THE SMART BRAKE.
The Louise is a versatile full hydraulic disc brake in a unique and outstanding design.
New 2009: Larger lever blade with improved ergonomics for a better grip.
Designed and manufactured in Germany!
Submitted by
TORO1968
a Weekend Warrior
from Arlington, TN USA
Date Reviewed: January 9, 2012
Strengths: Awesome modulation
Easy setup - calipers have a ton of adjustment for alignment, no need to remove grips to install levers
Weaknesses: Takes a long time to bed in pads
Bottom Line:
After dealing with repeated bleeding issues with my Elixir CRs, I decided enough was enough. I've had great performance out of my XT M775s on my Kona Dawg, but wanted to try something a bit different for my 4X bike that wouldn't break the bank. I picked up a set of the Louise BATs on Ebay, new with rotors for $220 - not a bad deal if you ask me. It took quite a while to bed in the pads, but as long as you follow Magura's procedure, you shouldn't have any issues. The modulation on these brakes is incredible, and surprisingly the lever feel is great, too.
The levers are designed for two-finger braking, much like the M775s, which is just my style, coming from a moto background.
The build quality of Magura stuff is top-notch. I didn't run into any issues with the setup of the calipers due to them having so much horizontal adjustment.
Strengths: Brake well. Modulate Well. Good Stopping power.
Weaknesses: Parts hard to find locally. Easy to Order
Bottom Line:
I just came off of 3 years riding Hayes MX1 Mechs with 160 rotors. Had been looking as some budget / closeout Hyrdo's for the past year, but everything I was considering in the price range had average to sloppy ratings.
Introduce the Magura Louise System. Better than average ratings and finally at a price I wanted to pay. I found a white front and white rear on separate auctions on ebay. One was a BAT the other was not ... but it was all I could find in white for a deal.
Install was easy, and after just one ride I was wondering what too me so long to upgrade. Man these are so sweet. It was like night and day over the Hayes MX1's. Stopping, Control, Modulation like never before. I have done my share of upgrades in the past, but few if any have been this noticeable. I can say ... amazing for the price !!
I would say if you ride XC, have a touch of Weight Weenie in you and need some new stoppers, these are a good find.
Weight was a savings too (my gram scale).
- Hayes MX1's with Cables and Avid SD 5 levers F&R: 695g
- Magura Louise System F&R: 566g before I cut hose to length
Strengths: they're not permanent, boost magura's bottom line
Weaknesses: they're absolute schitt. stopping is merely average, lever feel is average at best. the brake sucks. period
Bottom Line:
I can't wait to get rid of these pieces of schitt. My old juicy 7's rubbed, and I'd rather have those back than run these. I've retrued the rotor 3+ times, sanded brake pads, replaced brake pads, re-bed brake pads,adjusted spokes, re-bled x2, etc. And Magura's official line on the squawk? It's the bike design. An RFX is not stiff enough- Are they serious? And they state that Kona's and Merida's aren't either- nice. Oh- getting support on their website is like pulling teeth, it's poorly laid out. the instruction manual was written by a native german speaker, and the company was too arrogant to have an english speaker translate, they just left it with poor grammar. My same year brakes LOOKED different (different casting), and the instructions were even different! Can you get good Maguras? Sure- both my brothers like theirs. But they can't get mine to set up and not suck either. So instead of taking a chance that you get a bad set of these POS's, just buy something, ANYTHING else. Otherwise you'll be sitting at your computer after working 10+ hours over a month on these brakes, wondering how to get a hold of the employees at Magura, and eating their children. Like I am.
Similar Products Used: Shimano XT, Magura Loise, Juicy Seven
Bike Setup: Titus Racer X full XT
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
rzozaya1969
a Weekend Warrior
from Mexico City, Mexico
Date Reviewed: January 3, 2009
Strengths: Good power, excelent modulation. Great feel.
Weaknesses: Instalation of the calipers was a bit harder to center the front one, but nothing mayor.
Bottom Line:
I really like this brakes. I've been using the XT for around 3 years and I liked them. I think that the Louises have about the same power, but are easier to modulate.
I think this brakes are an excelent choice right now.
Hi,
I'm 85kg (185lb/190 geared up), bike is 14kg (30,8lbs), AM and long descents. Simple question - which one is more powerful ? Modulation is not that important (yeah, power is n Read More »
I have about 10 rides on these and they worked great.
Hopped on the bike yesterday (5 days after previous ride) and the front brake would not bite until the lever nearly hit the Read More »
I have Hayes Stroker Trail brakes on my rig, and they fade during long downhills, not to mention the squealing as they heat up is embarrassing. Modulation is rather so so, too. I Read More »
I just got done installing these to my bike - 180 front - 160 rear
After the install and cutting the hoses as best per instructions provided. I took it for a test ride.
I find th Read More »
A guy I know is selling a set of almost new 2011 Magura Louise bat brakes. I have zero experience with Magura brakes. Any opinions good or bad would be much appreciated. They would Read More »
