Originally Posted by
Bryan C.
It's hard to judge the ability of a disc brake system just by pulling the level while completely stopped. I have several bikes with hydraulic disc brakes and since I weigh over 200lbs I am sensitive to the braking ability needed to slow my fat ass down. They all work pretty well but have different abilities to modulate the brake effort. I certainly won't be going back to rim brakes unless I build up a retro MTB frame I have.
It may be hard to judge the ability brakes when not riding but it isn’t impossible. It helps to have lots and lots and lots of experience with brake systems. After 40+ years of riding and being a mechanic, I happen to have that experience. I can tell from the brake lever feel if the brake is going to be good or bad.
I also happen to have several bikes with both rim, disc and, in one instance, disc front/rim rear. Frankly all of them perform well and will stop me in every situation I’ve encountered from downhills with a loaded touring bike in a downpour to steep off-road riding with the added weight for bikepacking.
I have some cheap Tektro 285s on a hybrid, they definitely have more of an on/off feel to them. The Sram Force with Hope RX4 4 piston calipers have a fair amount of modulation but have a firm feel to the levers and as such require more effort to stop quickly. My Ultegra/Dura Ace brakes are pretty darn good at modulating the brake force and have a very linear feel to them while stopping. And finally I have a set of Shimano Zee 4 piston brakes on my MTB. These are by far the best brakes I have used. The power and modulation of these brakes are phenomenal even using just 1 finger. YMMV.
Cheap brakes don’t have an “on/off” feel in my experience. Cheap brakes have more of a “is this damned thing going to stop!” feel. Good mechanical disc and good rim brakes work well in my experience and have good modulation. I’ve not had the same experience with hydraulic.
If you are coming from a well sorted rim brake set up you may need to look around and try some different brands to see what you like. I much prefer the Shimano brakes with resin pads over any of the other brakes I use. Higher end brakes will have some ability to adjust the bite point of the brakes as well.
I have good brakes of all the kinds I use. I’ve had what were considered to be good hydraulics and never found them to be all that good. Certainly not worth the hassles that come along with them.