Description:4 Racing XC...... 4 Caliper Cross Country brake, copperbrown caliper. The lightest and most powerful 4 piston Cross Country disc brake (390 gr)
Four opposed-piston caliper with self-adjusting metal sintered pads
Re-attachable hydraulic tube fittings, easy to shorten 160 mm front and rear monolithic stainless steel disc (6 holes) Equipped with I.S. fittings. Front Post Mount and oversize discs adapter available as upgrades
Submitted by
Niko
a Downhiller
from Stockholm, Sweden Date Reviewed: February 27, 2005
Favorite Trail:
those going down
Duration Product Used:
2 Years
Strengths:
Power, Modulation, No squeals, Weight, Looks
Weaknesses:
spares are a harder to find than some other brands. no reach adjust - can't have tooo small hands
Similar Products Used:
own: Formula 4Racing DH. tried: hayes hfx-mag, hope m4 c2 o2, saint, xt
Bike Setup:
ridgid/hardtail for agressive trail riding. 185/160 discs front/rear
Bottom Line:
I've had them for over 2,5years and they still work w/o problems. I used to downhill with them for the first two months but the levers/master cylinder are not made to take that kind of continous crashes. For riding trails they are defenetly adequate. Power is good and they can take an occational crash. I recomend them for enduro, but if you don't care to much about weight get the 4Racing FR/DH model.
4/5 in value cus i think biking products cost to much (but they have still better value compared to other brands).
5/5 overall cus haven't had any problems when i've used them as they are intended to.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
asaf
a Cross Country Rider
from israel Date Reviewed: February 9, 2005
Duration Product Used:
2 Years
Bottom Line:
price per product=best!
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Sean Phillips
a Cross Country Rider
from Seattle, WA USA Date Reviewed: May 26, 2004
Favorite Trail:
Devils's Gulch, Wenatchee, WA
Duration Product Used:
2 Years
Purchased At:
Came on new bike (Alpine Hut)
Strengths:
Non that I can think of. They suck.
Weaknesses:
I've had problems with them from the start. Dealers have a hard time getting in touch with a rep. Getting parts is like pulling teeth. Most shops don't have any parts in stock, including pads.
Bike Setup:
K2 Razorback Team SL dual suspension.
Bottom Line:
Don't buy a bike with them on it and don't by them thinking that they are a good upgrade. On two occasions my bike was in the shop for three weeks waiting for parts. I just dumped them and sent the box of parts to Formula with a nasty note. I can't believe they can stay in business and that bike companies would even consider using them on their high end bikes. I just installed the Avid CPS Mechanical Disc Brakes and I love them.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Wayne Lee
a Weekend Warrior
from Jamaica, W.I. Date Reviewed: February 25, 2004
Favorite Trail:
Blue Mountain
Duration Product Used:
More than 3 years
Price Paid:
$200.00
Purchased At:
E-Bay
Strengths:
Quiet
Weaknesses:
Constant problems, fix it and another one shows up.
Similar Products Used:
None
Bike Setup:
Ellsworth Dare Freeride
Bottom Line:
Don't touch this even if you get it for FREE. Initially I thought I had gotten a great deal, in the end this thing has cost me so much in spare parts, time and frustration. I just had to come back after about a year and review the brakes again. Basically they suck !! The last straw was having them lock up on me 1 mile into a 6 mile downhill. Today, the disc cracked after they got warped mid ride and I tried to true them.....another ride f'ed up.
I am definitely going with Hope Mono M4's or Avid Juicy's now.
Stay away from these.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Gold
a Cross Country Rider
from Australia Date Reviewed: December 8, 2003
Duration Product Used:
1 Year
Strengths:
Strong, easily modulated power. No squeal.
Weaknesses:
Maintainence can be an issue.
