Hammering down steep trails on the edge of control is great fun and the reason many of us choose to ride downhill specific bikes. You might loose the ability to get around on the bike itself, but in the environment it was intended for, an 8″ travel bike with gravity orientated geometry is the most fun you can have with your clothes on. But of course, this kind of riding has both it’s penalties and associated risks that come with high speed, challenging terrain and of course big jumps – one thing every good gravity bike needs is a capable set of brakes. For 2012 we needed some new stoppers for our Nukeproof long termer and the new Avid Code’s came highly recommended and after a 8 months and a trip to the Alps, here’s what we thought…

Words: Olly Forster | Photos: Eyesdown Films, Nathan Carvell & Olly Forster

The first thing you notice with the Codes is just how meaty they are, but not in an over the top industrial way, more like a state-of-the-art component designed for the rigors of some gnarly off world environment; a bit like the side of steep ass mountain? Although proportionately larger than it’s smaller Elixir cousin, the Code still comes in at a claimed weight of 410 grams with a 160mm rotor – considerably lighter than their nearest rival, the Shimano Saint. Popping a lever, hose and caliper on the scales, sans mount, rotor and bolts, the system weighs in at 280 grams, which isn’t bad at all.

Lever Detail.

The lever is an attractive unit and will certainly compliment any DH bike build very well, both in terms of its aesthetics, but also it’s burly appearance. Like all Avid brakes, the Code’s are ambidextrous with graphics on both sides and feature a symmetrical design that allows them to be used either right or left – handy if your swapping bikes from one part of the world to the other… The levers also feature the old mounting system (new Elixirs have the new MMX system) consisting of two bolts that hold the clamp to the main lever body together.

Packed with features, the Code’s, like all top end Avid brakes, have two main adjustability options at your finger tips. The first is Contact Point Adjustment (photo below), which is controlled by rotating the collar at the end of the lever. This rotating, threaded collar also contains a rotating banjo, so your hose doesn’t twist while being turned and it is also where the bleed nipple is located. This is allows the point where the pads engage the rotor to be dialed in and a great asset for helping get both brakes to feel the same.

The second adjustability option is the reach and just like it says on the tin, allows you to adjust where the lever blades are in relation to you. The lever blades themselves have been designed to brake away in the event of a crash without breaking the main body of the lever, which is a great as a lever blade is an awful lot cheaper.  After a big crash earlier in the year, one of the Code levers received a considerable knock and bent by about 1.5mm – I simply adjusted the lever position on the bar to compensate, but it goes to show that these are tough levers and won’t go snapping at the first sign of dirt and rock, so don’t be fretting!

The Code’s are aesthetically purposeful from one end to the other. Here you can see the mechanics behind the lever reach adjustment and the considerable size of the lever pivot – this is held in place by a large bolt and sits on three sealed bearings that maintain a smooth and friction free action while also helping to keep things from wobbling over prolonged use.

“TaperBore Technology” is Avid’s answer to a sleeker and more efficient closure system within the lever, helping with both power and overall control. Watch the video below for more on TaperBore…

Caliper Detail.

The caliper’s are a dual diameter (all pistons are the same size), 2 piece forged unit and like the levers, exude a certain visual flair that’s hard to fault. Like it or loath it (as quite a few of you seem to), the Code’s feature the “Tri-Align” spherical washer mounting design. I’m not a massive fan, but they don’t annoy me as much as some. Once set up, they are there, it’s just having the patience to get there in the first place…

The direction that the hose exits the caliper is adjustable by slightly undoing the top caliper bolt  – you will want to this if your intending on bleeding the system as air can enter the system, but I’ll talk about this a bit later – moving the hose to where you want it and then tightening the bolt back up to its correct torque setting. This ability to alter where your hose is with relation to the frame your attaching it to is amazing – how many times can you look at a hose going up in the air (with a massive loop) to them come back down at an awkward angle to meet the frames first hose tab? This removes that from the equation and keeps things nice and neat. The pads are also front loaded, so taking them out for a look before hitting the lift that morning only takes a few seconds and an allen key.

Supplied with the Code’s were Avid’s latest rotor design, the HS1. Like everything else here, these are good looking discs and are designed to help reduce heat build up and the issues that arise from wet weather riding. I think for most of us, the biggest issue we’ve ever had from our rotors has been noise. While these were pretty quiet in the dry, they did squeal a little in the wet, but no more than most brakes.

On the Trail.

The ability to brush speed off is as important as being able to pick it up, so with dialed suspension and quality tyres, you need something of equal quality to help control that speed where it matters. This is pretty much the reason for looking at brakes like the Codes over a regular 2 pot design. It should also go without saying that these are designed to withstand the kind of abuse gravity riding ensues and the lever was certainly designed to put up a fight should things go Southbound and down.

Some of you have probably noticed Sram factory bikes with Code calipers and Elixir levers. This is a weight saving issue and not a performance one as the Elixir lever, designed for XC and Trail, is a lot lighter and also pretty fragile when compared to the Code. While at a World Cup this year (2012) I quizzed Paul from the Giant Factory Off-Road team, why Danny and Needles were the only Sram boys on full Code systems – quite interestingly the answer I got was that they were seeing a more consistent feel on rougher, faster tracks. Makes sense too as the Code lever has a larger reservoir to supply the extra oil needed to push both the correct amount of oil and also, those 4 pots of power.

The Giant Factory Off-Road team aren’t the only one who love their Avid Code’s… The talented Coastal Crew have access to any brake system from the range and in doing so, all choose to run Code’s on their Specialized Demos – check the rad video below!

