Submitted by
R-M-R
a Downhiller
from Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Date Reviewed: December 15, 2009
Strengths: - Unmatched modulation
- I've never overheated them
- Almost zero maintenance
- Mineral oil
- Rarely noisy
Weaknesses: - Power
Bottom Line:
This is almost the perfect brake: It's consistent, needs almost zero maintenance, and the modulation is far smoother than anything else I've tried. The only problem is the lack of power in a full-on downhill setting.
On trails that aren't overly demanding of your brakes, the M800 Saint is my favourite brake on the market. The power issue is only apparent on long, steep trails and when I'm putting in a lot of laps. In these scenarios, my hands can give out and leave me unable to control my speed - or, at the very least, I get considerable discomfort and fatigue in my hands.
I also have a set of Dual Control Saint brakes on my XC/AM bike with an 8" front rotor and 7" rear rotor. The power is perfect for that kind of riding and the smooth modulation keeps them easy to control.
If you rarely experience fatigue in your braking fingers or your trails don't require exceptionally large amounts of braking (such as XC/AM or less steep DH trails), then you'll probably love the M800. If you routinely ride long and steep trails that require almost constant use of the brakes, then I suggest a more powerful, downhill-specific brake. When in doubt about rotor sizes, go for the larger size.
Similar Products Used: Owned: Hope (2- and 4-piston)
Extensive test rides: Avid BB7, Avid Juicy 7, Magura Marta, Shimano 4-piston XT
Short test rides: Avid Code, Shimano Saint M810, Formula Oro K24, Shimano XT M775, Shimano Deore
Bike Setup: Iron Horse Sunday, 8" rotors, metallic (sintered) pads
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
surlychad
a Weekend Warrior
from Auburn, WA, USA
Date Reviewed: September 20, 2009
Strengths: Stopping power
Weaknesses: Some could say that they are heavy?
Bottom Line:
I used to run hayes exclusively. Then I purchased a bike with the saint brakes on it and thought I'd give them a try before I replaced them. I'm glad I did. I won't ever switch back to Hayes or any other manufacturer. I'm not a big fan of the shimano brake pads but if you switch to the ebc red pads they rule.
Strengths: Great stopping power. 1 finger to lock them. Excellent precise feel through the entire range. Solid as the rocks I ride over. Very nice finish and very durable. If youve seen any of my vids on utube you know how I abuse my gear. westcoastfreerider
Weaknesses: They can only be used with saint hubs, so the initial cost to install is higher than others.
Bottom Line:
These bad boys are proven. if you want the best stop looking and go for it you wont be dissapointed.
Bike Setup: IH 7x7. all saint components. marzocchi forks dt swiss wheels fox shock
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
Matt Coburn
a Downhiller
from wellington
Date Reviewed: April 28, 2008
Strengths: they stop me when working good
Weaknesses: there is always somehting wrong with them as soon as i got them they went down to the levers and then went to bleed them and had tons of air in them then i wood good one going to then the other one would crap out then my level ceased up and now doesnt pump any fluid through
Strengths: They're simple. Once you set em up, they're good to go. Easy to take care of
Weaknesses: expensive
Bottom Line:
It's tough to know what to think when you read some of these reviews. Some people completely contradict others in their reviews. A big problem is that in most of the reviews you read, the author has only used the product a short time. The majority of the time, less than 6 months. It's also tough with brakes because you don't know who is reviewing them. Is it some 120 lb cross country guy who rarely goes downhill and has doesn't really even know how to ride, or is it someone who has legitimate skill and charges it?
I weigh 215 lbs and ride a demo 9. I spend a lot of time in Mammoth, Ca riding expert only downhill trails (at least that's what the signs say). I spent years riding with Hayes brakes. I learned to completely rebuild those things, and set them up correctly. I had to bleed them after every solid day of riding. Pad replacement was a frequent event. I spent a lot of money buying replacement pads, master cylinders and brake fluid. Two years ago, I threw in the towel with Hayes and bought a set of Saints, just because I heard good things. I canned the Hayes setup off my demo, took my time and put the saints on. I made sure they were set up right and honestly, they are on a whole other level. They don't fade (like Hayes), the lever actuation point doesn't change minute by minute (like Hayes) and they require a fraction of the maintenance.
