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Does anyone BUY Sram brakes?

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Dirtrider127

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Discussion starter · #1 ·
I'm running Sram Code R brakes only because they came on my bike. 4 pistons, second from their best and they are pure crap! You buy an 8K bike and get these POS?
In checking around I've found most people are having many issues with them.
You never know how their going to feel today, noisy as heck, really bad with water on them, heat screws them up and expand the fluid/seals, need to be bleed often, just to make them ride-able. And that's the best I have to say about them. All my other bikes have had Shimano brakes and never an issue, not a one. Only bled them because it been a year and thought it would be best to do.

My question for you: Have you every purchased these brakes for an upgrade or new build? Were you satified with the purchase and they have proven to be great brakes without issues? Do I have a crappy set?


In looking around for days on the interwebs, many others have had these issues and have swapped them out for Shimanos and are happy.
 
#2 ·
Oh yeah, people for-sure do buy SRAM brakes. I 100% understand what you're saying though - for example our top-sellers (by far) are SRAM Guide/G2 and Code, but much of this is because they supply so many OEMs with brakes in their bulk-builds, just as you said.

But without question, the SRAM G2 RSC / G2 Ultimate and the Code RSCs are incredible, consistent and powerful. I rarely hear any complaints about these, especially Code.

Your Code Rs, have a little less going on internally which could be some of the issues you are experiencing. Although I feel as though you have other potential issues going on, or brake pads that can't handle the heat you're literally putting them through.
 
Discussion starter · #3 ·
KGAmoto said:
Oh yeah, people for-sure do buy SRAM brakes. I 100% understand what you're saying though - for example our top-sellers (by far) are SRAM Guide/G2 and Code, but much of this is because they supply so many OEMs with brakes in their bulk-builds, just as you said.

But without question, the SRAM G2 RSC / G2 Ultimate and the Code RSCs are incredible, consistent and powerful. I rarely hear any complaints about these, especially Code.

Your Code Rs, have a little less going on internally which could be some of the issues you are experiencing. Although I feel as though you have other potential issues going on, or brake pads that can't handle the heat you're literally putting them through.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the reply. The brake when new were horrible and I complained about them. Tried to get them to swap out at the start but no.
Two rides on them and 3 blown corners later, took it in for a bleed which helped but still varied in feel every ride, even during the ride.
Yes, I've rode it hard but being an old broken man, I'm not crushing it for sure. Took it in again and they bleed them. About the.
I swapped out the noisy pads for some made by TruckerCo which are so much better overall and then had a private ex- bike shop guy in my neighborhood bleed them and they were fantastic for a while.
Now back to the poor performance with a little less noisy thanks to the pads.
Really unhappy as you can tell and will be calling Specialized to see what they say, if anything other than pound sand. dialing....
 
#4 ·
Yes, I prefer SRAM brakes. Prefer the feel, less frequent bleeding, and ease of bleeding. Would I take Shimano brakes off of a bike if it came with them? Probably not. Btw, the stable of bikes in our house has a mixture of SRAM and Shimano, so I do deal with both.
 
#6 ·
thread just reminded me what was nagging me with winter coming: have to chuck the sram brakes on the fatbike and install the shimanos hung on the pegboard 6 months ago
...'cuz reasons
 
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#7 ·
I steered away from a better specd version of my bike due to SRAM Level (or whatever they were) brakes, the Tektros on my spec are surprisingly good, not so good as Shimano, but good.
 
#8 ·
How old are your Codes?

I don’t feel a strong allegiance to any brake brand, though I do prefer those on the modulation end of the spectrum. For the past twoish years I’ve had Code R’s on a DH bike (yeah, they came with the bike) I ride every weekend at lift-service bike parks 5.5 months out of the year and I’m certainly not a small human. I had some issues early on that a really good bleed was able to fix. Since then, 1-2 bleeds a season, one of which I do at the beginning of every season keeps them running great. I’ve found using the SRAM sintered metal pads as compared to the organics seems to greatly increase bleed intervals. Only other maintenance I do is clean all of the caliper surfaces when I change out the pads.

I got a crazy deal on guide ultimates and slapped them on my trail bike, super happy there so far too (though I do prefer to power of the code’s).

I wonder sometimes when I see these threads if I got lucky or people just aren’t getting a really good bleed on their brakes.
 
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Discussion starter · #9 ·
Shartist said:
How old are your Codes?

I don't feel a strong allegiance to any brake brand, though I do prefer those on the modulation end of the spectrum. For the past twoish years I've had Code R's on a DH bike (yeah, they came with the bike) I ride every weekend at lift-service bike parks 5.5 months out of the year and I'm certainly not a small human. I had some issues early on that a really good bleed was able to fix. Since then, 1-2 bleeds a season, one of which I do at the beginning of every season keeps them running great. I've found using the SRAM sintered metal pads as compared to the organics seems to greatly increase bleed intervals. Only other maintenance I do is clean all of the caliper surfaces when I change out the pads.

I got a crazy deal on guide ultimates and slapped them on my trail bike, super happy there so far too (though I do prefer to power of the code's).

I wonder sometimes when I see these threads if I got lucky or people just aren't getting a really good bleed on their brakes.
Click to expand...
The bike/ brakes are less than 6 months old

The shop tried 3 times to bleed. Had a neighborhood (ex-bike shop/bike service owner now) bleed them and it was great for 3 months and now back to junk.
Tried calling and was told to email which I just did.
 
