Wisper 905se sport.......Brakes

[Thunder457]

I Love my bike, apart from the brakes. What Brakes! it's only six months old and have never seen rain(ish)

The brakes on a Wisper 905se sport 2009 are rubbish and thats fair!

Not one Iota would stop me in the wet!! Very angry!

To try and stop in the wet, applied brakes....Nothing. Front disc is a danger like a knife through butter. Back pads were better but still did not stop me in time. And yes am still in full of my faculties. Used up all of my soles on my trainers and still nothing.................crash!

Don't get me wrong the bike is brilliant but it almost cost me my life. The Brakes are rubbish and should be discontinued! (brakes)

No. I was not going fast, I was going downhill very carefully
(I have three kids to support) I really thought that was it.

Wisper, you really need to get a grip on your brakes. they are a danger! Well mine are.

Gosh I'm pleased to alive!

 

[eddieo]

last week had my my front wheel serviced and rear brakes as well (they fitted new pads) at LBS (De Ever cycles) when I collected bike they comented that the brakes were poor.......that they kinda worked, but were not right and were fitted with the wrong grips. presumably this is because they need to have cut outs for the motor.

I am heavy and find the bike stops safely enough but I am generally taking it easy and dont ride in the wet........Be careful out there!

 

[Mike63]

Strangely enough, I was very pleased with the brakes on my 08 Wisper eco.
...excellent stopping power, mind you I rarely go faster than 10/12 mph.

No disc brakes for me ever again...I've had 'em, get a bit of dirty water on the disc or pad or even a spot of oil and they are useless.

....Mike

 

[Thunder457]

I've calmed down now, but that was life threatening. I was scared when nothing worked! Be aware of the brakes when riding in the wet. I've rode other bikes and they work, there has to be something wrong Wisper?

 

[HarryB]

I think this has been said numerous times before but cable disc brakes are the worst sort of brakes and are easily bettered by rim brakes. Hydraulics are a different matter and can be very powerful.

My first (dreadful) ebike was the eco tornado (what was I thinking?) - it too had cable discs and I had a similar experience stopping in the wet and took it to a bike shop. They diagnosed the wrong levers so the leverage was all wrong and you could never get the required power. They were changed but the brakes could never be considered powerful. If you like the bike swap them to hydraulic - you won't be disappointed.

 

[barrycoll]

definitely change to hydraulic if possible...I have just bought a non powered Specialised with hydraulics, and the ability to lock the back wheel at any speed (dont plan to try the front!!), is wonderous...no friction in the levers takes some getting used to as well..
as for riding in the wet, it really is necessary to 'skim' the brake blocks on calipers nearly all the time...otherwise its like riding a bike with chrome plated rims, eg white knuckles and No effect....
even in a modern car after a long wet trip on the motor way and then having to brake firmly on an exit can be a bit spooky as water builds up on the discs...
good luck with this one, but maybe a good learning curve

 

[winterdog]

The brakes are the only part of the bike i don't like, im on the 2008 city with aprs (i keep thinking the brakes say arse) (apart from the seat but i hope to solve that tommorow) i keep thinking about hydraulic brakes it's the lack if motor cut out that would worry me).
one thing i should say is if you are going to buy a 905se city today Dont thet this put you off as the new bike come with Alloy calliper that look much better.
Actualy Dave how much for a retro fit for those bad boys?

 

[Bigbee]

I would imagine Dave and co are busy preparing for Cycle 2009 which opens on Thursday.Dont be suprised if he doesnt join in the forums again until next week.


£10 please Dave

 

[Straylight]

The brakes are the only part of the bike i don't like, im on the 2008 city with aprs (i keep thinking the brakes say arse) (apart from the seat but i hope to solve that tommorow) i keep thinking about hydraulic brakes it's the lack if motor cut out that would worry me).
one thing i should say is if you are going to buy a 905se city today Dont thet this put you off as the new bike come with Alloy calliper that look much better.
Actualy Dave how much for a retro fit for those bad boys?

I've got the same bike as you, and swapped the brakes for 'Avid Single Digit 5's they're fairly cheap, but make one hell of a difference. (I keep reading APSE as ARSE too )

 

[winterdog]

so it was caliper on yours? hmm mine came with V's i was hoping the caliper would be be better.
some thing like this
Shimano Ultegra Brake Caliper - Palo Verde Bicycle Phoenix Az Trek Gary Fisher Haro DK Bikes Palo Verde Bicycle Phoenix AZ - Road Bikes - Mountain Bikes - BMX - Accessories & More

 

[Thunder457]

I'm phoning round tomorrow morning to see if any bike dealers can help, I cant go through that again. I should have done it before, as I kinda knew they were not good. It was the first time in the pouring rain but there was nothing at all. I will look it your advice and recommendations though. Thanks

Please take care in the wet. Happy Cycling.

