Shimano XT M775 Dual Control Disc Brake Levers

Price: £169.99 levers only (XT calipers £44.99 each plus £4.50 per adaptor, rotors from £12) From: Madison 0208 385 3385 www.ultimatepursuits.co.uk Tested: Two months 2008 marks the 25th Anniversary of Shimano’s now-legendary XT groupset, long regarded as THE benchmark for all other kit to live up to. The Dual Control levers initially look bulky, even agricultural, and at nearly 600g the pair they feel it too. Installation is a bit of a faff as they come unassembled and need to be bled and wired up. However, when attached to the bars the reservoir and cables are neatly hidden underneath so as not to interfere with lights or computers and it looks far more streamlined than the Dual Control of old. The lever is the classic Shimano shape, a nicely flat, hooked blade but with a slight kink in the middle to make it easier to operate the upwards flick shifting movement. There’s still the (removable) thumbshift lever if you don’t fancy the full ‘flippy paddle’ shifting style. At the front of the lever is a small knob to adjust the reach while behind it is a red dial which adjusts the free stroke – the amount the lever moves before the pads contact the rotor. The levers are the first hydraulic disc levers to feature Shimano’s Servo Wave system which was originally developed for use with rim brakes. Servo Wave gives a quicker initial engagement, meaning that the pads sit further from the rotor for drag-free running but only a little lever movement is needed to bring the pads into contact with the rotor. After that point, a cam linkage multiplies the leverage ratio so more of the lever stroke is used to apply greater braking power with improved control and modulation. In use, paired with XT calipers, the brakes gave excellent feel and control through the lever and had enough confidence-inspiring power to bring you to a halt with one finger from almost any speed. Coming from a normal linear pull brake lever, the Servo-Wave device took a bit of getting used to but within a couple of rides testers were drifting the wheels through the autumnal leaf mulch as normal. These were run with 180mm front/160mm rear rotors; the amount of power available means the 203mm is really only needed for fullon DH use. The danger of accidental gear shifting during braking has been minimised by the introduction of a ‘shifting gate’, a sort of notch that means the lever feels much firmer in use with none of the vagueness of older Dual Control. Having said that, shifting is instant and crisp both up and down the gears with a positive ‘click-click’ as the lever moves. It’s possible to change more than one gear at once in either direction and the levers work with either Low- or High-Normal rear mechs. Overall: Very powerful brake with exceptional levels of feel coupled with the usual faultless Shimano XT shifting performance. The only let down is the ‘unready-to-ride’ set-up. James Lyon

Petzl MYO XP

Price: £55 From: Lyon Equipment www.lyon.co.uk Tested: Two months Not a riding light, but why shouldn’t your camping, walking and exploring lights not make the most of advances in LED technology too? Running off three AA batteries, the Petzl MYO XP uses one bright LED to give a bright, white light with a diffuser to effectively give you spot and a floodlight options. Though you could just get away with mounting the XP on a helmet, its real strength is off the bike. Used for camping and kept at the bottom of the ‘big day out bag’ it’s proved very useful. There are three brightnesses, plus flashing mode and a ‘Boost’ function with its own button. The head swivels so that you don’t have to keep angling it up and down your head while using it and there’s a flip-down diffuser to give you ‘flood’ or ‘spot’ options. With the diffuser out of the way, the beam is very penetrating and great for spotting missing trails in the woods while the flood option gives good enough light for cooking or walking. With the big battery pack, you get stunning run times of 70, 90 and 170 hours in each of the modes. That’s a lot of tent-bound book reading. There is a Tikka version for around £35 too if you want something smaller and neater, at the expense of run-time. It has a sliding diffuser instead. The flip down diffuser does have one drawback in that the light catches the tip when in the down position rather like having a bright star right above your head... Hardly a massive failure. Overall: Everybody, without exception, needs an LED headtorch. The Petzl MYO XP is one of the best. Chipps

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