Lever geometry is one of the key things that keeps me consistently happy on Avid – they just feel spot on! Not only do the blades of the levers feel nice in the hook of my braking finger, but the feel of the lever through it’s stroke is almost organic in the way it delivers power through the caliper allowing for really good power modulation. Some brands do deliver a more precise feel than Avids, yet they also have a very synthetic feel, which can be very on and off and can cause issues with modulation and biting point.

Setting up Avid brakes can quite often be where any negativity for the product arises, especially at the bleed stage. Bleeding brakes is one of those jobs we’d all like to avoid and give the task to our friendly local mechanic to deal with, but if you spend the time and the money on the right tools, it isn’t actually that bad and the results are easy to achieve. Having used both the cheaper Avid bleed kit and the more expensive ‘pro’ version, I’d recommend going for the latter any day and it doesn’t cost much more than what your LBS will charge you anyway. I’d recommend bleeding Avid brakes from new anyway as I’ve found the factory bleed to be less than perfect – you can also use this as an opportunity to cut your hoses to a length more befitting your bike too.

Some of you might be thinking that having to buy a specialist tool to do a job that you can do with basic workshop odds and sods when bleeding other brands, is a bit of a joke and to an extent maybe it is, but the beauty of the Avid system is that you can isolate the caliper from the lever and vice versa. Why is this so good I hear you say? Well, all hydraulic brake systems on performance bicycles need to be bled regularly to maintain optimum performance – hopefully this isn’t news to you? With Avid brakes, you can quite often find that any air that has gotten into the system is usually located in the lever and due to the design of the brakes and the way they are bled, you can easily and very quickly remove the air from the lever with little to no mess and get back on the trail in no time. The main thing that isn’t good about bleeding Avid brakes is degassing the oil… It can take a while, but it helps to buy fresh oil and keep the lid on. As good as Dot 5.1 is for repelling heat build up, it also soaks up air when exposed!

The ability to run Avid’s Matchmaker system gives you the option for running a clean looking cockpit while saving a few grams in the process.

With a few rides behind me in the UK, it was time to hit the continent and the French/ Swiss Alps for some high altitude braking bump strewn, high speed action. We had a mixed bag weather wise, but on the whole it was pretty good resulting in a lot of riding and a great opportunity to put the Code’s through some real world testing and under the control of a real world tester; me. Acclimatising to the kind of terrain in the Alps usually takes me about 2 days, so I’m on the brakes quite a bit while I get used to the increase in speed and the… braking bumps.

So, for two days of brake dragging and generally getting into the swing of things, I was also putting my brakes through the worst of what they could expect and on the whole, loved them. Heat build up seemed to be neither here nor there, although there was a rogue air bubble in the rear that would make the lever feel odd for a split second, but didn’t have any adverse effect on performance. The only thing that didn’t stoke me was how little the stock organic pads could take, but then they aren’t really designed for it. Heading to the mountains? Invest in some sintered pads and keep the organics for racing.

Conclusion.

All in all, the Code brakes have performed as I expected. Having spent most of last year on some troublesome boutique brakes, it was refreshing to go back to Avid. I’ve learned to know where their weaknesses lie and I certainly know how to look after them and extract all of what they are and can be in the right hands. I’ve heard the Shimano vs Avid argument a million times and the truth be told, per price point, they are both equally awesome, but they also have certain traits that should help define who ultimately uses them.

For me personally, I like brakes to feel very natural and organic through their stroke and struggle with brakes which are very on and off, where the level of modulation is harder to crack. But, like I said, it’s what you like. The Avid Code’s feel like most of their range, homely, instinctive and ergonomically sound. The power modulation was spot on, probably thanks to the TaperBore and the ability to quickly hit the brakes at speed was reassuringly efficient.

Bleeding and maintenance is an issue if your not prepared to invest in a bleed kit, but then there’s also an argument for not supplying one if you need one? Either way, I’d recommend making that purchase and the more you do it, the more you’ll learn how to do it faster and more efficiently, plus you’ll have brakes that feel great all the time. On the other side of the coin toss, most components don’t come with the tools needed to fit and maintain them and with most LBS’s charging £30 an hour for labour, buying the bleed kit makes for a sound investment.

Having so much power at your finger tips can go against you sometimes so assessing if you need more than what a standard brake gives out, could make all the difference. The Code’s are designed for riding at high speeds and down steep trails – if this is what your doing, look no further, but if your cruising through and down forest singletrack, I’d look elsewhere.

With an RRP of £200 per end, they’re not cheap, but when you actually do the maths, add up to a really good value for money product in the grand scheme of things. Avid brakes come with the required mounting kits and rotors, where Shimano and Hope come as just a caliper, hose and lever, which can make getting all the bits you need, both frustrating and expensive. Power wise, these will eat the pre ’13 Hope M4’s for breakfast and weigh less than their XC brakes do to boot. Next to Saint, I’d say their pretty much on a par and so is the weight with the new new ’13 model. While were comparing brakes, I’ll also point out that Avid make brakes you don’t have to throw away when seals and pistons go unlike another brands, so the ability to get a prolonged life out of your brakes is very easy.

All in all, I’m a fan and although the test bike these were bolted to is long gone, the brakes will most likely emigrate to our next long termer until something else pops up that can dethrone them. Learn to look after them and they’ll look after you, the Avid Code’s are slick looking brakes that do exactly what they say on the tin and come highly recommended!

Avid and Sram are exclusively distributed in the UK by Fisher Outdoor Leisure and for all things Avid, Sram, Truvativ and Rock Shox, hit the logo below and get acquainted. Happy Trails!

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