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Submitted by
Raymund Alova
a Cross Country Rider
from Iloilo City, Philippines
Date Reviewed: March 27, 2008 | | Favorite Trail: | any on Guimaras Island | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Purchased At: | Gea's Bike Shop | | Strengths: | Reliable and simple to install. Came with my Shimano Alivio Group set. | | Weaknesses: | Not as light as I would hope it would be. Rim brakes easily wears out the rims although this does not apply to me (as yet). | | Similar Products Used: | None so far... | | Bike Setup: | KHS Alite 1000 frame, RST Gila Pro TnL fork, Alivio group set, Ameoba Handle bar, Velo Plush saddle. AlexRims DC19 wtih Kenda Koyote tyres. | | Bottom Line: | Value for money to those starting out to have a keen interest in mountain biking. Reliable braking power. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Agustin Lopez
a Weekend Warrior
from Los Angeles, CA
Date Reviewed: May 28, 2004 | | Favorite Trail: | Sullivan Canyon | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$14.00 | | Purchased At: | www.cambriabike.com | | Strengths: | Price. | | Weaknesses: | Possibly weight but then again what's a few grams. | | Similar Products Used: | P.O.S mystery Tektro V brakes that came stock on my bike. | | Bike Setup: | 04 Specialized Hardrock Sport, stock components for the most part. | | Bottom Line: | I like these brakes compared to the Tektros that came with my bike. I worked with them, adjusting them at least once a week trying to find that magical missing braking force.
I bought the Shimano (BR-M420 V-Brake) for $14.00 for the pair. So far this is the best upgrade so far. On my first ride they did what the Tektro's failed to do, brake. I thought they would offer better braking but I was surprised by the difference in stopping power. These brakes work great for $14.00 and don't let the price fool you into thinking they won't work.
In short, If you are not a hardcore rider and your bike came with P.O.S brakes, give these a try. I was surprised and pleased and not to mention I have enough left over to spend on other things for the bike.
I give them a 4 for value because they offer good performance for the money you pay and a total of three because nothing out there is perfect.
| Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Lexa Doig
a Cross Country Rider
from Philippines
Date Reviewed: January 18, 2004 | | Favorite Trail: | Andromeda | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$8.00 | | Purchased At: | LBS | | Strengths: | Cheap, works fine | | Weaknesses: | The "accordion" plastic comes off and jiggles around. The cable fixing bolt seems like it'll strip the aluminum brake arm. | | Similar Products Used: | Cantis, vees, calipers, drums, etc... | | Bike Setup: | Full suspension, fork and rear shock, with suspension stem and suspension seatpost, yeah, and a sprung seat LOL! 124.635464 inches total travel. | | Bottom Line: | Never had broken bones with these. They work, but they ain't the best. They're cheap enough to replace with better brakes.
5 bleeding severed fingers for value.
2 overall, since it's a shimano
"IT'S A SHAME TO USE SHIMANO" repeat after me: "IT'S A SHAME TO USE SHIMANO" | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
andi
a Weekend Warrior
from Regensburg, Germany
Date Reviewed: December 30, 2003 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$8.00 | | Strengths: | enough power for most situations
really cheap - 8 Euros!
nice to look at
simple construction: nothing which could break up, dirt - resistant | | Weaknesses: | quite flexy (especially w/ Avid SD3-levers)...
...but my ´01 LX isn´t that much better!
durability??? But for 8 Euros - no problem.
Shimano stock brake-pads | | Similar Products Used: | ´01 LX V-Brakes, several canties, Magura HS33 | | Bike Setup: | Tange Prestige steel frame w/ T.P. rigid fork, Deore / LX drivetrain, ZAC19 rims, IRC Mythos, Flite | | Bottom Line: | I think for 8 Euros you cannot buy a better new brake.
The stopping power is enough, but the modulation could be better with less flexing brake-arms.