If you're looking at getting these brakes, I don't think you can go wrong. They have been great for me. Anyone who says Hayes brakes are great either doesn't know how to ride, weighs as much as a 10 year old girl, or rides cross country with no significant descents (sorry, but the truth hurts sometimes).
I can't give these a perfect score, cause nothings perfect.
Similar Products Used: Hayes (most models), avid BB
Bike Setup: Demo 9
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Mick
a Weekend Warrior
from Oldham, Lancs
Date Reviewed: June 9, 2007
Strengths: Great power, good modulation.
Weaknesses: Lever is a bit narrow, heavy, metal pads overheat, pads run too close to the rotors and any kind of warp is a major problem.
Bottom Line:
Good brakes. Strong and easy to set up. No problems with adjustments. Good price. I think they are heavy, especially compared with Formula or maybe Hope. The levers feel a bit narrow for me. Get a big rotor or else they will glow and pump up, mine do a lot. Also I get quite a bit of pad drag on the back too which makes the problem worse.
Strengths: Excellent stopping power, noise-free (unlike Avid), good reach adjustment, touble-free after bleeding, easy to find small parts at LBS, simple to shorten hose, single block caliper design, great engagement feel, easy one finger operation (even downhill).
Weaknesses: Narrow levers.
Bottom Line:
These are the best hydraulic disc brakes I have ever used. The most positive thing I can say about any bike component is that I don't think about it. I had a crummy experience with Avids constantly announcing themselves by warbling, squealing, and developing sticky pistons.
Based on the MTBR reviews and individual recommendations, I bought the SAINT brakes for a new All Mountain ride I was building. Even though the 6-bolt rotors are readily available, I went with the Saint centerlock hubs and centerlock rotors.
I'll never go back to Avid. In fact, I bought another 6" Saint/XT brake set for my XC ride. These brakes are whisper-quiet, held the bleed great, and engage with a solid feel that I have not experienced on othe brakes. They stop with one finger, front or rear. After realizing that I left the brake hose too long, all I had to do was buy another olive and pin, take a boxcutter to the hose, and hammer the new pin into the hose. The brake didn't even need to be re-bled.
Count them: 5, FIVE flaming jalapeños for Shimano.
Similar Products Used: Avid Juicy 5, Avid BB5, Hayes
Bike Setup: Turner Six Pack. Marzocchi Z1 Light, DHX Air, Saint crankset, Crank Bros Mallet, Answer Pro Taper, 07 SRAM X.9, Panaracer Fire FR 2.4, Saint hubs, Sun Rhyno Lite, WTB Laser V Pro Gel.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
walton brush
a Downhiller
from portland, oregon, usa
Date Reviewed: April 23, 2007
Strengths: These brakes have awesome a strength to weight ratio, they have great modulation yet are still extremly strong.
Weaknesses: i learned the hard way to make sure you buy non-centerlock rotors, I was stuck with my old hayes rotors.
Similar Products Used: magura louise fr, juicy seven, hayes mags, hayes nine, shimano xt, hayes el camino, hope 6 ti,
Bike Setup: specialized big hit, 888, swinger 4 way, saint cranks, atom lap trail pimps, saint brakes
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Danny Murphy
a Weekend Warrior
from Ireland
Date Reviewed: March 2, 2007
Strengths: Good power to weight ratio. value for money. easy to set up and plenty of power and feel.
Weaknesses: none
Bottom Line:
This is a very good brake with enough power for any application but with plenty of modulation. It's straight forward to set up and adjust and the rotors are substantial enough not to bend or warp easily and the weight is good too. Also the price means good value for money.
Submitted by
Dan
a Weekend Warrior
from San Jose, CA
Date Reviewed: December 24, 2006
Strengths: Power, modulation, simple pad change, color
Weaknesses: metallic pads
Bottom Line:
These brakes work great. The only problem I ever had with them was at Downieville. They overheated on the long decents and made harsh braking sounds. At the top of the second run I swapped the metallic pads out, and put resin ones in. All my problems disappeared. They were now quiet and never faded, plus I had more stopping power.
Setup and bleeding is easy, you can change the pads without removing the wheel too.
Bike Setup: 04 Enduro with tons of stuff and things
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Tom Miller
a Cross Country Rider
from Dolores, CO, USA
Date Reviewed: December 23, 2006
Strengths: Power, style, set-up
Weaknesses: way too little clearance between pads and rotor, mineral oil froze in extreme cold.