 

[Straylight]

so it was caliper on yours? hmm mine came with V's

Doh! Yes, I meant V-brakes rather than caliper Not sure if the frame would take calipers anyway.

 

[winterdog]

Not sure if the frame would take calipers anyway.

yea i was thinking the same but on the wisper site it says the new bike comes with calipers, hmmmm

 

[Alex728]

my 2009 905SE City made on 30/04/2009 has APSE levers and v-brakes. They seem good enough. I think David did mention some improvements being made to the v-brake models in 2008...

 

[Phil the drill]

We've visited this topic many times over, but it has become rather persistent. I've used my wisper 905 se in all weathers on steep hills and would have to agree that the brakes as originally fitted weren't great. I was lead to believe that this had been addressed in the more recent models, by replacing the standard levers (originals had a deformable plastic housing, which sapped braking effort). On my Wisper I changed the brakes completely - Avid SD's on the rear and BB05 disc on the front, plus I fitted high quality Jagwire cables and housing. This all improved the performance considerably. I was disappointed when i was sent a pair of the replacement metal frames brake levers, since although they were now rigid, they were also much too short. It was therefore impossible to apply quite enough presuure to the brakes without considerable exertion.
Fitting new levers can help a great deal, but you will have to fore go the electronic cut switches if you do that.....
One more thing to check is what type of brake pads you have. Fitting an appropriate brake pad can make a very considerable difference to braking performance especially in the wet - so incidentally can the type of disc fitted. You can improve disc braking power by fitting a larger diameter disc and mounting your caliper on an appropriate adapter to reposition it correctly (they are readily available).

Hope this helps, and you get it sorted

Phil

 

[uk_steve]

wisper

i would like to hear Wisper say something about this


i am getting a Wisper anyday i am very worried about this brake sitution after reading this post

its clear there is a problem after reading this post because everybody is nearly saying the same thing


if there is a product which is not up to its job and falls into safety criteria

surly this needs to be addressed b4 someone gets hurt or worse regardless of cost for a total recall

 

[GT3]

I know very little about modern bikes. The rim brakes on my Trek donor are phenomenal.

Are discs merely another fashion item that adds weight and complexity while giving nothing back?

UK-Steve, water affects all friction braking systems. If manufacturers and importers had to respond to all forum hysteria the shops would be bare!

 

[uk_steve]

I know very little about modern bikes. The rim brakes on my Trek donor are phenomenal.

Are discs merely another fashion item that adds weight and complexity while giving nothing back?

UK-Steve, water affects all friction braking systems. If manufacturers and importers had to respond to all forum hysteria the shops would be bare!

depends how badly it takes to stop in the rain

 

[Mussels]

i would like to hear Wisper say something about this


i am getting a Wisper anyday i am very worried about this brake sitution after reading this post

its clear there is a problem after reading this post because everybody is nearly saying the same thing


if there is a product which is not up to its job and falls into safety criteria

surly this needs to be addressed b4 someone gets hurt or worse regardless of cost for a total recall

I have an 08 905se sport with the APSE levers and I can stop fine in the wet (apart from when the disk is wet but that happens less than with rim brakes), the calipers are easy to set up wrong and may be the problem in some cases. I would like better brakes but they are now far better than when I first got the bike, a world of difference. The APSE brake levers are fashionably short and as a result don't have enough leverage, Wisper heard this complaint and have now changed the calipers (and levers?) so the latest shipment should be fine.
Hydraulic brakes are much better than cable brakes but I'm trying to avoid the expense and extra servicing involved, I'm hoping there is some spare kit arriving in the October shipment and they will do the trick.
Brake pads come in different compounds depending on use, the best grip will overheat quickly on a downhill stretch so a compromise is supplied and they can be changed to suit your use. Finding the right type of pads might not be easy though as many shops don't give enough detail.

 

[jasono]

Hi, I've been following this thread with interest and am pleased to hear you are okay Thunder

I'm new to disc brakes on bicycles but have plenty of experience of them on motorbikes. For the disc to fail completely, which is what it sounds like in this case, I wonder whether the disc or pads have been contaminated with something like oil, WD or the like? This could have been picked up from the road or have been on the disc for a while, waiting to be exasperated by the rain

Anyway, let's take care out there

Jason