plug and play hydraulic swap for the Rad

[Taylor Guziewicz]

anyone else come acrosss these brakes and thought might work with the rad rover?

https://www.empoweredcycles.com/products/tektro-dorado-hd-e710-e-bike-hydraulic-brake-203mm-front

(Link Removed - No Longer Exists)

Thanks Taylor.

 

[Nova Haibike]

You can install any brand/model of hydraulic brakes you want. The only thing extra you would need if you want to use a larger rotor is the appropriate adapter for the caliper.

 

[mrgold35]

You can install any brand/model of hydraulic brakes you want. The only thing extra you would need if you want to use a larger rotor is the appropriate adapter for the caliper.

I think the OP want to know if anyone tried this brake upgrade out and if they are worth the price, any installation issues, and any change in braking performance. I'm not real happy with my Radrover brakes and want better emergency stopping power along with making less adjustments every few weeks. I'm trying to decided between a better mechanical system like TRP Spyke or going for the hybrid system of the TRP HY/RD cable actuated hydraulic set.

 

[Nova Haibike]

The existence of the hybrid hydraulic/cable brake was so that road bikes could be fitted with discs less expensively, because road bikes have integrated brake and shift levers. On (most) mountain bikes, the levers are not integrated, so there is not the same restriction. So I think if one is going to go hydraulic, you may as well go all-in and get rid of cable all together.

 

[eguy]

I think the OP want to know if anyone tried this brake upgrade out and if they are worth the price, any installation issues, and any change in braking performance. I'm not real happy with my Radrover brakes and want better emergency stopping power along with making less adjustments every few weeks. I'm trying to decided between a better mechanical system like TRP Spyke or going for the hybrid system of the TRP HY/RD cable actuated hydraulic set.

I was told that getting the Spykes on my RadCity would have little difference over the Tektros it comes with and that if I did want to upgrade the brakes, I should get Hydro brakes instead and not waste the money on mechanical. Take that with a grain of salt, but there's definitely a noticeable difference in using Hydro brakes over mechanical in my experience. I was hoping the Spykes would be a good middle ground, but after hearing that, I'm not sure it is worth the ~$100.

 

[Nova Haibike]

I think the only good reason to stay with a cable actuated brake system is for bikepackers who would be traveling the world and out in the middle of nowhere. Repairing a cable in the field is simple; a hydraulic line not.

 

[Taylor Guziewicz]

My question was in reference to something that was a full on replacement and was a true hydraulic brake. That worked seamlessly with the motor inhibitor's.

The idea originally came from my 2000w scooter which has quite a bit of torque. Its pushing 60 km ++ top speed as well.

Standard disc brakes are meant for the average rider but as your
skill level increases and as you are willing to take more risks on the trail; it becomes better to buy a more adequate breaking set up.

 

[Nova Haibike]

My question was in reference to something that was a full on replacement and was a true hydraulic brake. That worked seamlessly with the motor inhibitor's.

You can certainly use either of the two you listed, or if you want higher-end brakes, you can add the Bafang brake lever switches to whichever brake you choose: https://lunacycle.com/bafang-hydraulic-and-disc-brake-sensors-e-brake-pair/

 

[Lost]

I was told that getting the Spykes on my RadCity would have little difference over the Tektros it comes with and that if I did want to upgrade the brakes, I should get Hydro brakes instead and not waste the money on mechanical. Take that with a grain of salt, but there's definitely a noticeable difference in using Hydro brakes over mechanical in my experience. I was hoping the Spykes would be a good middle ground, but after hearing that, I'm not sure it is worth the ~$100.

I love the Spykes, they are sort of the best of both worlds. I also have hydraulic on my rover (front).

 

[mrgold35]

I love the Spykes, they are sort of the best of both worlds. I also have hydraulic on my rover (front).

Hey @Lost, I decided to take your lead and went with the Spykes mechanical brakes you suggested on eBay. I would have loved to gone with the Hydraulic Spykes; but, 2X the cost and extra maintenance with the mineral oil replacement procedure I watched on YouTube didn't seem like my cup of tea just yet.

Only my first day work commuting with them. I can already feel the difference in stopping power. I can lock-up the rear wheel with he same amount of pull when I couldn't do with the old brakes (I could only lock the rear tire on dirt with old brakes). I had to order a 3mm hex from Amazon to so I can fine tune the pads on the disk.

I only order one pair to try out on my ebike to compare to my second Radrover with the old brakes for a while. I'm still debating and I could always go Hydraulic Spykes on the front of both rovers and mechanical Spykes on the rear.

 

[eguy]

Hey @Lost, I decided to take your lead and went with the Spykes mechanical brakes you suggested on eBay. I would have loved to gone with the Hydraulic Spykes; but, 2X the cost and extra maintenance with the mineral oil replacement procedure I watched on YouTube didn't seem like my cup of tea just yet.

Only my first day work commuting with them. I can already feel the difference in stopping power. I can lock-up the rear wheel with he same amount of pull when I couldn't do with the old brakes (I could only lock the rear tire on dirt with old brakes). I had to order a 3mm hex from Amazon to so I can fine tune the pads on the disk.

I only order one pair to try out on my ebike to compare to my second Radrover with the old brakes for a while. I'm still debating and I could always go Hydraulic Spykes on the front of both rovers and mechanical Spykes on the rear.

How was swapping it out on your radrover? Did you have to do anything with the cable and ferrules?

 

[mrgold35]

How was swapping it out on your radrover? Did you have to do anything with the cable and ferrules?

The install was pretty easy with about only 15-20 minutes for the swap and another 45 minutes fine tuning and road test several times. I had to clip off the brake cable end caps with wire cutters of the existing cable so I could remove the old brakes and install the new (order replacement red brake cable caps on Amazon). I had to reuse the longer front brake bolts from the old brakes because of the 180mm adapter. I used blue loc-tite to make sure the bolts on the front and back wouldn't come loose over time. The Spykes bolt holes are oval in shape and that took a little time to line up pads center of the disk brake. The rest of time was adjusting the tension on the cable for the right brake feel and not having the pad rub against the disk. The Spyke brakes have a 3mm caliper adjustment using a hex tool; but, it was an odd size and my existing hex sets were either too big or too small to fit the caliper adjustment. I will fine tune some more once I get the 3mm bike hex tool from Amazon (I hope this tool fits).

I did about 10 emergency stops at +15 mph taking turns using the front brake, rear brake, and both brakes. I figured it would be a good way to break-in the pads and help transfer the new pad material onto the calipers for better stopping power. It was worth the upgrade for the improved emergency stopping power for me.