Cyclist75354986865

I was wondering if anyone here using these and if so how do you like them. I order some planet x brakes and there were*some issues with them and I returned them. Looking to stay with Sram brakes and trying to decide which to go with so just looking for some insight.

Thanks

WHOOOSSHHH...

Hated mine...would never stay centered...

Cyclist75354986865

Kind of surprising you're the only one here that has tried them. Thanks for the feedback. I had read on a review that centering could be a problem. Thinking about just going with the Sram Force, not sure if going with traditional Sram Red is worth the price.

Looigi

Agree, they work great except for centering...and when you start to pull a lever, one shoe moves and starts to drag before the other. This is only an issue if you like to partially pull in the levers when descending to take up some of the slack in preparation for braking. Anyway, it's kind of like going back to the good ol' days of single-pivot side pulls. Mine took some fiddling with and settling in by are OK now. I also have bikes with the older Red and Force dual pivot calipers and Shimano dual pivots and they all work very well with regard to ease of centering and more equal pad movement when taking up slack.

pdedes

Had the opportunity to purchase the aerolink, but saved the coin and the hassle by staying with the standard Red. (my original choice was going to be Ciamillo GSL micros, but the guy doesn't ship, so lucky for me)

xjustice09x

If they are set up right the aerolink brakes work good. I've had mine for about 2 years and have had no problems with them. On my previous road bike I used rival for 2 years and had no issues with those brakes either.

topflightpro

Mine work fine. They stay centered as well. The only problems I run into are when changing wheelsets - some wheelsets are dished slightly differently than others, and that requires adjusting the centering. Then it can be a bit of a PIA.

jtwilson

I have been using the aerolink brakes for the past couple years and I really love them. I think they are considerably superior in performance to the old Red brakes. For a while I was more frustrated with them than anything, but after becoming "intimately acquainted" with the ins and outs of keeping them centered, it is fairly smooth sailing. For whatever reason, what I've found is that after they get bumped off center, you sometimes have to readjust the spring tension on each caliper arm to get them behaving properly again. I really don't have to mess with them at all unless I'm a bozo and knock the bike when transporting it in a car or something. I take the proper wrenches with me when I travel to races just in case. Setup properly, they are a silky smooth operating brake with fantastic lever feel and rebound.

Looigi

That's the basic issue, the Aerolink brakes are centered by springs when open, not hard stops like with most all dual pivot brakes. You can grab the caliper over both arms and easily wiggle it back and forth against the spring tension and make either pad hit the rim. You can't do that with the usual dual pivot brakes. If you flex or move the housing going to the caliper it can be enough to cause the brake to drag. It's just like the old single pivot side pull brakes from days of yore. It's not a show stopper, but it is a bit of a PITA.

jtwilson

Yep. Yokozuna brake housing is incredibly stiff, and it applied enough pressure to the caliper to make it pretty tricky to center unless it was trimmed to the absolute perfect length. I am using the Jagwire Elite Link segmented housing now, which is extremely flexible, and much better for use with these brakes.

I had a couple instances where I started a group ride or race without the brakes adjusted right. When one began to drag, I would just grab the housing and push/pull it a little bit to rotate the caliper for a temporary fix.

I <3 Robots

I haven't use the SRAM brakes specifically, but I have the Ciamillo Gravitas. Which is a single pivot like the SRAM brake. From what I've read...its Ciamillo's design the SRAM brake is based off of.

What I have found is that the housing length is the important part of the setup. Too long it'll push the brake off center. The housing needs to be resting in the barrel adjuster just right. If the housing is too long...it'll push down on the caliper. I've seen cable housings with a huge bow in them...especially on the rear brake. That puts a lot of unnecessary pressure onto the caliper. They are a bit finicky to set up initially...but once set up correctly...they will stay straight.

Also check the nut directly behind the caliper. Make sure that is tight. You might need a thin open end wrench.

The Gravitas has been on my bike for almost two years now...and they are still centered and stop great. Sometimes if I turn the bar too far...like when putting the bike in the car...I'll notice the front caliper off center...but a squeeze on the lever they will be centered again.

NachosGrande

Housing length is definitely the cause of my Aerolink brake problems. The bike I ordered came with unnecessarily long housing for both the front and rear. The front was an easy fix, but the rear is still PIA. I think the cable is rubbing against the housing inside, because when I squeeze just a little on the rear brake lever the cable does not return to its initial position. Consequently, the brake pad can glide on the rim, and I would have to reapply the lever once or twice again to free it. I also notice that the rear brake's springs are not centered themselves. They don't have to reside perfectly on each brake arm, but one side is positioned way longer on the tensioning bolt than the other. I can't seem to move them to being on a similar degree. In short, IMHO the Sram Red Aerolink brake's savings of few grams is not worth the headache. I may change them to another brand or the older SRAM Red next Christmas.

RNAV

I've got the aerolink brakes and think they're great. I'm guessing that folks who've had difficulty with them probably haven't spent the time to fine-tune the spring tension. As @jtwilson mentioned, the spring tension can be adjusted for each caliper arm independently. Once you adjust the spring tension -- which is very easy to do with an allen wrench -- the calipers will stay centered, even when using the quick release for wheel changes.

In terms of performance, they're definitely better than the previous Red version. Good modulation and very good power. Oh, and the included brake pads are made by Swissstop, so you're getting good quality pads as well.

Chi_Z

housing stiffness matters too, you want to use soft cable housing for the areolink as the center is only controlled by the spring. the gray Shimano Dura-ace housing works well for me.

noodle soup

Zombie thread

tagaproject6

Are they still making/selling those Planet-X brakes?

noodle soup

Planet-X doesn't sell them anymore, but occasionally they pop up on eBay(Mr. Dirt CNC brakes).

https://www.ebay.com/itm/CNC-Road-Bi...%2BNZoMQ%3D%3D

alpine 318is

I have eTap on both my bikes but can't stand aero link. I have replaced them with Dura ace 9000 and 9100 brakes and I am so much happier.

shoota 

Aero link sucks the big one. Literally just spent 20 minutes trying to find my 13mm wrench because I bumped the rear brake putting the wheel back in. grrrr

noodle soup

Maybe you should organize your tools better.

I know exactly where my 13mm cone wrench is, and could probably find it blind.

shoota 

I should but I shouldn't even need it for this.

noodle soup

I concur. Those brakes blow.

Psimet2001 

This - I LOVE Aerolink brakes. Work great. Something not known too well is that SRAM actually made a clipped down 13mm cone wrench for those brakes. I used to just use regular cone wrenches but you'd have to be careful to no mar the bike finish. A friend gave me the SRAM one and I have had it in the tool box for race support ever since and I've used it hundreds of times on all sorts of bikes.

Really good brakes. Shimano late iterations are nicer but really these are well done. One of the last seriously good rim brakes we'll probably see as the whole world goes disc.