Bottom Line:
Although the shimano discs have been awesome to work on in the shop; easy set-up, great power, long lasting, etc; I was disappointed that the Saints didn't cut it for true winter riding. After a 1/2hour ride I had brake drag I could feel while padalling and even just squezzing the brakes in the shed with temps in the teens made the pistons stick. I can only point to mineral oil as the culprit on these cold days. additionally, I wish there was a way to set the pistons farther away from the rotors as it was impossible to set-up the brakes without the rotors tapping. I put the BB7's back on with the 8" Saint rotor in about 10 minutes and haven't had a problem since. Come summer I may give the more powerful Saints another try, but they didn't work for me in the winter.
Similar Products Used: Been using BB7's for years, but I've worked on them all.
Bike Setup: Surly Pugsley 1sp for winter riding.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Rogier
a Weekend Warrior
from Netherlands
Date Reviewed: December 2, 2006
Strengths: Never let's you down, always works
Weaknesses: none
Bottom Line:
I had these brakes put on the bike when i bought it, because from the reviews on mtbr it was clear that the Hayes (standard on the bike) where not realy trustworthy. The reviews on the Saints where good. And so they are!
Where others (Hope, Hayes, Avid,...) started fading, leaking, sqealing, blocking or stopped working at all on long freeride descents, the Saints simply kept working fine like nothing was going on.
Just make sure that you replace the standard 6" rear disc with an 8" one, because the 6" can get too hot on long descents. When it happened to me the brake didn't stop working, but started making some noise and dosage was getting poor. After i put the 8" rotor i never had any such experience ever again, not even on some lovely >1h non-stop freeride/downhill descents where you had to be braking practically all the time in order not to be rocketed into the ravine with out of control speed...
Bottom line: The Best for freeride and (light) downhill. (i have not done extreme downhill, so i don't know how they would perform then)
MODULATION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! On my XC bike, I had Magura HS33's, effectivly a 26" disc, offering TONS of modulation, I never thought a DH 8" Disc and Caliper could have very nearly as much as the HS33's had. AND STILL retain all the stopping power a DH bike requires. Magical these things are. Never thought I'd be able to pull rolling endo's this easy... Amazing... And with a little more lever pull, I can lock the front wheel at any speed if I want to... This is on the metal pads too, don't waste money on Resin, they just last shorter with no real benefits becuase the Saint system has been designed so damn well!
In the UK, these are the cheapest DH/FR set-up you can get. HOW DID SHIMANO DO IT! Only £200/$350 - $400 for the whole set! I use Deore XT DH 6 bolt rotors so I can use any hub's I want. They work as good as the center-lock rotors. If you think you need the Saint Hub's, which are probably fantastic as well, you DONT! Any hubs, Deore XT 6 bolt rotors...
Mineral Oil is a god send pretty much... I've never heard of anyone boiling Mineral Oil, and I haven't myself, and it is 20x better than DOT Fluid, your brakes seals last forever and you can poor a bottle of this stuff in your eyes and it might itch for a few mins... Saves yout precious paintwork unlike DOT Fluid too!
Everything about these babies says YES!
Don't bother with anything else... Ever... Shimano have dont the Saint set VERY, VERY well...
Bike Setup: MuddyFox Huck, DHX5.0 Mojo Tuned, 888RC2X's, Saint gear/brakes (GET THE REAR MECH NOW!!)....
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
steven
a Weekend Warrior
from adelaide
Date Reviewed: August 22, 2006
Strengths: fantastic modulation, awsome power, clean and subtle looks.
Weaknesses: none except rear hose too long.
Bottom Line:
the feel of these brakes is almost spongy but thats only because they dont have the on/off feel of other hydro's. after only 10mins of bedding in i could lift the rear wheel with one finger whilst sitting on the seat! powerful to the point of hazardous if you are not used to them and the modulation is unlike anything i have tried. it takes no effort to get exactly the level of power you need from these brakes. they dont look as flashy as hopes or avid juicy's but they are cheaper, look clean and work flawlessly.
Pre much what the title says, i got a deal an a half on a saint derailer, but my sram x7 won't shift it right. Any help? I heard Sram is 2:1 and shimano is 1:1. So what shifter wil Read More »
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