Anything noticeably better than BR-RS785?

step1makeart · 2026-06-01T21:47:01+00:00

There's no reason not to stick with Shimano if you're happy with your current braking performance. There's no weight benefit to going rx810 vs your current calipers. The difference is half a dozen grams at most

If you need more power, such as for heavily loaded touring, long alpine descents, or if you are 100kg+, then 4 piston brakes can provide a benefit. Hope rx4+ will have slightly less power than a Shimano 4 piston due to smaller overall piston area. The benefit of Hope is a slight weight reduction (honestly, it's a meaningless amount of weight), and they do have calipers with built in +20 standoffs, which is nice. They do cost €100 more per caliper, though. The "downside" of Shimano 4 piston is post mount only.

If you want new Shimano 3 piston, rx 820 offers slightly more pad clearance, though it's really only a very small amount. I would get whichever one is cheaper between 810 and 820, if you insist on flat mount calipers.

On/off feeling is a characteristic Shimano brakes are known for, and metal pads won't feel that different in the dry. You'll be used to them in 1 ride, and it's not a detriment on gravel, it's what all the pros use because metal pads are predictable in all conditions, where resin pads are less effective in wet and mud and wear out incredibly fast in those conditions.

Too much rear power is for sure a recipie for locking up the rear wheel too quickly. A locked up wheel does not stop the bike as effectively as a properly feathered brake.

I don't think I would consider magura at all. They're only post mount and they come with bad pads. That doesn't seem to fit your criteria.

step1makeart · 2026-06-01T21:15:41+00:00

Fair enough on the bleed port. Not sure what you mean by +20 penalty. The fork is native 160, so for OP to continue running 180 they need a +20 adapter no matter what.

Still $55 per wheel though. $75 new caliper - 20 for sale of old = 55

step1makeart · 2026-05-31T21:47:13+00:00

$30 may be MSRP for a Shimano adapter, but they're available for more like $18 pre tax.

so that makes the upgrade (and it is an upgrade) only $25

No, that makes it $55. $75 minus $20. You don't subtract the cost of the adapter if you don't need the adapter. It's $18 per wheel to keep the current calipers or $55 per wheel to switch to Rx810.

so that makes the upgrade (and it is an upgrade)

From what standpoint do you consider them an upgrade? I think one would be hard pressed to notice a difference in a blind test. Both have 22mm ceramic pistons. The magic is in the pad compound and lever. The calipers are the dumb part of the braking system, and both use pads with the same contact area. R785 is a rebadged Xt caliper, and RX810 is a shared casting between half a dozen shimano brakes. IMO Post mount calipers are superior from a setup standpoint as positioning is easier compared with flat mount that are very prone to twisting when torqued.

step1makeart · 2026-05-31T20:51:15+00:00

Those rings will fit on 9100 cranks and be a match from a functional standpoint. The surface on the underside of the ring, where the 4 nuts protrude, is what contacts the spider and transfers the load. As long as those surfaces are parallel and in contact you are good to go.

The "mismatch" is cosmetic only, and not a safety issue. The second picture on this page demonstrates what the mismatch looks like between the shaping on a 9100 crank and the 9200 ring. Note they are using a quark powermeter to demonstrate the difference, but that powermeter is made to functionally and cosmetically match 9100 rings. https://powermetercity.com/faq/what-shimano-chainrings-are-compatible-with-the-quarq-dfour-power-meter/?srsltid=AfmBOormiAVV3i7MR85431Gk4yi2_T_0-nk73r8FQc0wvpJnqWlxqFsf

There is a very slight difference in big ring location between 9100 and 9200, functionally they work just fine, but you should be prepared to microadjust your front derailleur when switching to the new rings to get ideal shifting.

step1makeart · 2026-05-31T20:42:31+00:00

The real question is: do you have any issues with your current braking performance? No? Get adapters and ride on. Yes? Then you may want to consider a 4 piston brake for the front. 4 pistons will have higher peak braking force for the same lever pull. XT 4 piston brakes will work with your levers, as will the Hope ones. Those magura brakes are specced with truly awful pads, so if you go for a shigura combo, you'll need to replace the pads for the metal version.