I don´t know how long they will last, but I don´t see anything which could break up. And even if it doesn´t work anymore - I´ll mount the next one (but maybe a Deore - maybe they flex less)
| | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Aaron
a
from Austin, TX
Date Reviewed: November 8, 2003 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$5.00 | | Purchased At: | Cambria | | Strengths: | Cheap and strong braking | | Weaknesses: | None for the price | | Similar Products Used: | Deore V-brakes, Promax, generic | | Bottom Line: | The really crappy brakes that came stock on my cheapo Raleigh M20 worked just fine and didnt need to be replaced. However, I had upgraded the stock grip shifters and the brake levers that it had were the kinda that work with twist shifters, so they had the funny little bump in them. That drove me nuts rubbing my knuckle so I decided to look for new levers. Well I found some Avid Single Digit levers for really cheap and decided if I had such nice levers I needed to upgrade the crappy V-brakes as well. Cambria just happened to have the levers for $15 and then the Shimano M420 V-brakes whicha re the newer style for $5 a set. So for $25 I had a new brake setup, not bad. Lemme tell you these cheap brakes work great. They look nice and stop great with the Avid levers. They actually stop better on my cheap unmachined sidewall rims than the Alivo lever, Deore brake setup w/ XT pads on machined Mavic rims I had on my mountain bike, go figure. For the money you simply cant do any better. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Aaron McGraw
a Cross Country Rider
from Oil City PA, USA
Date Reviewed: October 27, 2003 | | Favorite Trail: | Oil Creek, Allegheny, and Sugar Creek Trail Systems, Venango County | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$10.00 | | Purchased At: | Pricepoint or Cambria (I really don't recall) | | Strengths: | Despite what some of the prophetic know-it-alls say: They DO work. | | Weaknesses: | Weight. No big issue, really...when I lose a few pounds myself, I'll start a letter-writing campaign to Shimano. | | Similar Products Used: | Tektro V-brakes, Scott Pederson SE cantilevers, Alivio Cantilevers, Suntour Rollercam, Diatech U-Brakes, Exage Trail M350 cantilever and U-brakes, Chang Star Linear Pull Brakes (okay, now THOSE were dangerous) | | Bike Setup: | These brakes with SRAM 9.0SL levers, Titec Bars, Kore Stem, Profile bar ends, MRX shifters, Deore Front Mech, Deore XT rear derailleur, Taya Relief chain, Weinmann rims with formula hubs, Mutanoraptor tires, Truvativ 5-D crank with Syncros, LX, and stock (steel) Truvativ (inner) rings, Kalloy post with SDG saddle, Manitou Magnum fork, DMT rear shock, Wellgo Smootie DH SPD-type pedals, Nashbar cassette, Mongoose XR-150 frameset. | | Bottom Line: | I love these doom-and-gloom self-annointed reverends that tell you, "Use these brakes and the end is near"....its not true in the slightest. Maybe if they kept their bodily fluids (tears and others) off the pads, maybe their brakes would work a tad better. Realisticly speaking, these brakes DO work. They are a bargain and will prevent you from careening off the un-beaten path into a river gorge and winding up as trout-food. They will provide stopping power ample enough to end your descents (whether it be down a ridiculous powerline grade, fire road, abandoned logging trail, or PA Route 8). With a decent pair of levers, they will supply a reasonable level of modulation. To top things off, they do look rather spiffy. If you are on a budget, these brakes (or Tektro offerings) are a rational and safe choice. I suspect that some of the folks that malign perfectly good products are somehow insecure about their riding ability, how their pasty butt looks in spandex, or work at the local bike shop behind the brake-upgrade counter and hope to make a nice fat commission from the folks they fill with fear. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Joshi "digi"
a Cross Country Rider
from Silver Spring, MarylanD
Date Reviewed: March 9, 2003 | | Favorite Trail: | Schaeffer & Beach Dr. Parallel Path | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Purchased At: | w/ bike @ local swap | | Strengths: | Will stop you. Eventually.
