Bigger brake discs/rotors

[Paulcon]

I wanna upgrade the discs on my E+1, will it take 220mm without additional mounts?

if not do you know what brake mounts I’d need?

thanks in advanced

 

[RustyIron]

That's what the 160mm users said to the early adopters of 180mm.
Or was it what the coaster brake users said to the early adopters of v-brakes?

 

[Paulcon]

decent 203mm front and rear is all you need

spoil sport, haha, but I want bigger discs than the others I ride with

guess I’ll stick with 203’s then, booooooo

 

[Redlemon]

decent 203mm front and rear is all you need

That is wrong as heavy riders or gravity focused riders will benefits from having larger rotors. WC DH riders don't run 220MM F&R rotors just for the looks

I believe the Fox 38 on your Reign E+1 uses a direct post mount for 180mm rotors and the frame is also direct post mount 180mm at the back.

You will need to find PM40 (+40mm mount) or PM43 (+43mm mount) brake adapters depending on the disc size you're going to use.

Canadian company North Shore Billet are making some :

Post Mount Disk Brake Adapter

High-quality disc brake adapters for almost any setup. Machined surfaces allow for better caliper alignment and a more rigid brake setup. Made in Whistler, B.C. and shipped worldwide.

northshorebillet.ca

 

[RustyIron]

i can just hit over 30mph on the flat

It's always hard to ascertain the condition of parts just by looking at pictures on the interwebs, but in the picture from six years ago, it appears that the wrong adapter was being used. The brake pad track looks way too high, so only half of the pad surface was touching the rotor. Odd...

 

[Kevjob51]

Did your Reign e+1 not come with 220 front rotors? My e+2 came with 220 f and 200 rear.

 

[Paulcon]

Did your Reign e+1 not come with 220 front rotors? My e+2 came with 220 f and 200 rear.

Nope, they come with 203's as standard: Reign E+ 1 Electric Mountain Bike | Giant Bicycles UK

 

[mummyb0t]

I upgraded my e+1 to 220/200. Used sram hs2 rotors, they are little thicker. Worked great in the end. I had to get a 40mm adapter for the fox 38 as above, and remove a 1mm spacer on the back, guess i the shimano rotors were 203?

 

[urastus]

decent 203mm front and rear is all you need

based on.....? I live in steep country; it's up or down. All the ups and downs are around 1km. Grab a brake, let go; when you let go you instantly fly, and it's rowdy. Bigger rotors weigh bugger all. They're more effective, which means less time on the brake - less heat generated. They also have a larger surface area which means they don't get as hot (more mass to distribute heat) and cool down quicker (greater surface area to dissipate heat). 180mm rotors on my analogue bike were more than enough, as were 2.3" tyres - not on this bike. I've upgraded the rear from 180 to 203 to match the front. If I could I'd have 223 both ends - the rear in particular still gets pretty hot. When I can get 223 (adapter and rotor) here I'll put one on the rear. I don't think I want to push the budget rockshox gold 35rl forks much harder, so I'll leave them alone

 

[NicoMTB]

Ive Upgraded to 223 Galfer front and rear. If you intend on keeping the Shimano XT brakes id keep a 200 rear. Or there is a steep learning curve as they aren't very progressive or modular... you do need to add a bracket both front and rear. I will be swapping ot the shimanos, as they have great bite very agressive, but then there is nothing no power reserve and if i want to feather the brakes in muddy low grip situations they arent great.

And where I live descents are easily 1000 1500 m steep and fast. and bigger rotor means less effort braking, so less fatigue.

 

[RickBullotta]

It's always hard to ascertain the condition of parts just by looking at pictures on the interwebs, but in the picture from six years ago, it appears that the wrong adapter was being used. The brake pad track looks way too high, so only half of the pad surface was touching the rotor. Odd...

Adapter upside down? I've seen that before.

 

[NicoMTB]

Front wheel 223 galfer rotor and Bracket

Rear Wheel set up Same 223 Rotor and Bracket.