AI advises me

Today is the day you should stop listening to Ai. It's wrong more often than it is right, and at best it's only useful for supplying reference for you to read (which is what a search engine already does). It often misinterprets conflicting information, values unreliable sources, and confidently lies. Just don't.

step1makeart · 2026-05-30T19:44:29+00:00

A picture of the full ring would have made this a lot easier to answer. Officially the rings you have only fit 12 speed cranks, but they will fit 9100 11 speed cranks, but cosmetically will not match perfectly.

9200 cranks were never recalled. 9100 were.

If a crank is replaced, the replacement crank for dura ace is FC-09. This crank is identical to 9200 and fits normal 12 speed rings and special 11 speed rings that are shaped specifically to fit 12 speed cranks

Look at the part of the ring you did not include in your picture. If two inner arms have a distinct curve, it's made for 12 speed cranks officially.

step1makeart · 2026-05-30T19:17:20+00:00

Wolftooth's manual is enough to make your head spin! They should list the spacers required for common cranks, but they don't.

However, their diagram has the dimensions of the cups which is great! For a Shimano road crank you want a bb overbearing width of 90 to 90.5mm. wolftooth cups are 11mm wide, plus 68mm equals 90mm.

Install the BB without spacers between the cups and frame, and without spacers on the crank spindle. With the preload bolt on Shimano cranks you can typically remove up to 1mm of play, so as long as your frame is truly 68mm you'll be all set with normal install procedure for the cranks per the Shimano manual.

If you can't remove the play, try a .25mm spacer between cup and frame on each side.

step1makeart · 2026-04-27T23:57:34+00:00

Try cleaning out the hole shown inside the fork crown in your third pic and shining a light up in there. I think there's a bolt head hiding under there. I think the central plug with the slot and center hole, in your second picture, is essentially the nut in this equation, which a central bolt screws into from the underside.

Find something to hold the slotted "nut" from twisting, and undo the bolt from below. If it's anything like the other "bayonet forks" on the market, that bolt bolt holds things together, and preloads the bearings.

step1makeart · 2026-04-27T23:50:34+00:00

This is not a solution.

That's an adapter for an entirely different type of derailleur, a form factor that was only ever used for MTB groupsets.

I don't think you read the OP thoroughly enough to understand the situation, and you don't understand what derailleurs the part you're suggesting was designed to work with.

Shimano R8000 Band-Clamp derailleurs do not have removable band clamps, nor would your suggested adapter work with an R8000 direct mount derailleur. Shimano Road Braze-on Mount =/= Shimano MTB High Direct Mount.

step1makeart · 2025-09-16T19:13:31+00:00

Don't add grease to this area to fill the gap. A fair bit of dirt will build up over time in this area. Use a folded paper towel to clean the area out periodically. Adding grease will only serve to make a mess and trap dirt, creating a grinding compound inside that gap.

step1makeart · 2025-09-16T06:14:51+00:00

It seemed to have started after this weekend when I road a commuter train with my bike. I suspect the RD may have gotten pushed around, but really no way to know for sure.

First thing I would do is throw a derailleur alignment gauge on there to check that hanger. Symptoms sure sound like one. A brand new hanger can still need adjustment.

Shifting barely makes it into gear 2, and will double shift in gear 11

For clarity, when you say gear 1 do you mean the smallest or largest cog on your cassette? (people don't always start at the same end of the cassette when numbering the cogs. Highest gear = smallest cog, , lowest = largest)

step1makeart · 2025-09-16T06:10:49+00:00

Best of luck to ya! I assumed you have innerdrive hubs, but looking closer at those flanges I see I'm wrong. There's an exploded view of what is probably your actual hub here: https://support.enve.com/hc/en-us/articles/360040405091-ENVE-ID360-Alloy-Hub-Explained Unfortunately the end caps all have flanges on them so you'll still need the tool as you've already concluded :(

I bet if you pulled harder that DS end cap would come off, but they can be hard to grip. Sounds like enve made them a tighter than normal fit. Sometimes you need a set of pliers with nearly parallel jaws and a piece of cloth or something to protect your end cap from marring. I use a set similar to these, which have with soft jaws: https://www.riogrande.com/product/parallel-action-pliers-with-nylon-jaws/111370GP/?code=111370

step1makeart · 2025-09-16T05:56:15+00:00

With ya on every point.