Similar Products Used:
Hayes Hydros, Magura Martas
Bike Setup:
X-country dual suspension race bike
Bottom Line:
I have found that for my application these brakes are good. I had initial trouble setting up the calipers due to the odd offset on my Xyclone wheels but once they were on and broken in I have not had to alter the setup. I have also had one maintainence issue where one of the membranes in the lever was perforated. It then proved nearly impossible to replace it without leakage. I ended up having to replace the whole lever. Onto the performance... I am really impressed with the performance of these brakes. When setting my bike up I decided to take the weight penalty and go for bigger brakes and I am glad I did. While I would be loath to tackle a big downhill course with these brakes they have taken all of the racing and trail riding I have thrown at them with ease. They are very powerful and have great modulation. When racing it is a great feeling to see the guy in front of you and be able to take a couple of metres out of him at each hard corner. Even if the cost a little weight I think this makes up for it. Some people have had big maintainence issues with these brakes so maybe I have been lucky. I feel that disc brakes are probably one of the most fiddly bits on a mountain bike and hydralicc discs are the worst of all. If they work they work well but if they do not you can be chasing around for days trying to work out why. If you are looking for fairly light, powerful brakes then these brakes may fit the bill.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
rod farquhar
a Weekend Warrior
from victoria b c canada Date Reviewed: August 31, 2003
Favorite Trail:
all
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$280.00
Purchased At:
khs bicycle parts olne illinois
Strengths:
they look nice and appear to be well made
Weaknesses:
they squeal they have air in them they are underpowered they are supposed to break in within 100 cycles fat chanch the tech support is awful i asked for certain fittings and got nowhere it consequently wound up that i sent them back to thorsten khs had a good customer satisfaction policy thank goodness thank you erica
Similar Products Used:
hayes 8 inch mag these things are awesome
Bike Setup:
votec/ porsche fs bike race face bb xtr group mavic king hayes mag ect all high end good stuff just no more formula
Bottom Line:
i can't think of anything good to say about formula brakes considering that i took the stock formula evo's off my bike only to try more formula brakes @thorsten's reccomendation now i have real brakes on my bike do not buy formula brakes i do not understand how this company stay's in business i suppose there are a lot of riders out there using an over marketed and under performing brake out there
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Submitted by
Steven v
a Cross Country Rider
from Aarschot Belgium Date Reviewed: May 21, 2003
Favorite Trail:
Ischgl
Duration Product Used:
1 Year
Price Paid:
$190.00
Purchased At:
LBS
Strengths:
NONE
Weaknesses:
The Product itsself is a weakness
Similar Products Used:
Grimeca, Hayes
Bike Setup:
Specialized Stumpjumper FSR Comp
Bottom Line:
These Formulas don't need to be called brakes. They don't stop you, why call them brakes ? They leak, squeal and don't stop. Have I mentioned they don't stop ? They worked for 1 month and that was the end of it.
Never buying Formulas again. Now ordered Hopes coz my friends all like em alot and they keep working. I hope the Formula factory burns to the ground !
Too bad the rating can not go below zero
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Submitted by
Bundy
a Cross Country Rider
from Australia Date Reviewed: May 11, 2003
Duration Product Used:
1 Year
Price Paid:
$200.00
Strengths:
Great Power - the quad piston 8" disc really has HEAPS of power when it is working correctly!
Weaknesses:
LEAKING!!!!! The brake line permanently had air in it! No back-up service and very hard to get pads and other parts. Very hard to bleed!
Similar Products Used:
Shimano Deore full hydraulic disc Hayes Hydraulic
Bike Setup:
Giant ATX 860
Bottom Line:
Really not a good brake - after every ride it had air in the line. I would never buy another Formula product again! Shimano Deore hydraulic disc was the best performing above hayes!
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
YaMon
a Weekend Warrior
from Ocho Rios, Jamaica Date Reviewed: May 8, 2003
Favorite Trail:
Blue Mountain Peak
Duration Product Used:
1 Year
Price Paid:
$200.00
Purchased At:
ICycles.com
Strengths:
Weight, Silent...not much squeeling.
