shimanos did fade on long descends and the Louise was not easy to use: too much or too little stopping power.
But maybe I just had "Monday" products.
Buy them if you want light brakes that are easy to use.
Similar Products Used: Magura Julie and Louise.
Shimano XT and XTR.
Bike Setup: Ibis Mojo with FOX RP23
RockShox Revelation
SRAM XO (thumb shifting)
Formula R1 (1 finger braking)
Speedplay Frogs (easy on your knees)
Selle Italia SLC 130mm old model firm and comfortable
Thomson Masterpiece
New Ultimate flat-bar 580mm
X-Lab water carriers
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Submitted by
easymzm
a Cross Country Rider
from Denver, CO
Date Reviewed: November 27, 2010
Strengths: Very lightweight. Clean design, excellent stopping power, no reliability issues
Weaknesses: Tight pad clearance may require some fiddling. Lacks a contact point adjustment. Not cheap.
Bottom Line:
A great brake, very light and powerful. Appropriate for XC to light all mountain use.
Bike Setup: Santa Cruz BlurXC carbon, Fox F120 RLC, XO drivetrain.
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
Mike Aswell
a Cross Country Rider
from Unity, PA USA
Date Reviewed: November 15, 2010
Strengths: Light, good stopping power, good modulation, relatively easy installation.
Weaknesses: Somewhat pricey, though the $380 I paid was brakes, rotors and levers.
Bottom Line:
These are pretty amazing brakes at a very low weight. Set up was fairly painless, though I had to re-center the front caliper 3-4 times before I got it right. The rear caliper was first try. As mentioned in another review, pad clearance is fairly tight, but I don't see this as a problem as long as you don't beat up your rotors, which if you do the R1s probably aren't the best for you anyways...stopping power and modulation are impressive. Did I mention they're light? I think I shed 1/2 lb going to these, no joke.
Submitted by
Kjell
a Cross Country Rider
from Oslo, Norway
Date Reviewed: September 5, 2010
Strengths: Featherweight, design, stopping power
Weaknesses: Pad wears out very fast in wet mud!!"
Bottom Line:
Very light and strong brak - good modulation - OBS if being used in wet muddy conditions change from organic pads - mine lasted for 2 hours and that's it (no brakes...!). Recommended for racing and weight weenies.
Submitted by
aldous
a Cross Country Rider
from Brooklyn NY
Date Reviewed: July 9, 2010
Strengths: Very light, great stopping power
Weaknesses: Tiny pad clearances, need regular adjustment
Bottom Line:
I loved my Oros, and still run them on my SS - excellent power and modulation, set them up and forget them, easy breezy. The R1's offer slightly better power, but have been incredibly finicky for me.
I do all my own wrenching and have been setting up and tweaking brakes since the days of BMX style chainstay-mounted U-brakes, so I know what I'm doing, and the R1s are a pain in the arse. Pad clearance is miniscule, and for the first few rides I kept having to stop and re-center the front caliper due to rubbing of the inboard pad (these are supposed to be self-aligning). I tried de-gumming the pistons (as suggested by the Formula folks) to no effect. I finally re-centered the calipers with a piece of 3x5 card stock between the rotor and the inboard pad and that gave me a hair more clearance to stop the rubbing, although I still get the occasional bell-like 'ping' from the front brake every once in a while, indicating intermittent contact.
The rear brake just started doing the turkey gobble thing, too. No loss of performance (and not as loud as the sound I've heard Juicys make) but annoying as hell.
On the plus side, the factory bleed has held up (just like the Oros - 2 years of service without a bleed), although it seems like most higher-end hydros these days have conquered the need to bleed, so that's not such a big selling point anymore.
These will stop you solidly, and other people seem to have no problems with their R1s, so maybe its me. But for the price, it would be nice to have a brake that is as tweak free as the Oros.
Submitted by
jay_ntwr
a Cross Country Rider
from Dallas, TX, USA
Date Reviewed: June 17, 2010
Strengths: Absolutely the best brake I've ever used. The Oro Puros were amazing but these are truly an upgrade. There is nothing else to say really, they just work better than anything else I've used. Formula one up'd themselves with these.
Weaknesses: They are spendy but worth it.
Bottom Line:
Just ride a pair and you'll be sold. Don't do it if you have a lot of bikes 'cause you'll hate the brakes on all of the ones that aren't R1s and you'll have to replace them all and that could get expensive.
