I hate you.
They are so weird.
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I hate you.
They are so weird.
wish I knew this 4 years ago.
I had a mtb from early 2000's with hayes mechanical discs and they were much, much better to use and easier to set up than the bb7's....
Paul Klampers.
SPP
I've had great luck with the road version, but I prefer TRP Spyres.
So here is what I'm into. When these @#$%s get replaced I'm going to make a pile of powdered aluminum, ferrous oxide and stick a magnesium strip into the pile. Put the brakes ontop, crack a beer, light the magnesium strip...film the whole thing and laugh like a possessed demon.
Don't underestimate my hate.
What's not to like? BB7s have it all. Easy setup- just remember the "rule of 1/3 and 2/3" and have your micrometer and slide rule handy. Only takes 5-6 minutes on average to get the pads to stop rubbing the disc every time you change a wheel. And - get this - I only had to take my front unit to the grinder twice (only twice! Can you believe it!?) to get excess metal off the face into which the mounting bolts thread.
I mean, they're the complete package.
are junk.
have always been junk.
will always be junk.
Why would anyone purchase a cable actuated disc brake in 2018?
"because I know how to work on cables"
I was lucky enough that my first "real" MTB had hydros - cheap Hayes, but they worked fine. I've never owned a mechanical disc brake, but having worked on some, and had to wait on friends while they fiddled with theirs at the trailhead, I'll never bother to own any.
Hydros work better, in all regards. Better power, better modulation, and almost zero maintenance. And no need to adjust the pad spacing as the pads wear.
ALSO - TT, my friend - I know the hate you feel inside your heart. I too have experienced that same hate, not from BB7s, but another Avid product (Elixers - three sets of them). I won't even tell you not to give in to it - it's too strong, I know. Instead, I'll quote the Bible, and I can't remember the book or the chapter or the verse, but it goes something like "And I say unto you, trouble not your heart on mechanical discs, but instead cast the wicked brakes aside, bolt up some Shimanos, and go forward, rejoicing in the light of superior engineering and manufacturing!"
YES now y'all get me. The brakes have been on my bike for 8 years (ish). I like to use "stuff" until it is roasted. All are welcome to the BB7 roasting party TBD. BYO BB7s to add to the pile and roast with me. If all goes according to plan we'll melt these buggers into a pentagram shaped medallion for posterity.
Bible-like verses appreciated.
I bought a new set of the lower end Elixers when I built up my SS back in '09, they had just come out and were supposed to be the bees knees. To their credit braking performance (power and modulation) was always good. But, eff me, they made SO much noise, ALL the time, and vibrated so bad. And it was impossible to get both levers to have the same feel, no matter how often you bled them (which they needed at least a few times a year).
The other two sets I had were all the top-end versions, friends gave them to me when they replaced them with Shimanos. Eventually someone gave me a set of no-name Shimano hydros (as in, below Deore level). They worked so much better than the Elixers!!!
A friend bought a Surly last year that came with the new Guide brakes that were supposed to be the bees knees. The 2nd week he had them outside temperatures climbed over ~85 degrees and they just completely stopped working, lever would go all the way to the bar with no braking happening. A seal made of the wrong material or something.
Plus there was the whole fiasco with the road disc recall. At this point I don't think there's anything SRAM could do to get me back on their brakes again. I like their MTB drivetrain stuff tho, 'cause I love gripshift.
A Reading from the Book of Armaments, Chapter 4, Verses 16 to 20:
Then did Toots raise on high the Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch, saying, "Bless this, O Lord, that with it thou mayst blow thine BB7's to tiny bits, in thy mercy." And the people did rejoice and did feast upon the lambs and toads and tree-sloths and fruit-bats and orangutans and breakfast cereals ... Now did the Toots say, "First thou pullest the Holy Pin. Then thou must count to three. Three shall be the number of the counting and the number of the counting shall be three. Four shalt thou not count, neither shalt thou count two, excepting that thou then proceedeth to three. Five is right out. Once the number three, being the number of the counting, be reached, then lobbest thou the Holy Hand Grenade in the direction of thine BB7, who, being naughty in my sight, shall snuff it."