Magura MT Trail Sport Disc Brake Set: Rider Review

Our "Rider Review" article series features honest reviews from verified purchasers of Worldwide Cyclery. They contain the photos, thoughts, feedback & overall review you are looking for. 

Do you need more braking power? Or do you need more immediate bite than your current brakes offer? The Magura MT Trail Sport Disc Brake Set could be the ticket you are looking for. With easy installation and smooth yet strong delivery of braking power, the Magura MT Trail brakes are a top choice for Worldwide Cyclery and our customers. Check out our customer review from Jim about his Magura MT Trail Disc Brake Set.

Jim's Review:

Is 14 years too long to keep the same mountain bike brakes? Yes, it is way too long. After a decade and a half, I finally decided to replace the original Avid Juicy 7 brakes on my 2005 Cannondale Prophet. The Avids had always been efficient if finicky stoppers, but after a few years in storage they had become unreliable. The front brake finally locked up for good (thankfully not on a ride), so I had an excuse to pull the trigger on something simpler, cleaner, and stronger.

“Easy” is the word that comes to mind with these Magura MT Trail Sport brakes. Easy to spec, easy to install, and easy to use. And the folks at Worldwide Cyclery made the few rough spots with these brakes, well, easy.

The Magura MT Trail Sport brakes come in a complementary set, with the four-pot MT5 up front and two-pot MT4 in the back. Pick your rotors and adaptors and you’re done shopping. I went with the Storm SL.2 rotors to save a little weight, but the beefier Storm HC rotors work, too. I spec’d both rotors at 180mm. Worldwide Cyclery was the only place that had the appropriate adapters for my ancient Prophet frame and Lefty fork, so they got my business.

Installation:

The install was straightforward. Magura’s English-dubbed video explainer makes it sound easy to trim the lines—and it was. I used a fresh utility knife to slice the brake lines. The rear line went off without a hitch; the lever felt firm after everything was tightened up. The front brake would have been a cinch, too, except I leaned on the brake lever while the system was open—the lever went to the bar when I tested it. One bleed kit order later (I tried to cheap-out and avoid buying a bleed kit upfront; don’t do that) I did a quick bleed and things firmed up immediately. The bleed process is so much easier than I’m used to.  The Maguras were almost good to go after just a couple tugs on the syringe at the brake lever.

I say “almost” because the rear rotor would just not true-up for me. After many hours struggling to adjust the caliper, I realized that the rotor had a nasty wobble. An email to Worldwide Cyclery led to a new rotor landing in my mailbox a few days later. They even let me keep the wobbly rotor, so I’ll have a spare if I can true it up.

Out of the garage, the brakes had a nice linear feel. There is a slight difference in feel between the two brakes, with the front always feeling like it has the power to spare even when the rear is locked up. But the physics of forward momentum is always going to make the front and rear brakes feel a little bit different, even if the calipers were identical. After the break-in period, the power really came on strong, but modulation endured. You can scrub a few MPH coming into a turn, ride the brakes down an extended descent, or (it seems) endo onto your face depending on how much brake you grab. The levers are reach-adjustable and provide plenty of feedback so you can dial in the perfect amount of braking.

Final Thoughts:

With only about 30 miles on the Magura MT Trail Sport Brakes, maintenance hasn’t come up yet. I popped the pads off during the install and the magnetic retention system made it easy to slot them back into place. The quick bleed I did was painless, and the full bleed seems almost as straight forward.

I’m looking forward to many miles on these Magura brakes—and to return to Worldwide Cyclery for the next of many upgrades to my trusty old C’dale.