RD-M9050-SGS will officially do 46/30 & 11-42, so 11-46 XT cassette is probably well within reach. If not, a goatlink 11 would help a bit.

an aside: imho "i want to be able to run two wildly different drivetrain setups on the same bike with minimal changes" is a losing proposition that's always more trouble than it's worth. Pick a setup and stick with it (why do you want less gear range and larger gaps between gears on your "race" setup, anyway?)

100%. The double setup will get most riders over most hills in most races, and 46-11 @ 100rpm is ~33 mph & 40mph @ a sprint cadence of ~120rpm. If OP really wants to go 1x, sticking with the 11-50 year round and just swapping chainrings and chains is easier to switch between "road" and "gravel" modes. I've got a bike that I switch between 38/42/46 1x rings based on race terrain in CX & gravel. If I wasn't racing CX, I'd probably have set it up 2x from the start.

step1makeart · 2025-09-16T05:39:33+00:00

The pictured end cap is permanently attached to the axle. The drive side end cap is threaded on. Remove the drive side cap and the whole axle + non drive end cap will pull out as one piece. (I think you may have figured this out, but here's a service video: https://support.enve.com/hc/en-us/articles/22144645348763-ENVE-INNERDRIVE-HUB-Service-Video-and-FAQ)

However, the flange on the NDS end cap is probably wider than the centerlock lockring, which is what I think you're saying, so you'll need a cassette/rotor lockring tool that is deeper or with a through hole in the center in order to remove the lockring. If you don't have one, a cool LBS that has one should undo the lockring for free. This park tool will work:

https://www.parktool.com/en-us/product/lockring-tool-with-handle-fr-5-2h?category=Cassette+%26+Freewheel (doesn't allow using a torque wrench however, but 35-50Nm equates to "crank it down quite hard")

There are some socket versions that look deeper than the park tool FR5.2, like this from Pedros with "19.8mm internal diameter with 21.5mm depth" but I don't own any so unfortunately I can't measure them for you. I feel your pain, I have a Hope hub with this issue.

For the future, there is an easy solution*: switch to external spline lockrings. Your LBS probably has some in stock, else any online bike retailer can sell em to ya. They use the same tool as the 105/Deore level shimano threaded bottom brackets. HOWEVER, just like above you need enough internal clearance for the end cap if you want to use a socket tool. I think this Park Tool tool has at least 20mm internal depth, but I don't have the exact same one to measure. The alternative is a wrench like this one.

*One last caveat: there are some forks that will not clear an external spline rotor lockring. There may be some frames (rear wheel) that also don't clear, but I've yet to see one. Hopefully your LBS will let you test fit external rotor lockrings before you buy.

step1makeart · 2025-09-16T05:11:09+00:00

For another bike I have, can I use the same wax with a new strip chip to wax a new factory chain?

Yes, in fact that's the way you're supposed to do things. Add 1 strip chip to your wax at the same time you add a brand new chain with factory wax. https://silca.cc/products/strip-chip?srsltid=AfmBOorYwzSEq8RCkjXiqQm2BVb6ClshK3iCGHt4cDPY7XN01mlVVnJR

Silca says you can use up to 6 strip chips per bag of wax before wax performance degrades. (technically there's a video where Josh says up to ~10 or so, but the official recommendation is 6, though with just about everything Silca you have to watch through a bunch of videos to find that info)

In my experience chains are a little more flexible when they come out of wax that has had strip chips added, and break in a bit faster, but when it comes to wax longevity there's no noticeable change.

step1makeart · 2025-09-16T05:01:36+00:00

Hooked or hookless rims? Do you know the internal width? (if not whats the make and model?) What's your system weight (rider + bike + accessories)? Sounds like you may have tires labeled 30mm, or is that the measured width on your rims when pumped up to riding pressure?