Better than nothing. | | Weaknesses: | you can see the metal bend. doesn't work with 26" X 2.1" tires. | | Similar Products Used: | Shimano Sora | | Bike Setup: | Trek 850 steel. all Alivio, except for a three day old Deore LX rear derrailleur. | | Bottom Line: | Don't buy these unless you want to die! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Chris
a Cross Country Rider
from Kirksville, Missouri USA
Date Reviewed: September 12, 2002 | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Purchased At: | came on my bike | | Strengths: | nice power application | | Weaknesses: | lame stock pads | | Similar Products Used: | avid shorty 6 | | Bike Setup: | bridgestone mb-6 with misc. replacement parts | | Bottom Line: | good brake system, but get some kool-stop pads and scrub down your rims with degreaser | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Andrew Longden
a Weekend Warrior
from sheffield
Date Reviewed: March 2, 2002 | | Favorite Trail: | common land | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Purchased At: | came on my bike | | Strengths: | good stopping power, easy to ajust, looks o.k, cheap | | Weaknesses: | leaves black stuff on your rims, kills blocks, doesn't work when wet | | Similar Products Used: | other v brake systems | | Bike Setup: | manitou forks, deore transmission, michelin wildgripper tyers | | Bottom Line: | very good stopping power when the brakes are clean but once they get wet they stop working.I scrubb a set of blocks every time I go out for a day ride (I now know my local shop onwner by first name). it's worth spending more and getting better if you can. I am now thinking of getting a hope mini to save on cost!! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jet Black
a
from boulder, co
Date Reviewed: February 5, 2002 | | Duration Product Used: | More than 3 years | | Strengths: | Cheap... | | Weaknesses: | lack of braking power, fading... | | Similar Products Used: | lx, xtr, sd 5, sd 7, hs33 tomac | | Bike Setup: | trek 7k.. alivio sd 7s (nice brakes), a z3 bam, & better rollers.. | | Bottom Line: | Poor product. Lack of braking power and tendency to fade (during not even long rides) created many harrowing experiences on dh switchbacks. Overall, don't skimp when it comes to brakes! Spend a couple of extra bucks and get some alivios instead... single digit 5s are only 20 bucks at jenson... they're far better built and have greater stopping force than even mid-high priced shimanos. | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Gunny
a Weekend Warrior
from Halifax, NS
Date Reviewed: January 14, 2002 | | Favorite Trail: | urban assault | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Purchased At: | came with bike | | Strengths: | Damn cheap (moneywise). | | Weaknesses: | Damn cheap (qualitywise). | | Similar Products Used: | All manner of canti's and V's. | | Bike Setup: | Rat bike. Too scary to go into... | | Bottom Line: | A phenomenally effective way of getting yourself killed in the classic heavy rain/heavy traffic cocktail. If you're new to cycling and you plan on doing anything in the wet, fire these into space and get even some low-end V-brakes. Seriously, there are a lot of folks who seem to think that if something's not brand spanking new and "trick", that it sucks, and while this is NOT true, brakes are one thing to absolutely not skimp on. Your safety is (should be) the number one priority, and while it is true that no rim brake is a sure thing in the wet, these brakes have relatively low power, even when properly set up. If you must stick with them (or any cantillever brake), be sure to use high-quality pads (I recommend kool-stops or Ritcheys). | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Nate
a Downhiller
from wisconsin
Date Reviewed: July 18, 2001 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Purchased At: | eauclaire bike and sport | | Strengths: | uh these i got with my 2000 schwinn moab 3. they work pre nice and look cool. | | Weaknesses: | ah that pads are like worn out after a year and a half of rideing (my bike was used so it got alil more wear on the brakes than i like)so i guess they still flip me but its slower and i wanna have better performance without that much cash. i think im gonna upgrad to some better pads. uh they crap up my rims but i try to keep that clean. | | Similar Products Used: | i dunno ive used some promax craps and id have to say these are ways better then those peices of crap. | | Bike Setup: | deore lx f and r derailuers, rockshox judy xc's, weinnman wheelset. | | Bottom Line: | these brakes are nice but i would like to upgrade. i dunno maybe next summer but right now if you just upgrade the pads i think these brakes will work nice for you. might have alil bit of play but not that bad and they stop nicely. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Nick ******
a Weekend Warrior
from Cyprus-nicosia
Date Reviewed: April 1, 2001 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Strengths: | good performanc(if you consider its just an alivio)
easy set-up
nice looks
comfortable levers | | Weaknesses: | I have them for 6 months and the f*ckin shimano pads have already f****cked up my rims
Poor stopping power in wet | | Similar Products Used: | ---------------- | | Bike Setup: | STXrc,Alivio | | Bottom Line: | its a good prodyct but it would be alot better if shimano equiped them with good pads | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Martin E
a Cross Country Rider
from Sweden
Date Reviewed: March 1, 2001 | | Favorite Trail: | Kickapoo´s #2B | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Purchased At: | Cykel och Mopedhandlaren i Umeå | | Strengths: | Good braking power
Easy to maintain
Everlasting
VERY cheap
As good as LX
Looks cool. | | Weaknesses: | Makes the rim change color to black
No power when wet
No sensitivity | | Similar Products Used: | All Shimano vees and a lot of others too | | Bottom Line: | If you dont have any money to buy the good stuff get this. If you do have money dont buy it. I got these with a cheap bike but I am surprised they work as good as they do but I changed brakes quite soon. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Daniel M
a
from Montreal,Quebec,Canada
Date Reviewed: October 25, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | Banzai at Bromont | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Purchased At: | Came on bike | | Strengths: | Simple. OK stopping power for power. Comfortable levers. | | Weaknesses: | Cheap in more ways than one. Do not even compare to a low end Avid. Pads leave black sh*t on rims when wet. have developed play. UUUUUUGLYYYY! | | Similar Products Used: | Avid 1.0, XT vee, Avid Arch Rival 40. Ganeric Vee. 10 yr old Deore canti. and more. | | Bike Setup: | Giant Atx 840. Z5 fork. Alivio/stx. Mavic 221 rear rim that is f***ed up. | | Bottom Line: | Bad brakes, but go good on bikes in the 400-600 pricerange. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Tony Oldenbeuving
a
from netherlands
Date Reviewed: October 15, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | downtown | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Strengths: | Cheap, simple | | Weaknesses: | Look cheap and simple, make my bike look cheap and simple. | | Similar Products Used: | No-name V's, Tektros, Some other cantis. | | Bike Setup: | '97 (I think) Specialized Rockhopper with Deore LX derailleurs and Alivio shifters/brakes. Ritchey semi-slicks and grips. San Marco/Bontrager Race Day saddle. (which for some strange reason has a women's name embroided on it) | | Bottom Line: | These brakes were a nice surprise, they stop me a lot better than the crap V's that came on my 1999 Giant X-1500.