#10 ·
KGAmoto said:
Oh yeah, people for-sure do buy SRAM brakes. I 100% understand what you're saying though - for example our top-sellers (by far) are SRAM Guide/G2 and Code, but much of this is because they supply so many OEMs with brakes in their bulk-builds, just as you said.
Click to expand...
KGAmoto, your reply implies that you're selling brakes. Are you in fact selling BRAKES or are you selling brake PADS?

Big difference. Brakes are what people want. Brake pads are maintenance items. Thanks.
=sParty
 
#11 ·
Sparticus said:
KGAmoto, your reply implies that you're selling brakes. Are you in fact selling BRAKES or are you selling brake PADS?

Big difference. Brakes are what people want. Brake pads are maintenance items. Thanks.
=sParty
Click to expand...
I wasn't really implying one or the other. I try to provide insight here and there without blatantly advertising. We sell high-end ceramic brake pads, but this definitely indicates what models are popular. (And yes you could easily argue the it is just because they are OEM on a lot of bikes.)

And, worth noting, ours aren't just maintenance items - they're a solid performance upgrade. Part of our work is getting past the 'maintenance item" stigma.
 
#12 ·
KGAmoto said:
I wasn't really implying one or the other. I try to provide insight here and there without blatantly advertising. We sell high-end ceramic brake pads, but this definitely indicates what models are popular. (And yes you could easily argue the it is just because they are OEM on a lot of bikes.)

And, worth noting, ours aren't just maintenance items - they're a solid performance upgrade. Part of our work is getting past the 'maintenance item" stigma.
Click to expand...
That's cool - I'd love to buy/try your product if it offers improved performance over what I'm currently using. I'll have to visit your website to have a look.

As for OEM components, yeah, SRAM practically gives their stuff to manufacturers (compared to Shimano) as a market domination strategy. And it seems to be working well for SRAM.

At the same time many riders, perhaps the majority, will simply replace brake pads - be they direct replacements or awesome aftermarket product - without considering replacing the brakes themselves. So sales of brake pads - any brake pad, good or bad - may not be an accurate reflection of what brake is actually best.

That's my opinion, anyway. :)
=sParty
 
#13 ·
CODE RSC brakes, with the biggest rotors you can fit, paired with trickstuff power plus pads are the best thing I ever tried... better than Saints, better than Hope, on par with the Trickstuff diresttima and maximas... no joke.. Amazing one finger modulation, and one finger lock 'em up power....

P.s I'm 6ft and 250lbs riding in PNW.. Steep.. wet. rooty... wouldn't change them for anything...


If you are bleeding that often, something else is wrong.. I'd suspect a damaged hose, or slightly loose fitting at caliper or brake lever..
 
#14 ·
I'll PM you about the product.

Well sure I totally agree with you on the brake pad VS what is best results. But in reality, brakes are just very subjective; I don't think you could truly define what is best, because someone will tell you you are wrong.

Sparticus said:
That's cool - I'd love to buy/try your product if it offers improved performance over what I'm currently using. I'll have to visit your website to have a look.

As for OEM components, yeah, SRAM practically gives their stuff to manufacturers (compared to Shimano) as a market domination strategy. And it seems to be working well for SRAM.

At the same time many riders, perhaps the majority, will simply replace brake pads - be they direct replacements or awesome aftermarket product - without considering replacing the brakes themselves. So sales of brake pads - any brake pad, good or bad - may not be an accurate reflection of what brake is actually best.

That's my opinion, anyway. :)
=sParty
Click to expand...
 
#15 ·
KGAmoto said:
I'll PM you about the product.

Well sure I totally agree with you on the brake pad VS what is best results. But in reality, brakes are just very subjective; I don't think you could truly define what is best, because someone will tell you you are wrong.
Click to expand...
Yup, agree with you all the way on that. Way too much wronging happens all over MTBR's forums. :(
=sParty
 
#16 ·
I’ve never tried any of SRAMs high end stuff but all this mid-level stuff that I’ve had was meh.

Shimano mid-level has always been so much easier for me to work with so I stay with that.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#17 ·
I've noticed quite a few threads here detailing problematic SRAM brakes. You wouldn't have to search much to find them.

While Shimano is often suggested as a solution (nothing wrong with that), there are also other brands making good brakes too such as Hayes, TRP, Hope, etc. It's not a binary choice.
 
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#18 ·
Curveball said:
I've noticed quite a few threads here detailing problematic SRAM brakes. You wouldn't have to search much to find them.

While Shimano is often suggested as a solution (nothing wrong with that), there are also other brands making good brakes too such as Hayes, TRP, Hope, etc. It's not a binary choice.
Click to expand...
Oh yeah - and Magura...
 
#19 ·
Curveball said:
I've noticed quite a few threads here detailing problematic SRAM brakes. You wouldn't have to search much to find them.

While Shimano is often suggested as a solution (nothing wrong with that), there are also other brands making good brakes too such as Hayes, TRP, Hope, etc. It's not a binary choice.
Click to expand...
Shimano makes me feel like a professional bike mechanic. SRAM makes me feel like a complete noob but cheap tektros on my Giant are even more frustrating than SRAM.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#20 ·
KGAmoto said:
I'll PM you about the product.

Well sure I totally agree with you on the brake pad VS what is best results. But in reality, brakes are just very subjective; I don't think you could truly define what is best, because someone will tell you you are wrong.
Click to expand...
Thanks for taking the time to help out here on MTBR. I ordered two pair of MTX's red pads because I really want to see how good a brake pad can be. Eager to find out.
=sParty
 
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