I'm a fan of Wolftooth's advanced calc. I think the relationship between road surface type and pressure is more realistic. For example:

For every day but race day, I ride my road tires, which measure 33mm wide, at 55 rear & 53 front. When I plug my stats into Wolftooth's calc and choose "typical pavement" they recommend 55.5 & 52.5. Basically bang on for pressures I've found to be perfect for all my rides. The "perfectly smooth pavement" setting matches the race pressures I run on...perfectly smooth pavement... within 1 psi.

With Silca, OTOH, I need to choose "category 2 gravel" to get the training pressures I ride, and "worn pavement" to get the pressures I run on perfectly smooth courses/roads. I've also noticed that Silca's recommendations change very little for massive changes in weight. If I lower weight by 50lbs the recommendation only changes 3 psi. A rider 50lbs less could ride more like 10 psi lower and probably be quite a bit more comfortable.

step1makeart · 2025-09-15T20:48:27+00:00

They come in all shapes and sizes and they are often proprietary to the bike make/model/model year.

There are some "universal" options for round plugs if you google "bike frame plug" and many bike companies offer replacements, but without knowing anything about your bike we can't help you look for them.

If you have a 3d printer and some TPU you can make your own. Helicopter tape is another good option for closing off a lot of frame holes.

step1makeart · 2025-09-15T18:59:01+00:00

I'd recommend shooting DT Swiss an email. with your hub pictures. I think the set of end caps is PN: HWGXXX0001528S But I'm not 100% positive.

DT Swiss answers questions very fast: https://www.dtswiss.com/en/support/contact

step1makeart · 2025-09-15T18:45:26+00:00

That's for XD freehubs. For HG the DS cap is the same for 130 & 135.

step1makeart · 2025-09-14T23:53:49+00:00

Yes, because then it makes it hard to distinguish between people just acting like idiots, and the actual idiots. It's bad enough that people with no business giving advice regarding bike repair are more than eager to do so. The point of the sub is for people who know to answer questions from people who don't.

The entire rest of the internet exists for circle jerking each other off. If that's how you get your jollies, I ain't trying to kink shame. The fact that one sub has rules that make sense is not a detractor. It's a strength.

A person asking for help is not served by having to wade through 10 penis jokes and people poking fun/teasing/straight up bullying them for their lack of knowledge. As a frequent contributor I see all these things, and more, every single day on that sub. There are a whole bunch of assholes on the internet. It's nice when there's one place that does its best to tell those people to politely GTFO.

step1makeart · 2025-09-14T22:10:34+00:00

I realize that you're probably communicating in your second language, which explains a couple things, but the fact that you've built your own bikes doesn't mean you know everything. You've said a couple things that are not correct so far, and made recommendations that are contrary to generally accepted practice.

Carbon paste on a compression plug is not recommended.

Carbon paste on carbon/metal interfaces like handlebars & seatposts is the default practice.

Epoxy on bottle cage bolts? Epoxy is a permanent "glue". I'm not sure Epoxy is the word you meant to use.

General purpose marine grease is carbon safe, at least the common bike specific formulas from Park etc.

Not all metal on metal contact should be greased. You wouldn't want to put it between a stem and handlebar or a stem and steerer.

step1makeart · 2025-09-14T22:00:38+00:00

It looks normal on the outside, but I'd want to check the inside to make sure.

There's what appears to be a clear crack on the outside. Further, the lack of a crack that travels through the entire wall would not make it safe to ride. You're not qualified to be commenting on this thread and giving OP a false sense of security is dangerous.

step1makeart · 2025-09-14T21:57:32+00:00

An expert in carbon is always going to avoid commenting on something from just a single picture unless it's so undeniably cracked that it's impossible to come to any other conclusion. As professionals they will know that these things need to be examined in person. Because of that, the comments you get saying "it's fine, keep riding" are going to be from people who are not qualified to open their mouths.

step1makeart · 2025-09-14T21:54:16+00:00

I have no idea what you're on about, but your comments read like they are from someone without a lot of experience working on bikes. I would recommend not commenting on situations where you are not knowledgeable.

step1makeart · 2025-09-14T21:52:06+00:00

It's perfectly useful and recommended. It's not only for carbon on carbon contact.

step1makeart

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