Tektro calliper upgrade

[capoach]

Hi all, I've recently purchased a 2011 Giant Defy 2 which has been a little neglected. The tektro brake callipers have rusted in areas and I was wondering whether to replace like for like, or maybe upgrade? If I do upgrade what sort of calliper could I replace it with as I'm not sure if there is a certain spec I should be looking for?

Any advise would be appreciated. Cheers

 

[Ajax Bay]

The derailleurs are Sora ( presume), so replacing the Tektros with that or better is as good a guide as any. Normal drop. Plenty used available as these are often themselves upgraded by people, climbing the Shimano ladder/pole.

 

[DRM]

I can thoroughly recommend Shimano 105 calipers as I have just done this upgrade on my Defy, the differance between the original Tektros and the 105's is like night & day, they actually stop you, they were £24 each from Chain Reaction, and worth every penny, the only thing I would say is that you may need to replace the rear brake cable inner as it may be a little short, as the top arm on the 105's sits lower down than the Tektros, and you may have to use the adjuster from the Tektros as the cable outer ferrule may not go into the 105's adjuster, but you wont be disappointed.

 

[capoach]

Thanks for the info. Was thinking of upgrading to the 105's or ultegra's but wasn't sure if they were a straight swap.

 

[cosmicbike]

Another vote for 105 calipers here, though I tend to aim for lightly used ones from ebay.

 

[TheDoctor]

Broadly speaking, I prefer Shimano brakes to Tektro. Any Shimano front brake with decent blocks is good enough IMHO. Tektro are fine for the back, but most of the work is done by the front.
For the record, a Sora front brake with Clarke's pink blocks will stop 115 kg of fat bugger + bike on Ventoux from 60 mph. Been there, done that. Any other Shimano brake will only be better!

 

[Kajjal]

Found 105's much better on my previous road bike compared to tektros.

 

[capoach]

Looks like I'll be going down the 105 route then guys, thanks for the advice!

As long as they're a relatively straight forward swap?!

 

[capoach]

Just one more thing, is there a certain 105 set up I should be looking for as there seems to be a few different options or product codes for calipers with the 105 badge?

 

[Kajjal]

Just make sure you get a front and a back brake as they are different.

 

[themosquitoking]

I changed the brakes on my defy from the tektro ones to 105s and i found the fixing bolts that came with them ween't long enough so i had to use the originals.

 

[capoach]

I changed the brakes on my defy from the tektro ones to 105s and i found the fixing bolts that came with them ween't long enough so i had to use the originals.

Thanks buddy, how did you find connecting the brake cables? Were they long enough?

 

[Ajax Bay]

how did you find connecting the brake cables?

No difference. Should be able to just replace in situ and connect your current cables. May need a couple of new cable ends. 10 minutes.

 

[Kestevan]

I'd probably be looking at replacing both the inner and outer cables too.
Odds are if the brake caliper is corroded the cables wont be in perfect nick either.

 

[capoach]

Yea fair comment! Would a sora caliper be better than the tektro R340 calipers which are on there now?