Weaknesses:
Leaks constantly, parts very difficult to find locally, support not good.
Similar Products Used:
Only disc I have tried.
Bike Setup:
Ellsworth Dare Frame, Z1 FR SL, Cane Creek Team Ti Wheelset, Flite SLR, Kore Elite Post, Sram X.0 Drivetrain, FSA carbon Crankset, Ti BB, Rohloff Single Ring Chainguide, BeBops, Stratos Expert Rear Shock, SRAM 89R Chain, King Headset, Roos Bars, Weyless 150 gr stem, Stans, MutanoRaptors.
Bottom Line:
Technical support awful. My brakeset came with the 160mm disc and the adaptor for a 185mm disc. The company would not change to the proper adapter and I had to buy a new one. I have tried to bleed the brakes and it constantly goes flat. So I haul my bike on a mtn. bike vacation and sure enough, it dies again. So I am forced to send it to the bike shop where they charge me $25 to bleed only the rear brakes. It feels great initially and I am happy that they did it better than I did, but by the end of the first ride.....it is dead again.
Try going to any bike shop and look for brake pads....you'll find Avids, Hayes, maybe Magura....but no Formulas.
I may just change mine soon. I have always had good luck with Maguras, the Martha looks good.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Martin Kysel
a Weekend Warrior
from Bratislava, Slovakia Date Reviewed: February 13, 2003
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Price Paid:
$350.00
Strengths:
Power, modulation, light
Weaknesses:
LEAKING, LEAKING, LEAKING. Stupid tiny lever.
Similar Products Used:
Magura Lousie, Magura Julie, Grimeca System 8, Hope Enduro
Bike Setup:
Scott FX25, Marzocchi Z1 Freeride
Bottom Line:
I've tried to pull out air but it's impossible. Super power lasts only one downhill. Then air gets inside and you have 30% of power and they leak through reservoir. I've changed DOT fluid more times and it have not helped. If they work they are great. But it is very short time. I've returned them and now I want to buy Hope M4.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Rabhaw
a Weekend Warrior
from Edinburgh Date Reviewed: February 13, 2003
Favorite Trail:
West Highland Way
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$175.00
Purchased At:
www.wiggle.co.uk
Strengths:
Price, weight, power, no squeals
Weaknesses:
Lever may be fragile, spares, no shims included.
Similar Products Used:
None
Bike Setup:
On-One Geared Inbred, Shimano XT/LX gearset, Easton CF bars and seatpost, Hope XC/MavicF219 front, XT/Mavic618 rear, with Avid Arch Rival, Panaracer Fire XC2.1.
Bottom Line:
My first foray into disc brakes. They fitted relatively easily, the shimming took some time and I had to visit my LBS for a selection of shims (they don't come with the kit). They run a fairly big gap between pads and disc and so the lever movement is large but it suits me. They're a pimpy gold anodised finish, looks nice. Performance so far is outstanding but I've nothing to compare it against except the Arch Rival Vs. They bedded in after an hour or so. I ride trails and they cope admirably with this. I'd give them five but let's see how they work out. Oh and so far, they don't squeal like Hopes!
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Gordon Powell
a Cross Country Rider
from UK Date Reviewed: January 29, 2003
Favorite Trail:
Coed-Y-Brenin, Wales
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Purchased At:
Wiggle
Strengths:
These brakes are awesome. They have great modulation, are whisper quiet abd leave you with a big grin on your face when you come from 30+mph to 0 in a very short distance
Weaknesses:
They look flimsy compared to Hope productt
Similar Products Used:
Hope XC Pro's Hope Mini's Hope M4's
Bike Setup:
Specialized M5 FSR with full XTR Fox Forx vanilla RLC
Bottom Line:
Buy these brakes if you are sick of your Hopes squeeling and need more controllable power
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
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