I got this Rockhopper 2nd hand, so I don't know what pads are on the brakes, but they're grey (I suspect they're Ritcheys because the previous owner was kindda obsessed with that brand.)
I really like these things and they're a lot less complicated than my old V-brakes.
Go canti! And go Keith Bontrager!
(but stop embroiding woman's names on my saddle) | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Johnny Flatlander
a Cross Country Rider
from Rocky Mount NC
Date Reviewed: February 8, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Strengths: | cheap and durable
low tech design
good braking for routine use | | Weaknesses: | gummy pads leave black goo, suck up rim gouging dirt
can squeal as bad as V brakes if not set up right | | Similar Products Used: | Polygon cantis (original equipment on early HKS) | | Bike Setup: |
HKS Montana early 80's updated
Trek Jetta--buy the bike and rack and they throw in a car | | Bottom Line: | Had a set of good functioning and nicely made Alivio cantilevers on the Trek, so I decided to put a set on my old HKS. Surprise! The second set of Alivios were totally different in appearance, squared off and clunky looking. Obviously a case of change for appearance, not improvement. After futzing with them, they nearly work as well as the original Polygons. The pads made my new wheelset look well used within about 20 miles. Bottom line--their best quality was costing about the same as a set of pads. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
A Big Billy
a Downhiller
from Dumpsite
Date Reviewed: November 19, 1999 | | Favorite Trail: |
My back garden | | Duration Product Used: |
more than 3 years | | Strengths: |
awesome man, cool as a snowmans armpits | | Weaknesses: |
none at all, unless you try and use them to wipe your bum | | Similar Products Used: |
Hope Pro disks | | Bike Setup: |
Badly
my pads ran down, so i'm using blocks of chip-board | | Bottom Line: | Excellent for the hard bloke who likes to downhill in his garden, stop you dead from 60mph | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Peter
a Downhiller
from London
Date Reviewed: August 28, 1999 | | Duration Product Used: |
less than 1 month | | Bottom Line: | If you want to spend as little as possible on brakes, buy these. Any cheaper won't do. The pads wear quickly, but they are really responsive. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jeff
a Cross-Country Rider
from Fisher
Date Reviewed: July 15, 1999 | | Favorite Trail: |
Corona Loma | | Duration Product Used: |
1 Year | | Strengths: |
Nice modulation (on the road)
They stop (on the road) | | Weaknesses: |
WEAK, WEAK, WEAK
Poor control in mud
Lock up with no warning
Maintenance nightmare | | Similar Products Used: |
Diacompe V-brakes
Magura Hydralics
Shimano LX V's | | Bike Setup: |
Trek 930 SHX ('96) w/ a Rock Shox Quad 5 | | Bottom Line: | These brakes are a joke. They almost got me killed riding in the mud after a hard rain. Granted, no rim brake will work well in the mud, but these went from being average on the best day to being practically non-functioning. Luckily Shimano now makes Alivio V's, but if you buy a used bike w/ these brakes, shell out some dough and buy better. My Trek (with the Alivio cantis) got stolen, and my new bike has Diacompes, which have to be the best bargain brake available. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Daniel
a Weekend Warrior
from England
Date Reviewed: June 23, 1999 | | Duration Product Used: |
2 Years | | Strengths: |
They stop damn well | | Weaknesses: |
Need to be adjusted properly, pads wear fast | | Similar Products Used: |
Various V-brakes, other cantis | | Bottom Line: | People rode with cantilevers for years and had no problems. It just takes a bit of knowledge and a 10mm spanner to set these properly (a 5min job every few hundred miles), and you've got 2 finger brakes that will stop hard with fair feel - but at least as well as V-brakes (which tend to go a bit duff after a while). What more do you want? | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Mark
a Cross-Country Rider
from Bozeman, Montana
Date Reviewed: May 1, 1999 | | Duration Product Used: |
2 Years | | Strengths: |
Good power, nice modulation for canties. Darn good stoping power for cheep. | | Weaknesses: |
they are canties | | Similar Products Used: |
shimano canties
shimano V's | | Bike Setup: |
Older Diamond back, when they were still making mountain bikes, carbon/cromo frame, sun rims. | | Bottom Line: | Good brakes, but outdated, since V's do exist, I can not give a five, only four, cheep, stop, good modulation for canties, pads do tend to collect foriegn objects and make groovs in rims, just replace pads, or buy V's if you have the cash. Good product. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
