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Submitted by
Alex
a Cross Country Rider
from Portland, OR, USA
Date Reviewed: March 21, 2003 | | Favorite Trail: | Mount Hood and city streets | | Duration Product Used: | More than 3 years | | Price Paid: |
$12.00 | | Purchased At: | Bike shop | | Strengths: | Simplicity in installation and adjustment. These brakes provide not a bad modulation if accompanied with the proper levers. They allow to use wide carbon MTB fenders if used with wide "Problem Solver" yoke for the straddle cable. It's almost impossible to lock the wheel using these brakes, which is beneficial when you're breaking on a wet road.
These cantilevers have inner catridge bushings which contribute to its longevity.
| | Weaknesses: | The original LX brake pads are just a plain garbage.
Its rubber is very hard and has embedded metal chunks which grind the rims.
I replaced these pads immediately with soft "KoolStops" pads to save the rims and improve stopping power. | | Similar Products Used: | Many other canti's and V-brakes | | Bike Setup: | Custom built rigid commuter bike with aluminium LD-515 Leader Bikes frame, Surly rigid fork and all Shimano XT drivetrain and derailleurs. Power Control Dia-Compe7 brake levers. | | Bottom Line: | I dont believe in other guys statements that cantilever brakes is very diffucult to adjust. Actually it's much easier to adjust cantilevers than V-brakes.
V-brake pads have just two axes of freedom , cantelevers have three.
You practically can't toe in V-brakes to improve performance and eliminate squeak. During adjustment I use rubber rings to keep levers slightly squized, and smaller rubber rings around rear end of the brake pads for toeing them in.
After a such adjustment I can use these brakes untill the next brake pads chage. Front and rear cable hangers (stops) help to keep cantilever brakes in the centered position, so they hit the rim simultaneously.
V-brakes is a lot harder to keep centered. They always tilted to one side and hit the rim not at the same moment.
Enough said, I'm giving these LX canties four flames for its value 'cause of bad LX pads, and five flames for over all performance.
| Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
JOSE GAME
a Downhiller
from TEMUCO
Date Reviewed: June 1, 2002 | | Favorite Trail: | HILLL | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$23.00 | | Strengths: | POWER WITH GOOD LEVERS, AND SMOOTH | | Weaknesses: | NOT YET FOUND | | Similar Products Used: | SHIMANO XT V-BRAKES | | Bike Setup: | BIKE EQUIPPED WITH DEORE LX COMPONENTS | | Bottom Line: | THIS BRAKES ARE REALLY POWEFULLS AND WITH A REALLY SOFT TOUCH, THE NEW MODEL IS MUCH BETTER THAN 98, CAUSE' THIS HAVES A PARALELOGRAM FUNCTION, I REALLY LIKE THIS BRAKES!!! ARE BETTER THAN STX-RC V-BRAKES, AND NICE STOP!!! LIKE A DISC BRAKE, ONLY IF YOU HAVE A GOOD LEVERS! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
empty
a Cross Country Rider
from russia
Date Reviewed: August 12, 2001 | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Purchased At: | came on my bike | | Strengths: | breaking power | | Weaknesses: | maitainance nightmare!!! | | Similar Products Used: | tekro & other low-end v-brakes | | Bike Setup: | deore lx all the round | | Bottom Line: | these ones break pretty good, but they're maintainance nightmare! it's very hard to set 'em up and i have to adjust pads after every ride to avoid severe degrade in performance.
| Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Rodney
a Cross Country Rider
from Upstate NY
Date Reviewed: May 27, 2001 | | Favorite Trail: | FLT | | Duration Product Used: | More than 3 years | | Price Paid: |
$40.00 | | Purchased At: | Steiners | | Strengths: | Plenty of strength when properly adjusted.
