cisco1

I just ordered a Cannondale CAAD 8 6 and saw that it comes with Cannondale C4 brakes. I was thinking of upgrading the brakes. Will the Shimano 105 be a good upgrade that is worth the money? Will it stop much better than the stock ones? I don't want to upgrade them unless it will be a noticeable difference. The weight savings if any isn't that important to me. Also, what are some good cheap pedals to buy? Once again I don't need anything fancy, just something to use for the mean time until I decide what route I want to go. I am new to road bikes, so sorry if this has been posted before. I tried to search the forum, but it didn't return any results because the words were too common. Thanks for the help.

Mike F

I swapped out my no name stock brakes that came with my bike with 105's because they "spongy" on descents. I would wait to see if the C-dale brakes have any performance issues. If they do you can go the cheaper route and replace the the pads first.

Silvercivic27

105 brakes are a lot better than Tektro.

matroskin

You are spending money on something that you already have and want to replace, and try to save on something that you don't have. That's reasonable ... I guess. The best brake upgrade you can get is to learn how to break properly. Sorry money cannot buy it.

tagaproject6

Do not try to upgrade your brake calipers yet. If you are looking for brake improvement try changing out the brake pads with Kool Stop or Swiss Stop pads.
What type of pedals are you looking to get? Road specific, mountain, combination of platform and clipless?


If you are going to come off as a dooshy noob, trying to correct another with a veiled attempt at an insult, at least learn how to spell "brake" properly. Your style however, is atypical of a 41 member...welcome

cyclezen

If your C-dale brakes are Tektros, I found Tektros (the ones which came on my Roubaix Elite) to be difficult to modulate well, especially on descents. They - Tektros - seem to work fine enough for inexpensive brakes. I chose not to bother with new pads, put on 105 calipers - big improvement. I think it's a worthwhile upgrade for riders who are finicky about braking performance.

rolliepollie

I know this is probably supposed to sound smart and witty but I just can't feel it...

Try new pads like koolstop or Swiss as suggested. Most likely they'll last longer and perform better than the stock pads. Even better if the stocks are non-cartridge pads.

Note that new brakes/pads do take some time to "wear-into" the rim, a bit like disc brakes. So you may not notice much improvement from the start.

CNY James

huh? :confused:

matroskin

No need to be confused CNY James you are a senior member. It's not good to be a confused senior. The guy is getting a bike without pedals, but tries to save money on them. At the same time he wants to buy overpriced higher line brakes (did I spell correctly or third time will be a charm?). I think OP should be confused, not you

matroskin

What brake improvement are you talking about? The guy just _ordered_ a bike. Not only he has never ridden it, he actually hasn't seen it yet.

You called it first! I don't know who "a 41 member is" but I don't think he will be my role model.

matroskin

Oh yes! You can feel it. You just cannot see it because it is not there, but you can still feel it.

ThinLine

105 brakes are the best mid-range brakes out there. Dura Ace brakes are the best in the world and Tektro's came out the rear end of a cattle.

Chris_F

My front C'dale brake had too much toe in which was causing poor braking. I did a bunch of research on the Shimano brakes and basically their bottom of the line Sora is part for part identicaly to the Tigra (except for color/screen print name). At the 105 level you get a lighter brake with ball bearings to make it feel a little smoother. This won't help you stop all that much better. I recommend getting a Sora if you're not worried about weight and aren't super picky about how the handle feels.

cisco1

I don't know what your problem is. There is no point in buying expensive pedals right now when I don't know what I want. Why would I go out and buy something expensive that I may not need later. I'm going to buy something that is cheaper because I will upgrade it later on when I know what I want. Seems reasonable to me.

I actually have rode the bike before. I tried to buy an exact one at my local bike store, but they sold it before I made the decision. They didn't have anything in my size. If you are not going to be helpful, then don't post in this thread. Everyone else has been very helpful so I appreciate that. BTW, thanks for the warm welcome.

matroskin

I bought a roadbike, but it came without a saddle. With a saddle stem but without a saddle. I was so anxious to ride my bike that I rode it for hours like that. Now my butt hurts and I need to trash your thread.

Welcome to the forum. Beware not everybody will be nice to you.

But seriously, do you really expect your brand new brakes to fail on you???

cisco1

No I don't expect them to fail. But whenever I get something new, I always want to modify it. I'm like Tim the Toolman from Home Improvement. More power!

vespoli

Upgrading is most of the fun. That said, you would have saved some time and likely money by buying a better-specced bike to start with. What was wrong with the CAAD8 w/ 105?

cisco1

I would have loved a CAAD8 with the 105, but it was around $455 more. The bike I bought was on sale. I figured I would be happier with the Tiagra components and I could always upgrade later if needed.

Phil85207

Welcome to the forum, I see you can think for yourself and are just looking for a little guidance. As you have already found, not all advice is good advice. For me, I think dollar for dollar 105 is hard to beat. Good luck with your new bike and ride safely.

matroskin

Darn! If you buy 105s upfront how far are you going to upgrade it? I think 105s are the end of the upgrade road. Of course you can spend more money on it but with every dollar spend you get diminishing marginal utility. So why would you start with 105s and have such a short upgrade life. Isn't upgrading the "most of the fun"?

matroskin

I think paying off credit cards with 25% APR is hard to beat dollar for dollar, everything else is way behind.

Vicelord

105 brakes are great. I think you'd be very happy with them. That said, see if the stock brakes perform for you first.

RollCNY

You may also want to consider SRAM Rival brakes. I got mine for less than 105's and in test rides thought both were very comparable.

ls01

brakes are overated. I have tektros on a couple of bikes and ultegra brakes on a couple of bikes. the pads make all the difference. you'll be fine with the tektros, just make sure they are set up right and the pads arre good.

pgjackson

When I switched from the stock Tektro to 105 on my old bike it was a huge disappointment. Good for the bling factor, but I doubt you will notice any practical difference. The mechanics are pretty much the same as is the weight. Like others have said, pads will probably make the biggest difference. Get the 105's if you want the 105 logo...but don't expect a performance difference. Based on this I decided to not "upgrade" the Tektro brakes on my Defy 1.