MUDDY
a weekend warrior
from Ontario,Canada
Date Reviewed: September 26, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I have these brakes on my 1997/98 Trek 930 they are ok. almost all of the time when I put my back wheel on I must realine them and stop them from sticking to the rim. The stopping power somewhat sucks but I blame part of this on the cheap Shimano pads the came with. Overall I give these brakes 3 flaming chillies | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Groptus
a cross-country rider
from Rochester NY
Date Reviewed: August 17, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
The Alivio brake isn't the problem, it's the crappy pads Shimano puts on them. After upgrading to Ritchey Logics, the brakes worked great. I did have to buy a fat washer and grind it down on one side however, to stop the stuck pig syndrome. Also upgrade to Teflon cables and you're doing yourself a favor. A decent deal overall. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
trail burner
a cross-country rider
from Southfield, MI USA
Date Reviewed: July 23, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
These brakes are just fine. all of the posts below that say these brakes are crap don't know what they're talking about. First of all, if the brakes aren't stopping you, either get new pads, or take the bike to an expert local bike shop that will set them up properly. I can't tell you how many bike shops I've been to where the mechanic was some highschool kid earning some after school money. Don't get me wrong, i think it's great for the kid! But when it comes to setting up my bike, I want somebody with YEARS of experience that could assemple a bike for a top racer if necessary. I have such a shop in my neighborhood. These guys are so good that their bikes with ALTUS brakes stop on a dime! I was amazed at the level of knowledge and precision that these guys have.
Like I said, Canti's will work fine. Anybody with problems need to get them PROFESSIONALY set up.
Also check out Keith Bontragers site on how to set up your canti's better than V-brakes:
www.bontrager.com
seeya on the trails! | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
E.V.
a weekend warrior
from Netherlands,Rotterdam
Date Reviewed: June 29, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I hate this brakes.They are kids toys , I got them on my G.T. and they are the cause of one of my biggest wipeouts ever ( I hope ). I was doing a contest who would hit the brakes last during downhill, and guess what I won,but I was at great speed and the brakes just didn't work enough to stop me. Conclusion: if you wanna crash on a rock, buy them. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Carlos J. Montanez
a weekend warrior
from Phoenix, AZ
Date Reviewed: June 16, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
This brakes are on my wife's Trek 930 and they are no good. I did some
maintenance on her bike and found out that the rear brake had been sticking
since nobody knows when. After a long and tedious overhaul, I came to the
realization that the brakes are simply no good. They don't have enough spring
action to separate themselves from the wheel. Not acceptable. The good news
is that now she will inherit my Shimano XT's, and I will buy new XTR-V's. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Z
a cross-country rider
from TEXAS
Date Reviewed: June 15, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
these things are pieces of CRAP!!!!!! they came on my friend bs's '97 mongoose tetra. they are crappy in wet, dry, hot, cold, or anything else you can think of. they DO NOT have just a few crappy flaws they are complete crap. they have the weakest stoping power i have ever seen and if you use the alivio levels they are 300 times as bad. stay away from any bike that has these turds unless you want to keep rolling for eternity, if your bike already has the craps upgrade to the LX or XT V-brakes as fast as you can, one more very, very important thing.. mongoose=crap!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jon
a cross-country rider
from Malaysia
Date Reviewed: June 13, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
These brakes works in the rain, I love them. Cheap and usefull. Well, if you are tight in cash and cant afford even an LX brake, these is a good buy. > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
joel
a weekend warrior
from Ontario Canada
Date Reviewed: May 28, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
These brakes work well. The pads suck, so switch to ritchey logic pads and you'll have great stopping power. If it wasn't for the crappy alivio pads I'd give em a 5, but since I had to replace em after a short period of time I give em a 3.