| | Weaknesses: | More difficult pad & arm adjustment than with Vees | | Bottom Line: | I have used these brakes for at least 3 years now and they still do what they are intended to do.... STOP ME. Although they may not be as strong as some V-Brakes, they still work great when properly adjusted. Check out the rant about brakes here at http://www.bontrager.com/rants_f1.html
Great advice on increasing your cantilever brake performance. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Luis Leon
a Cross Country Rider
from Ulster County, NY
Date Reviewed: November 1, 2000 | | Favorite Trail: | any good singletrack... | | Duration Product Used: | More than 3 years | | Strengths: | Simple design, no extra doodads... Easy to adjust, I don't know what all those other guys are gripping about... And when properly adjusted will stop the bike, mine have never let me down on steep descents, but then again, I'm not a downhiller. | | Weaknesses: | none that I know of... But I guess they're too old-fashioned for some | | Similar Products Used: | LX V-brakes on my bike friday, compared to the canti's, they're a pain in the ass to set-up... | | Bike Setup: | 96' Klein Pulse Comp LX/XT, synchros bar and seatpost... | | Bottom Line: | Good brakes, without all the hype of the others... I recently crashed during a race and wrecked my left shifter on the LX brake/shifter... It seemed like my options where to upgrade to 9 speed and incur all the costs. As I wanted to get separate shifter pods and brake levers... (Plus, new cogset, chain, etc...) But after factoring all the costs... I bought a pair of 95' XT lever/shifters from Cambria Bicycles for $33. Installed them and they work like a charm... Lighter than the LX lever/shifters I replaced... | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Kent Ryhorchuk
a Weekend Warrior
from Sunnyvale
Date Reviewed: May 12, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | More than 3 years | | Strengths: | Had them for almost seven years. | | Weaknesses: | They are not V-brakes | | Similar Products Used: | LX/XT V-brakes. Ugh. | | Bike Setup: | 93 Kona Cinder-Cone. LX/DX components. Conti Town and Country tires. Joe Murray rules. Buy Voo-Doo. | | Bottom Line: | I saw this review category while I was looking for a review on LX V-brakes. My retired old Kona that I ride to work (rode 5000 road miles on this bike last year) has these brakes. They work well, for cantilever brakes. They have lasted long with few problems. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Hans Persson
a Weekend Warrior
from Lund, Sweden
Date Reviewed: November 10, 1999 | | Duration Product Used: |
1 Year | | Strengths: |
? | | Weaknesses: |
Set-up
Breaking power | | Similar Products Used: |
XT V-brakes | | Bike Setup: |
'96 Crescent Lodur | | Bottom Line: | I hate these brakes, even though they are my wifes bike. They are impossible (for me) to adjust and the breaking power is very bad. I had them adjusted at my LBS a while back but it did not improve things very much. An awful design: I'm so angry now!!! | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Richard Bickle
a Racer
from Santa Barbara, CA
Date Reviewed: July 11, 1999 | | Duration Product Used: |
more than 3 years | | Strengths: |
Fine, if you're on an incline. | | Weaknesses: |
Too much tinkerin' for the late nineties. | | Similar Products Used: |
The tips of my Converse. | | Bike Setup: |
A breeder of contempt: a '95 Ritche Comp | | Bottom Line: | Have a wake, or slap 'em on your beach bunny. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Lee Chun
a cross-country rider
from Concord, CA
Date Reviewed: October 5, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I find the LX cantis to be OK>!
Tho, my brakes look different than the one in the picture in the site.
mine look a lot better, but anyways, these brakes are good, but sometimes I wish I had a little more braking power. But, I never had these brakes fail.
I'm sure I'll be switching to V brakes soon, but hey, these are still working fine. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Gagz
a cross-country rider
from Ct
Date Reviewed: July 3, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
These brakes suck. There is no power at all and they always squeak. They really suck! Get v-brakes. These things are as bad as Alevio cantis, they just weigh less. I repeat, do not get them! Get v's. I couldn't flip on these if I wanted to. They're awful!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! DO NOT GET THEM EVEN IF THEY ARE A GOOD DEAL!!!!!!! | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Dingbat
a weekend warrior
from Bristol, UK
Date Reviewed: June 15, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
A year and a wet winter of commuting on these, and the LX cantis are holding up beautifully. Nice solid arms, wear-proof bearings, easy adjustment, and the worst pads I've ever thrown away. The cartridge idea is cute, but the compound for the rubber is so soft that it wears out inb no time at all, stopping only to collect enough grit to sandpaper the rims into oblivion on the way.Nice brakes, but fit Aztecs or someone's pads instead.
