MTB News: We visited Magura in Bad Urach. On the tranquil Swabian Jura, we were able to test the prototype brake lever, which was specially made for the two-time downhill world champion Loic Bruni.
Disc brakes have been an integral part of modern mountain biking for many years now, there is no doubt about that. From occasional cyclists to multiple world champions, all off-road riders now rely on the strong stoppers, which are almost unaffected by the weather and other external influences. Magura has been an innovator since the early hours of this development. The thought of the venerable Gustav M, Louise or Clara should make the hearts of many a MTB fan beat faster.
In the recent past, Magura was once again at the forefront of development with the MT series after a temporary dry spell in previous years. From the ultra-light MT8 to the brutal MT7 downhill anchor, from the entry-level MT2 brake to the noble special editions with carbon levers – there is more than enough choice of models.
If you think about different disc brakes for a mountain bike, the first thing you inevitably think of is the power you need: Of course, the brakes are used differently during a marathon than during a downhill or enduro race. However, experienced bikers know that power isn't everything. Dosability and weight are also on the specification for many drivers. All these factors can be determined quite well based on the route profile, driving ability and system weight. A much more complex point concerns the ergonomics of the brake. Even if this is neglected in many cases, it still has a significant influence on the hand and grip position on the handlebars, on comfort, braking feel and endurance. But: Every driver has different hands, their own seating position and their own preferences. From the manufacturer's point of view, a difficult undertaking. Magura meets this challenge with its #customizeyourbrake approach.
Magura has been thinking about the ergonomics of the in-house brakes and levers for some time: In 2016, an optional 1-finger lever was launched, followed a few months later by the HC3 lever, an individually adjustable variant that was developed together with Magura- Athlete Danny MacAskill was developed. Since the beginning of this year, they have also been working with the Specialized Factory teams in the areas of downhill and XC: One of the athletes is downhill world champion Loic Bruni, who recently defended his rainbow jersey in Lenzerheide.
What doesn't fit is made to fit: a lever for the world champion
Even before the first race of the season in spring, Loic completed a number of test laps with his new material - including the Magura brakes. The feedback to the developers: Great brakes, but the lever ergonomics were not quite to his liking. The background: Although the 24-year-old's hands are of average size, he prefers an extreme leverage position. The pressure point should be as far away from the handlebars as possible, and Loic also wanted a digital brake feel. Both preferences actually not what Magura brakes are known for. So the development department was asked!
In the following conversations with the Magura developers, an idea emerged of what Loic's perfect lever could look like: At dinner, he gave shape to his idea by making a sketch of his dream lever on a napkin. This sketch ended up on the desk of Magura development engineer Reiner Künstle. The goal: Loic should get “his” lever. The problem: time was of the essence, the first races of the season were imminent. In order to get closer to the final form based on the sketch, Künstle came up with the idea of the so-called "Loic-O-mat": A brake lever with a metal carrier unit onto which individual forms from the 3D printer are screwed, which can be quickly and easily shaped can be produced cheaply and are not essential for stability.
Once Loic's final desired shape had been found, it was produced using titanium 3D printing: time-consuming and expensive, but the levers could be made available to the world champion very quickly and you could also be sure of the stability. This lever was in use the whole season - of course also in the victorious World Championship run. Since then, however, the Loic-O-mat has not been gathering dust in some dark desk drawer in the development department, but has been used diligently: by the other Specialized team riders, by the Magura employees and a few other test riders. In the meantime, there are over a dozen different 3D-printed attachments and in this way they are trying to learn more about the individual needs of the drivers.
Even in your hand: The brake lever of the world champion in the test
So much fuss about a brake lever? Is it worth it? Is it only the pros who spend several hours on their bikes feeling this, or does such an adjustment also make sense for the average biker? This was a question to get to the bottom of. Right on Magura's doorstep in Bad Urach, we had the opportunity to experience the different brake levers and the differences for ourselves. Former XC Bundesliga driver Dominik Voss, who is now responsible for marketing at Magura, was on hand with advice and action and guided us through the Magura employees' house trail, which made the brake discs glow and glow at one time or another caused the pads to smoke.
I have to admit that in the past I felt a bit like Loic - the ergonomics of the Magura brakes were not really my cup of tea. I have long fingers and like to keep the pressure point as far away from the handlebars as possible. The first two rides with the well-known HC3 lever took some getting used to: The MT1893 (identical to the MT7) brought more than enough power and modulation, but the lever just wasn't really my cup of tea. But I could be helped - Dominik quickly switched to the "world champion lever" made of noble titanium. By the way: Changing the lever can be done in a few minutes without any special tools, even for less experienced screwdrivers. Alternatively, this can also be done in a Magura Pro Shop.
After just a few minutes on the trail, I got on very well with the lever. Compared to the HC3, I had less arm pump, a more natural arm and hand position and was much faster overall. Really amazing what a little leverage can do. However, I had one criticism of Loic's choice of levers: the ends of the levers are extremely flat and time and again I was on the verge of slipping my finger sideways off the lever. After the feedback to Dominik, I only got a knowing grin as an answer - I wasn't the first to make this comment and so we immediately switched to the infamous Loic-O-mat. For the attachment, I decided on a variant that is very close to Loic's lever, just with a pronounced "tip" (= end of the lever). And what should I say? My ergonomic problems were forgotten and my fingers felt at home. However, that makes me one of the exotics - Magura emphasizes that most test drivers still prefer the classic HC or HC3 lever.
So what's next for Customizeyourbrake? First of all, of course, you want to work with the other Specialized team riders on their individual requirements. But people are already thinking about how the concept could be implemented for the general public. Maybe in the form of another lever based on Loic's lever? Plans for the series production of the Loic-O-mat are at least not yet completely buried - so we are curious to see what else they have up their sleeves in Bad Urach.
Magura #customizeyourbrake: These parts already exist today
After so much pie in the sky, let's take a look at the present: What options do owners or buyers of a Magura MT disc brake have to adapt it to their own needs? At this point, many are probably thinking of purely visual tuning: For example, there have been colored rings for quite some time with which the piston cover on the brake caliper can be adapted to the wheel design. They also work together with other manufacturers here: colored rings in Fox Factory Orange are new, for example. The clamps are also available in different colors.
When it comes to ergonomics, you currently have a choice of four levers: In addition to the original 2-finger lever made of aluminum, three 1-finger levers are now also available. This includes the individually adjustable HC3 lever and the super light HC1 carbon lever. Those who prefer things simple will be happy with the aluminum HC1 lever. Owners of the MT7, MT8 and MT Trail SL have the full choice and can retrofit any lever. An aluminum HC5 lever is also available for MT4/MT1 and MT Trail Sport riders.
The brake pads offer further tuning potential. Here you can choose between performance, race and comfort, although for sporty drivers only race and performance come into question. While the performance pads are sporty all-rounders with largely constant braking power, which always deliver consistently regardless of the temperature, the race pads have a little more bite in the low temperature range. However, they lose some power during long braking. This is primarily aimed at XC racers who want a lot of power for short and crisp braking manoeuvres, but where continuous braking and long descents are the exception. The Comfort rubbers have less bite than their two counterparts, but are significantly quieter, especially when it is wet.