Word 50 | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Hwoarang
a
from Singapore
Date Reviewed: May 5, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
No problems with the Alivio. They worked well and never caused a single problem. They are soft when the levers are pressed. Thats what I love most about it. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
A rider
a weekend warrior
from flat florida
Date Reviewed: March 4, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
They stop you; sooner or later. After a year my pads went so I will put on some high grade replacements; people say that will make them stop better than the ones it came with. I will give these brakes 2 stars because I'm still alive. I will upgrade except I'm getting a new bike. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Skidmark
a weekend warrior
from Massachusetts, USA
Date Reviewed: January 21, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
New, they stank - they needed adjustment about every hour of riding to kill the wild pigs. The pads were just about the entire problem, though, and after replacing them with Kool Stops things were much improved. Then I chucked the Shimano fixed-length straddle cable and now I have simple to adjust, powerful, quiet brakes. I'm very pleased with them -- you can adjust the level of braking power to your own preference, which you can't do with V-brakes. See Keith Bontrager's site for adjustment details. Stock: 1 chile, modified = 5 for an average of 3. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Dave E
a weekend warrior
from London UK
Date Reviewed: January 17, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
These brakes aren't great performance-wise, but they've been enough for almost all the mad stuff I've done (including some mad downhilling in Switzerland). They're much easier to set up than a lot of canti's, but I way prefer V brakes. I'd upgrade to V-brakes if I had the money for new STI shifters. They stop you, but they aren't any way near as good as M-600 Vs. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Scorpion
a cross-country rider
from
Date Reviewed: January 2, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
These brakes aren't bad for the money but shouldn't be confused with a V or anything. The pads stink so get some Ritchey's or KoolStop Eagle 2's. All in all, not bad but not a performance part. I've tried them in all conditions.Blah blah blah ( needs to be 50 words) I'm upgrading to V's as soon as I get the bucks. 3 1/2 Chilies | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Bill
a cross-country rider
from Queens, NY
Date Reviewed: December 9, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
They came on my girlfriend's Raleigh M50, they're good for street riding or flat XC, but for any kidda of downhill run, they are are pretty bad. She complaint alot that it took alot of effort to stop while going downhill fast. She only weights 105 lbs and it can't stop her, what about the guys that weight in my neighborhood of 170, I guess I'll just stick my feet out!! I chucked them and gave her my LX brakes instead, now she's happy. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Dave H.
a cross-country rider
from Pittsburgh, PA
Date Reviewed: November 17, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
These try to stop me and they have not been any trouble to set up and ride. Other than that I have no clue why they came with my 1996 Cannondale M500, I guess because they were cheap and C'dale knew brakes would be an upgrade. During a race I finally came to terms with them... I must get something else. Too much pain in the forearms at speed trying to slow down in mud conditions on last lap. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Gus
a racer
from Land of 10,000 Lakes
Date Reviewed: November 11, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
I got these when I bought my New Giant ATX 970. It came with Alivio brakes. After the second week, I was getting really pised off at the stoping power. I was going to go to V-brakes but I bought rapid fire shifter lever combo, and I would have to get new shifters and levers and V-brakes. I decided that it would be easier to just buy New pads. I went to a Local Bike Shop and asked the guy what the best Brakes he thought were. He said that I should buy Ritchy Red pads. I will have to say that I made the right decision. Go out and buy Richy Red pads, you will now regret it... I am 210 lbs, and I can stop on a dime. They are awesome. The brakes work well because Of the pads. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Bob T
a cross-country rider
from Grapevine, TX
Date Reviewed: October 13, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
Alivios came stock on my Raleigh M80. Pads were the worst. Changed to Aztecs and they worked OK. Not enough stopping power for me at 190+. Changed last week to Dia Compe 737s V brakes. MUCH better power. Can lock up both ends now, no squeaking. The Alivios are just not strong enough for the moderate speeds I get to. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
dani yomtov
a downhiller
from woodland hills, california
Date Reviewed: October 5, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
Cantilevers generally leave a vague feeling when you brake real hard.
