Originally Posted by
wolfchild
i did just exactly that way back in 2008 and never looked back. The main reason why i did that was because my Shimano Deore XT hydraulics were nothing but a headache when riding in very cold weather and on roads with a lot of road salt. I had leaking piston seals on the rear brake caliper, it was rebuild twice worked great in warm weather, nothing but problems during winter time. I prefer mechanicals and have them on two different bikes.
Hydros that use DOT fluid are reportedly better in the cold, but perhaps there have been improvements to mineral oil seals in the 15 years since you tried them. I'd still wager that far more people switch to hydros than switch from them.