Go braided if you’re willing to spend the extra money and like the looks you just get a little more durability no meaningful difference I’d go normal hose
friz_beez on
braided look cooler but I’ve never noticed the performance improvement some claim. if looks are important to you go braided, otherwise standard works fine and is cheaper.
Ok-Consequence2859 on
Braided hose will give the brake a much firmer feel assuming both are bled equally. in performance for most users its not needed by any means, but having had 5 sets of hope brakes i prefer braided over non-braided. For most who like solid levelr feel like it hitting a wall braided, but this means you better know your level control as well. if want a softer or traditional level feel standard hoses. Honestly for XC trail and Enduro only reason to do braided is for looks and lever feel. performance gain will be unnoticeable for 90% of people. myself included.
OG-MTB on
Head’s up, if you go braided, make sure your hose length/routing keeps the hose away from the frame, especially if you have a carbon frame.
The braided cable can act like a rat tail file over time…
Popular-Carrot34 on
The experience of the many hope brakes I’ve had or fitted for customers over the years.
I always encourage customers to opt for the braided hoses if they can live with the looks. There’s a minor cost difference, like £5/10 per brake if I recall. But the lever feel is a huge step up with the braided hose.
It’s very rare to see a worn through brake hose, it does happen, particularly with internal routing. But it’s still uncommon. And the increased toughness of the brake hose if it gets caught on something will likely lead to something else breaking or the hose getting pulled out of the lever/caliper fitting.
So I’m not suggesting from an enhanced toughness point of view, purely the stiffer hose translates into a better feeling brake.
winterproject on
I have run Hopes for nearly 30 years and I’ve had both along the way in various guises.
I can honestly say there was very little discernible difference between the two, even after long days on a bike park.
Braided are definitely more bling but standard hoses are a tad easier to install, plus they’re cheaper so save the money or buy bigger rotors.
Currently running Tech 4 E4 standard hoses.
caltanian on
I have hope brakes on all my bikes at this point.
I like to run braided on the front, regular on the rear. More likely to have an impact/abrasion on the front end, and it does add to lever feel.
Really however, I’d be fine without it. V4 with vented rotor front, e4 rear is a freight train stopper.
enterisys on
Cheaper.
joeblow133 on
I like the look of braided better but a standard hose does the trick.
chock-a-block on
There’s no mechanical difference.
One looks really cool, though.
rotaryjesus on
I bought a braided set on sale and witched to non-braided. Braided honestly sucks.
Pros: Looks cool
Cons:
-Larger diameter, doesn’t always fit cable sleeves/clamps well
-Much bigger pain to cut cleanly and fit into the cable ends, getting them to not leak was also a pain. Basically, a much bigger pain in the ass to work with. If you get them, the cleanest method I found to cut them down was to tape them, then cut mid tape line, use a dremel with a large diameter cutting disk at high speed.
-Weighs more
-Can be more expensive
11 Comments
Go braided if you’re willing to spend the extra money and like the looks you just get a little more durability no meaningful difference I’d go normal hose
braided look cooler but I’ve never noticed the performance improvement some claim. if looks are important to you go braided, otherwise standard works fine and is cheaper.
Braided hose will give the brake a much firmer feel assuming both are bled equally. in performance for most users its not needed by any means, but having had 5 sets of hope brakes i prefer braided over non-braided. For most who like solid levelr feel like it hitting a wall braided, but this means you better know your level control as well. if want a softer or traditional level feel standard hoses. Honestly for XC trail and Enduro only reason to do braided is for looks and lever feel. performance gain will be unnoticeable for 90% of people. myself included.
Head’s up, if you go braided, make sure your hose length/routing keeps the hose away from the frame, especially if you have a carbon frame.
The braided cable can act like a rat tail file over time…
The experience of the many hope brakes I’ve had or fitted for customers over the years.
I always encourage customers to opt for the braided hoses if they can live with the looks. There’s a minor cost difference, like £5/10 per brake if I recall. But the lever feel is a huge step up with the braided hose.
It’s very rare to see a worn through brake hose, it does happen, particularly with internal routing. But it’s still uncommon. And the increased toughness of the brake hose if it gets caught on something will likely lead to something else breaking or the hose getting pulled out of the lever/caliper fitting.
So I’m not suggesting from an enhanced toughness point of view, purely the stiffer hose translates into a better feeling brake.
I have run Hopes for nearly 30 years and I’ve had both along the way in various guises.
I can honestly say there was very little discernible difference between the two, even after long days on a bike park.
Braided are definitely more bling but standard hoses are a tad easier to install, plus they’re cheaper so save the money or buy bigger rotors.
Currently running Tech 4 E4 standard hoses.
I have hope brakes on all my bikes at this point.
I like to run braided on the front, regular on the rear. More likely to have an impact/abrasion on the front end, and it does add to lever feel.
Really however, I’d be fine without it. V4 with vented rotor front, e4 rear is a freight train stopper.
Cheaper.
I like the look of braided better but a standard hose does the trick.
There’s no mechanical difference.
One looks really cool, though.
I bought a braided set on sale and witched to non-braided. Braided honestly sucks.
Pros: Looks cool
Cons:
-Larger diameter, doesn’t always fit cable sleeves/clamps well
-Much bigger pain to cut cleanly and fit into the cable ends, getting them to not leak was also a pain. Basically, a much bigger pain in the ass to work with. If you get them, the cleanest method I found to cut them down was to tape them, then cut mid tape line, use a dremel with a large diameter cutting disk at high speed.
-Weighs more
-Can be more expensive