The alivio is no exception, though it was pretty good for slowing down
on hairpin turns. I'll probably upgrade to V brakes. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Tim Lam
a weekend warrior
from Toronto, Canada
Date Reviewed: July 28, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
I've had these '97 Alivio Brakes and levers for the past 2 months and have had no problems since. They work almost as well as V-brakes, in fact, they're the next best things - Canti's. They are very powerful compared to my old '93 Altus. One minor drawback is the squeeking in mud riding. Other than that, they stop on the dime for me. Well, I plan to upgrade to V...mainly for prestige and power. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Ross A.
a cross-country rider
from Bel Air, md
Date Reviewed: July 28, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
These brakes are pretty good, anyone that says they suck must be using the stock pads, I swapped mine for Ritchey. 3 Chilis because replacement pads cost 30 bucks. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Rob
a weekend warrior
from Annandale, Virginia
Date Reviewed: July 25, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
I bought a '96 Timberline witht the Alivio set. They work great. They stop on a dime. I have had ZERO problems with them.
5 flamin' chilies | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Matt Chum
a cross-country rider
from Toronto, Ont, Canada
Date Reviewed: June 11, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
I still have these on my old bike. They suck. They require a lot of force to pull the lever to get them stopping. Bad wet weather performance though. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Gus
a cross-country rider
from Minnesota
Date Reviewed: May 26, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
I think that the alivio Brakes are ok. They actually are the same as the STX, LX, and the XT. The only thing that is different is the spring, the finish and the Brake Pad. I found that the brake pad is really cheap and it collects little rocks and they scrach the rim. I would go with the brakes if you are working on a budget, or if you have an extra $10 to shoot for better pads. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Joey
a weekend warrior
from Malaysia
Date Reviewed: April 26, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
Well, i've been using it for a really long time now and even after numerous crashes it still is doing it's job just fine. No complaints xcept for the stock M65 pads. The canti's are as good as XT cantis IMHO. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Randall
a cross-country rider
from utah
Date Reviewed: April 26, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
Pretty critical reviews for a low-end brake. I rode 5 days a week on an entry bike with mostly '95 Alivio components, and rarely had problems stopping unless the pads were out of alignment. The M65 pads tend to hold on to grit and they streak rims with black, but the system worked fine with careful attention to adjustments. I upgraded to a Stumpjumper with LX and experienced similar results with LX canti's - work great if they are adjusted properly - no grit retention or streaking though, which I attribute to Kool Stop pads.If your front M65 pads squeal badly, try flipping them to match the orientation of the rear - long end facing rearwards, and make sure you have some tow-in. For those who complained of flex, check your fork and seat stays for flex before blaiming the poor brakes - low end bikes tend to be flexible, and if that's your problem, changing brakes won't help. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Victor
a cross-country rider
from Saugerties, NY
Date Reviewed: April 23, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
I had Alivio brakes on my 93 GT Agressor and they were terrible. I asked a friend to see if they needed adjustment because they just didn't stop me when I needed it. The verdict was that they were set properly, but just weren't up to the challenge. They flex a lot and just don't provide the smooth braking power a decent brake set should. I give them 2 chilies because they do stop you (eventually) and because they're still a little better than Huffy. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Derrick
a weekend warrior
from S.F. Bay Area, CA
Date Reviewed: April 22, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
These suckers came stock on my bike; I tossed them in favor of LX v-brakes. Nevertheless, I did try them out with Eagle Claw 2 pads (along w/Mavic 238 rims and Dia-compe PC3 levers). In dry conditions, I was able to flip the bike and lock up the rear without squeezing *too* hard. Obviously, no comparison to v-brakes, though. The '96 Alivio cantilevers that I tried are adequate, but if you're looking for a cheap upgrade, many mail order places have '96 XT cantilevers for about $9 a pop. To all you critics out there: You seem to expect too much from entry level brakes! | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Sam Starr
a weekend warrior
from Bethesda, Maryland, USA
Date Reviewed: April 22, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
These brakes came on my bike (GF Big Sur). I have had to adjust them so many times, that I even hate to use them. I have thought of V-brakes and still continue to look into them. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Aaron
a
from La Mirada, CA
Date Reviewed: April 4, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
These things came on my bike, and I just hope that it's the pads that suck or I'm going to have to get some new brakes SOON. I've had some near death experiences due to the lack of power with these brakes. Bring on the V brakes. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
JohnW
a cross-country rider