 

[Shjay]

I would check before putting a 220 on the rear the frame might not cover warranty! I used to do warranty for Transition frames few years ago people were running larger than quoted rear rotors & were snapping chain stays & we weren’t covering warranty! You would get crash replacement but not free rear triangle as running bigger rotors than covered for!

 

[Redlemon]

I would check before putting a 220 on the rear the frame might not cover warranty! I used to do warranty for Transition frames few years ago people were running larger than quoted rear rotors & were snapping chain stays & we weren’t covering warranty! You would get crash replacement but not free rear triangle as running bigger rotors than covered for!

I can't believe a manufacturer would design an enduro MTB with such tight fatigue tolerance on the frame that it would snap from increased braking performance.

That would be a major design flaw honestly.

 

[Shjay]

This was on frames 9/10 years ago which today are beefed up considerably more to cope however you might not realise the forces involved. You put a 220mm rotor on a Fox SC fork & your will bend those forks badly…

I can't believe a manufacturer would design an enduro MTB with such tight fatigue tolerance on the frame that it would snap from increased braking performance.

That would be a major design flaw honestly.
[/QUOTE

 

[Husky430]

Your all missing the point, it's all about the bling

 

[Doug Stampfer]

I would check before putting a 220 on the rear the frame might not cover warranty! I used to do warranty for Transition frames few years ago people were running larger than quoted rear rotors & were snapping chain stays & we weren’t covering warranty! You would get crash replacement but not free rear triangle as running bigger rotors than covered for!

Yeah I can't believe that I'm afraid. I've just changed from 203 to 220 & the only difference really is it locks up quicker - there's no discernable feeling of increased braking. On the front, yes I can feel there is more stopping power but on the rear it is purely heat dissapation & less wooden feeling braking.
You will need a 20mm bracket going from 203 to 220. You will prob also need a couple more 24-26mm bolts each end as the adaptor I got only came with 2 & you need 4.

 

[2WheelsNot4]

Get yourself a pair of Hope mono m6 on moto levers.

You can stop a bus on them

 

[jbv]

also went 223 Galfer's a while back. for heavier riders, and/or steeper terrain it's all gravy. bigger rotors do take longer to heat up so it's not like you have much of a difference in feel until speeds pick up and you've been on them a bit. with the stock XT brakes, i find these about perfect. little to no fade, good modulation not overly grabby considering the system mass it's working against. 55 pound bike, 220 pound rider. stock 200 rotors were good, these are better.

the whole 'grabby' issue is over hyped anyways. when careening down a steep hill, do you really want gradual braking power? i want immediate on demand twitch of a finger response at the tires. brake hard, brake early, then get off the brakes and perform. that's how a mtb works best. ample modulation with XT and 223 rotors.

 

[surflj]

Just changed my stock rotors from 203 to 220 front and back. Needed adaptor from Magura. Only issue was bolt length but I worked that out, no problem.
I weigh around 200lbs so the extra stopping power is welcomed. But also the heat dissipation that by going to a floating rotor will be welcomed on long downhill runs.
But in all honesty one of the main reasons for the upgrade was I am tired of seeing rust on the rotors where the pads don't touch the rotor. Somehow rust on such an expensive beautifully made bike just doesn't cut it! The alloy centers are black. Also they look really good.
Improved power and modulation subtle but noticeable. Also want to note that Magura customer support has been terrific. Also have to say the same for Sram!

 

[2WheelsNot4]

i want immediate on demand twitch of a finger response at the tires. brake hard, brake early,

Throwing you into a locked up back wheel uncontrollable skid to certain doom ?.

 

[jbv]

never happened to me. i'd have to pull hard for that to happen. of course we do have some very slippery rock slabs that require a gentle touch or that is definitely possible!