4 for the arms, a reluctant one for the pads.
| Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Tony
a cross-country rider
from New York
Date Reviewed: April 8, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
These brakes work fine, especially since I don't do any gonzo riding. The main problem is the setup - these things are a headache to center. The straddle cable design is so damn primitive. But since I don't have money for V-brakes, these'll have to do. Did I mention what a headache it is to center them? | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Ryan
a cross-country rider
from Maryland
Date Reviewed: February 2, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I have these brakes on the rear of my bike and they work great. They have the same stopping power of v's if they are set up right. I get my LX set up once a year and that seems to be enough even though i ride 4-5 times a week all year. For the price you cant beat them but if you want to be up to date than get v's or hydalic brakes. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
vikram
a weekend warrior
from San Francisco
Date Reviewed: January 20, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
On the whole these brakes work quite well when they are properly adjusted. The problem is they require constant maintainence. after every major ride i find myself having to adjust them. i have pounded on them pretty hard for about 8 months, including a lot of wet weather riding. overall they are okay, but time to get v-brakes. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Rob
a cross-country rider
from Mississippi
Date Reviewed: December 29, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
Bought a set for my B bike -- $10 an pair. Tossed the original pads and EZ-slop toe adjustment thingies, and set them up with good pads and real cable hangers, the way Professor Bontrager teaches. Not too hard to do. OK, if I had half-hour downhills in my backyard, I might want something more powerful to reduce hand strain. For my XC courses, I can deal with two-finger braking. A locked wheel is a locked wheel, regardless of the braking mechanism, and these things can lock.They're typical LX stuff, well built, but corners were cut to keep down the costs. Had to toe the front shoes a LOT before they stopped squeeking, so that's a problem. And like all canti's, if the front hanger dropps into the tire for some reason, you're going OTB (IMHO V's main advantage over canti's, and probably in Shimano's legal department's too).Final analysis: if you've got a good XC B bike you're keeping around as a spare, and it's got crap for brakes and you really don't want to shell out for V-brakes AND V-levers, these are a steal. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Robin
a cross-country rider
from Colorado
Date Reviewed: December 5, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
The LX's are okay for a beginner but once you get into the heavy stuff you gotta get a new brake! The pads have no use when there is even the slightest wetness but until you can get a new brake, I would recommend changing the into eagle claws, or ritchey pads until you can get a new brake! | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
C Lee
a weekend warrior
from Anchorage
Date Reviewed: October 11, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
The brakes, when wet squeal and make a terrible sound. They do not wear well and seem to embed junk into the pads that wear the rim away. Is there another pad that works better as a replacement? | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Thomas
a cross-country rider
from Halle, Germany
Date Reviewed: September 4, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
Got my LX brakes a year ago. They work not too bad. Although adjusting those things requires most of the time a lot of patience. The performance is O.K. for the price you get them. I give them 3 stars. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Natedogg
a cross-country rider
from Canada
Date Reviewed: August 23, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
I think these brakes work very well and are cheap, the only problem is they are hard to set-up. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Young
a cross-country rider
from San Diego, CA
Date Reviewed: April 17, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
These lever are really average. There a pain to setup and it seems like I am constantly realigning them. My biggest GRIPE is the #$%@$ PADS that come with them. These peices of crap are downright dangerous. I recommend a smart SWITCH to some RITCHEY PRO LOGIC. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Eric Silberg
a cross-country rider
from Rocville, Maryland
Date Reviewed: June 14, 1996 | | Bottom Line: |
These brakes have very good performance for their price. They are stiff, but the pivots have a bit of
play in them. This does not seem to be a problem though. The only problem is the pads suck! Replace them right
away and don't even think of riding through mud with them. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Dan K.
a
from california
Date Reviewed: June 14, 1996 | | Bottom Line: |
my girlfriend just purchased her first serious bike, a Marin rocky ridge/manitou 4/lx,etc. As the boyfriend I'm assigned the job of riding her bike to find that noise. The lx rapidfires work beautifully. While I'm sure the weight and reliability compared to xt/xtr isn't quite there (it isn't expected to be) the shifting is excellent. On par with my xt pods. The brake levers feel kind of heavy since I'm used to Real levers, but the whole lx drivetrain is well worth it. Just goes to show that you don't have to spend big bucks to perform well. The bike, that is. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
David Fang
a cross-country rider
from La Jolla, CA
Date Reviewed: May 31, 1996 | | Bottom Line: |
These brakes are cheap and work well. They have a little bit more play on the
brake posts than the XTs, but next to that, seem about the same. The 96 ones
(compared to the 95) are harder to set up because Shimano decided to put two small
bumps on the toe-in spacer that makes fine adjustments difficult. If you get
these brakes, change the pads. Then are hard and glaze easily.
| | Overall Rating: |
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