All Arround MTB

The CR3 features a cartridge-type master, which improves power and modulation, plus it is super simple to service: The self-enclosed unit threads directly into the lever body. I took apart our test set and had it back together and bled in 10 minutes with no special tools. Like Formula’s RO brakes, the caliper pistons are actually oval, making more surface area–and thus, more power–than round pistons, but simpler than a four-piston system. The CR3 is best suited for aggressive trail riding.

SHIMANO'S NEW XTR brakes get subtle upgrades to improve already outstanding performance but some niggles remain.

SHIMANO'S MIGHTY SAINT comes marching in with massive power, single-finger control and excellent reliability but some details disappoint.

HOPE'S LIGHTEST BRAKE is a proper flyweight unit, but still delivers a useful amount of power. Beautifully machined in their Lancashire factory, the drilled lever, open-diamond bar clamp, minimalist reservoir body and one-piece calliper remove as much weight as possible.

FORMULA'S MOST POWERFUL brake gets an enduro makeover, providing excellent power-to-weight performance for those who can afford it.

SRAM'S CHEAPEST GUIDE brake is enduro ready but not as subtly controlled as its more expensive brothers. The main difference is the simpler DirectLink rather than SwingLink lever cam.

THIS COMBINATION OF Avid's last-generation Elixir lever and four-piston Code calliper has been around for a while but it's got plenty of loyal fans.

MAGURA'S LATEST BRAKES are the most powerful we've ever tested, but not the most user friendly. The new four-piston callipers with a single mini pad for each piston are the only ones to have ever completely stopped our test dyno.

SRAM'S NEW AFFORDABLE DB5 is actually a mix of the DirectLink lever and body of their entry-level Guide R brake and the twin-piston calliper of the old Avid Elixir.

FSA ARE NEW to brakes but have released two for this season - the uber-expensive K-Force and the more affordable Afterburner here.

THE NEW XTR is Shimano's lightest groupset to date and also their first to boast an 11-speed cassette. While the 11-40t spread isn't as wide as SRAM's 10-42t X-DOME block, it has the major advantage of fitting on a standard freehub rather than needing a proprietary driver body.

The new SRAM - not Avid - Guide brakes are aimed squarely at trail riders and replace the Avid XO Trail, Elixir 7 Trail and Elixir 9 Trail. There are three models to choose from -the Guide RSC. RS and R.

THE GUIDE MARKS a new direction for SRAM. Not only is it their first brake badged as SRAM rather than Avid but it also aims to address some of the issues with previous models – namely, reliability – while building on their good points – power and feel.

HOPE HAVE CLEARLY worked hard on their latest DH brakes. The big four-piston, single-piece V4 calliper boosts power beyond everything but Shimano’s downhill sets. Heat tolerance and pad life are also improved significantly over the old two-pot V2 without adding weight, although it’s still a hefty system. Drag-free set-up is easy, braided hoses are standard and you can even run Hope’s double-skin vented rotors (203mm only).

SHIMANO’S ZEE PRODUCED the biggest surprise of our lab testing to prove why it’s the ultimate cost-effective stopper. It uses an almost identical fourcylinder calliper to Shimano’s flagship Saint brake, and actually fractionally outstopped its more expensive sibling on the dyno.

SHIMANO’S LATEST DEORE brake offers all the control and power you could need in a simple, ultra reliable, user friendly, ultra bargain package. Whomever we asked for feedback on brakes from, the unanimous answer was that the Deore was absolutely outstanding, and that backed up exactly what our test team thought.

TRICKLE-DOWN OF technology is a wonderful thing when it means you can now buy a brake 95 per cent as good as the excellent Avid X0 Trail for almost half the price. The only real differences are that the lever is alloy, not carbon, and sits on a bushing rather than a cartridge bearing, so the feel isn’t as luxurious. There’s no bite point adjust and you get a utilitarian grey finish but the brake is only 12g heavier.

AVID’S COMBINATION OF XC lever and DH brake has become a cult hero among gravity addicts, and for good reason. The pivot geometry of the Elixir lever gives it great feel and communication, as well as a genuine boost in perceived power. There’s no bite point adjust but reach adjust is tool-free and shared mount syncing with shifters/remotes is seamless.

HOPE’S NEW, NEATER Tech 3 lever isn’t ambidextrous but it sits against shifters and remotes a lot better than previous Tech levers.

THE ULTRA NEAT design of Avid’s four-pot brake family means the extra pair of cylinders and longer pads only add a handful of grams over conventional X0, yet the increase in sketchy conditions control and reduction in arm pump on long techy descents is dramatic.