Jump to content

To Vee Or Not To Vee That Is The Question..


tryallmaster

Recommended Posts

I have recently gone back to using a Vee (after 11 years of disc / mag) on the front of my Echo 26''. So far I am loving the power and responsiveness! Easy to maintain and take the wheel out without deflating.

I would be super keen to try one on the rear again. I used to have a Vee on my Giant 11 years ago and it was OK - nothing to write home about. Now that brake pads have come along way for Vees (you don't continuously lose your pad from the backing haha) and grinds are the norm, how many riders would look into a Vee frame if there was one available for 20'' or 26''? Obviously, there are Vee adaptors etc but they are a bit gay..

My intention is not to spark a Vee vs Maggy debate.. I just want to find out peoples opinions about Vee's!

I think if a decent geo frame was released with a Vee option I would be interested!

Thoughts?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I keep humming n harring of going to a vee on the rear of my ozonys. The best vees i ever had was me Avid SD3's which came on me 2003 Onza T-vee they worked so responsively with standard pads on a smooth rim with either coke poured on the rim or a slight bit of tar. Now that there is a big range of pads for vee and adaptors it has progressed.

They do seem to be good, responsive and cheap to maintain.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I used to have one on the rear of my Echo Control and it was really good.

Was running Coustsink pads on an Avid SD5 brake and a Viz rim with a pretty dead grind. The bite isn't as good but the hold is amazing.

One thing that used to really annoy me though was that your leg could catch the caliper and knock the brake on slightly.

A Vee on the back, is never going to feel as savage as they do on the front.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am using the standard vees on the zoot, which aren't even the best brake and/or pad set up by a long shot.

I've got to say they are on par with the majority of maggy set ups I've had and I suspect with the changing round

of the pad they could easily be the best brake I've had.

Top that with the fact I haven't grinded the rim, and the brake is easy to look after...I probably won't go back

to maggy

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am using the standard vees on the zoot, which aren't even the best brake and/or pad set up by a long shot.

I've got to say they are on par with the majority of maggy set ups I've had and I suspect with the changing round

of the pad they could easily be the best brake I've had.

Top that with the fact I haven't grinded the rim, and the brake is easy to look after...I probably won't go back

to maggy

Im sooooo glad to hear you say that :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I run an avid ultimate calipers, odyssey clear pads and linear slic cable and an XTR lever on a grindless rim. I absolutely love it. It's quiet, unless the rim is freshly clean, but very powerful. Despite my size it holds for pretty much everything unless the rim gets too dirty. Terrible in the wet though.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I run dual vee my set up is

Front:

Arms: Avid sd7

Lever: Because

Pads: Rock pad blues

Rear:

Arms: Shimano acera

Lever: Because

Pads: TNN Kenny Belaey

Adaptors: Home made

Medium sharp grinds front and back, the front is really loud with great bite and hold and little modulation. The rear is quiet with less bite than a magura and good modulation when going forwards - additionally I am very confident with the hold of the back brake going backwards/on edges. I think both brakes have their advantages, I do prefer the bite and reassuring sound of a magura but the low maintenance and reliability of the vee brake is the reason behind choosing this set up.

It would definitively would be cool to see a lightweight frame with vee brake mounts. However seeing as the vast majority of riders use magura brakes on the back I don't know how popular they would be. Depending on how you get on with rear vee a marino frame with vee mounts could be an option for you.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On my old Echo the vee was the best brake I ever had!

The set up was:

Heatsink adaptors

Heatsink cnc backings

Heatsink Red pads

Avid SD7 arms.

Avid SD7 lever

Cheapo Halfords cable

Rim was an Echo Urban (best rim IMHO)

One thing that I would have loved is a slightly narrower rim, as I couldn't really get them to sit square on the rim. But this didn't stop the brake that much, also with using a shitty cable it took a few days to get the cable to stretch but after a bit of adjustment it soon sorted that out. As for performance it was really good. Felt light, so eased arm pump, the brake had tons of hold. lacked a tiny bit of bite but I don't like that too much. found then to be a bit quieter than maggies too! which is a bonus

I have tried Tnn pads, the green ones. on the front of my mod and my god that was a good brake, bit tricky to slow down!!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Love my front vee. TNN Adv's, Acera arms, clarkes cables, sd5 lever, medium grind. Its properly good stuff.

I've liked the rear vee's Ive tried. Feel nicer in terms of bite with a smooth rim though, but very consistent in the wet too on a grind. Hold is mega!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...