 

[Mr Dog]

I switched to Magura 220 front and rear on both my e-mtbs. I’m 84kg and live in steep country. It’s not night and day difference from the 203s but it is a reduction in heat build up that leads to more consistent braking. I also noticed an improvement in feel and lower lever effort required to to achieve the same stopping effort which results in less fatigue on long steep descents. I also recently tried the purple e-bike Galfer pads and they result in pretty aggressive initial bite which personally I like. I have no issues with modulation and can still brake light when required. For the rear you will need a 40mm adapter such as Magura QM-45, I think it is the same for the front.

My advice is just try it. If it doesn’t work for you on the rear you will have a spare Front disc. It’s a relatively low cost experiment.

I bet you will be happy with the results

 

[Goughy75]

Nope, they come with 203's as standard: Reign E+ 1 Electric Mountain Bike | Giant Bicycles UK

Strange that. My E+2 came with 220mm front as standard.

Reign E+ 2 Electric Mountain Bike | Giant Bicycles UK

www.giant-bicycles.com

 

[Endoguru]

I wanna upgrade the discs on my E+1, will it take 220mm without additional mounts?

if not do you know what brake mounts I’d need?

thanks in advanced

Bigger rotors are never wrong

 

[urastus]

Bigger rotors are never wrong

I think there is a limit to things, eg bar length getting bigger for everyone, and crank length getting smaller for everyone, and reach / wheelbase getting longer. Some of these things seem to be just a sales grab for the mindless. Kind of like the past pixel wars with cameras - actual image quality degraded. I'm all for 223's; I'm not sure I'd whack one on my budget fork though. The other potential issue is more chance of bending the rotor in an off. Rotor size should also be relative to wheel size and weight of rider / bike combo to a degree too. Eg; a bike with 27.5" wheels and 203 rotors is probably equivalent to a bike with 29" wheels and 223 rotors. Smaller wheels with bigger rotors are more likely to have damaged rotors in an off too.

 

[emtbPhil]

If you got up to 220 you need to check the frame warranty and what the fork can take
Do that on 32/34 forks and the amount they bend when you slam on is scary, and you don't wanna invalidate frame warranty

As others have said the basic £20 rotors are shiiiite, even shimano's own
I have 203/203 and I nearly melted my original rotors, put hope rotors on and the brakes will put me over the bars now with zero heat issues even on really long decents

Decent pads and rotors would be my choice before a size upgrade

 

[MountainBoy]

the whole 'grabby' issue is over hyped anyways. when careening down a steep hill, do you really want gradual braking power? i want immediate on demand twitch of a finger response at the tires. brake hard, brake early, then get off the brakes and perform. that's how a mtb works best. ample modulation with XT and 223 rotors.

Ample modulation is the opposite of grabby. If the "grabby issue" is overhyped, that implies modulation doesn't matter much. And while it's true that braking is often best done hard and in hort bursts, that doesn't mean there isn't huge advantage to having good progression and sensitivity for those times when you need to scrub a lot of speed quickly. I want to be able to bring that front tire right to the limit of traction without locking it up.

 

[urastus]

I want to be able to bring that front tire right to the limit of traction without locking it up

I've been running resin pads on the front, metal on the rear. I was running organic on the rear, but it just gets too hot. It's been about a month now and I still lock the rear at times - something I never used to. Still it seems to be the best mix for me and I'm still hoping to adjust.

 

[emtbPhil]

the whole 'grabby' issue is over hyped anyways. when careening down a steep hill, do you really want gradual braking power? i want immediate on demand twitch of a finger response at the tires. brake hard, brake early, then get off the brakes and perform. that's how a mtb works best. ample modulation with XT and 223 rotors.

This is entirely wrong, with all due respect

Spent years building race cars - what modulation allows is for you to use 98-99% of braking force without locking the wheel up
With poor modulation you would get to 80 or maybe 90% and then lock up - as soon as you lock up you lose all braking force as the tyre has lost traction with the surface

With good modulation you can also apply very little braking force gradually which is great for steep techy rocky decents, if it grabs you're going over the bars.

Modulation IMO is more important than outright braking force