from St Albert, Alberta, Canada
Date Reviewed: April 1, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
These things flex like they're made from recycled tires! Save your money and buy V-brakes! (it's not like you pay for anything better, tho)
(buy v-brakes, steve) | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Brent Mundie
a cross-country rider
from West Point NY
Date Reviewed: March 25, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
All u putzes who think that these brakes suck should be shot. No kidding $120 XTR V brakes or $80 Avid single digits are gonna be cooler. That is why they cost so much. Can u think of a beter brake set for $20? I didnt think so. I have these brakes and they rule for what they are and what they cost. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
B. Seal
a weekend warrior
from Virginia
Date Reviewed: March 5, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
These brakes came stock on my STX equipped bike. It's been one and a half miserable years! I've finally saved up enough cash to trash these and get an upgrade, however if you want good brakes at a reasonable price - Dia Compe 986 - easier to adjust and better pull angle.These aren't worth a single flaming pepper, but I had no choice. One shouldn't be too free with flaming peppers. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Matthew Brown
a downhiller
from England
Date Reviewed: February 5, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
These brake are very positive, and have a good feeling. They are very easy to get used to and do not have many bad points for low grade brakes | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Phil Wevill
a racer
from Solihull Lodge , B'ham
Date Reviewed: December 9, 1996 | | Bottom Line: |
One of the best of the lower price brake selection . But if your thinking of getting them just save up a little while longer and get some V-Brakes instead . | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jonathan Paxon
a cross-country rider
from Penticton, British columbia
Date Reviewed: November 27, 1996 | | Bottom Line: |
If I would have used these brakes anymore I think i would have puked. I am
not even going to try to unload them on someone because I don't know if I
could live with the guilt. So just buy V-Brakes and take my word that the
people who say that they are good are wrong. For more information contact
me at PPaxon@awinc.com. In fact i don't even want to put a pepper down for
them. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Lee
a weekend warrior
from California, USA
Date Reviewed: October 24, 1996 | | Bottom Line: |
Shimano Alivio BR-MC12 cantilever brakes, bought in 1996.
They come with a non adjustable unit link straddle cable,
Shimano M65/T pads, and detailed installation instructions.
They cost $10 to $12 for a front or rear set. They come in
two cantilever arm sizes; I think I have the larger size.
One set weighs about 4.75 ounces without pads, about 6.75
ounces with the heavy Shimano M65/T pads. The unit link
straddle weighs about 0.5 ounces.I use the cantilever arms with some Ritchey black brake pads
that I already had (they came with the Marin Lite brakes that
I had). The brakes work well. I haven't tried the included
Shimano M65/T pads, though they have gotten bad reviews (see
the reviews for the Shimano Deore LX brake pads, which are M65/T
pads in cartridge form that allow changing pads without readjusting
the whole thing).They are much easier to set up and adjust than Marin Lite brakes,
especially if you follow the instructions given in the detailed
instruction sheet that is included. When adjusting the pads, the
Alivio brakes' bolt can be almost tightened so that the pad won't
move by itself, but can be adjusted by hand. Then, tightening it
all the way without letting the pad move is easier than with the
Marin Lite brakes. Also, the Alivio brakes come with a centering
screw on one of the cantilever arms. However, if you use an adjustable
straddle cable, adjustment may be more difficult, since the non
adjustable straddle that Shimano provides is intended to make adjusting
and centering easier.In addition, they are long enough to allow better fender clearance
than the short armed Marin Lite brakes (though the Alivio arm lengths
may vary, as there are two sizes). The longer arms also make it
to lower the straddle cable for more mechanical advantage, if desired.Rating of 5 chiles reflects good performance and adjustability at a
low price. Even if you add an $8 set of Kool Stop pads and a $4
Tektro adjustable stra
ddle cable to each set, you're still only at
$22 to $24 per set. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jason Chiu
a weekend warrior
from California
Date Reviewed: August 20, 1996 | | Bottom Line: |
Alivio brakes work great considering they are part of the alivio group (not as good as others). They stop well and I have had no problems. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
RyBones
a weekend warrior
from New York
Date Reviewed: June 24, 1996 | | Bottom Line: |
Definatly the best product in this line of trash, well except for the
fr. derailieurs. These stop very well for an entry level component and
stay remarkably free of debris. However one should not even toy with
the idea of upgradeing to such a component. If your looking at a bike
with these already on it OK but there is much better on the market
for a small difference in price. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Brad
a cross-country rider
from Pittsburgh PA
Date Reviewed: June 3, 1996 | | Bottom Line: |
The new easy set brakes are great. They are very easy to setup, the toe in sets itself.
They stop amazingly well for a low end brake hooked up to Dia-Comp PC-7 levers
I love my Alivio brakes, and when the break, they are cheap to replace...another plus
| | Overall Rating: |
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