Shimano MT200 & MT400 Upgrade Hack For Polygon, Vitus, Marin, and MORE

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[austindahmer]

It definitely works! Jared hooked me up with some deore levers to replacethe mt200 brakes on my occam. It was a night and day difference in the quality of braking power. Best part is it was only $60!!!

[armandojuan]

My MT200s work like a charm, they are paired with 180 mm discs . For my riding style and level, they are superb .

[MikeinCC]

I've always wondered this, and now I have confirmation! As far as the brakes go, the calipers are "dumb" and the lever/reservoirs are "smart". The calipers aren't magically connected to the levers, and as long as the system is properly bled, it has to work! Kudos for making this.

[williamkolotygin]

I swapped two mt400 levers for an M6100 on the left and an SLX lever on the right. The amazon bleed kit definitely worked. Thanks for the video.

[iasha]

To all the people which feel that their entry level brakes are not powerful enough THIS might help you a lot >>>

I actually have similar brakes (tektro entry level) and they also have the same 2-3 finger lever and I also thaught they were trash. As the lever is made longer so more fingers can fit, it extends pretty far out to the sides and away from the handlebar too, so the amount of leverage you get when you place 2, 3 fingers is minimal.

In a two-three finger configuration your strongest finger (index) is in the worst leverage position it can be, which is the closest to the caliper (test it and you'll notice).

If you take the brake and you slide it closer to the stem and you tune the lever to be closer to the handlebar in its resting position (hidden screw under the lever) in such a way that you can reach the outer-most part of the lever with your index finger, you end up with a brake which works pretty darn well with one finger braking.
Remember than the closer to shut is your hand when you grab something, the greater the force you have. Not to the extent the lever is touching the handlebars when pressed, but close enough so you get maximum power. [Yes, you can adjust the reach of your brakes, is a simple screw not as fancy as the top of the line brakes and not as promoted but is there].


I'll go further and say that the biggest game changer in brakes is not actually the levers as to say the whole lever + oil reservoir, it is simply the lever itself; that chunk of metal you pull. Just look at the shape of the better brakes by shimano/sram, they are made so you can exort maximum pressure with the index finger.

[serolog]

I sorta wish you went into more detail as to what "crappy brakes" actually mean from a rider's perspective. Then there is also the cost considerations: For most budget setups, for which MT200 is designed, going over that price point simply doesn't make sense. It's like putting a fur coat on a ho ker

[realm]

Thank you so much, upgraded my MT410's on a Kona Honzo w/ the Deore levers for $30 each, great upgrade!

[michaeld]

Great Video! Just finished doing this hack with 6100 Levers and it was super smooth (First time!)

[bisikleta]

This works. I have used both m6100 levers and now XT while still using the cheap mt200 caliper. Lucky me topping off works without bleed.

[snbsmtb]

Sick video Jared. That is a great hack for making your breaks feel expedential better

[glitchman]

Definitely going to do this asap. Thanks for sharing. Enjoy the ride

[keosoutdooradventures]

Also nice to be able to use I-spec integration, nicely done!

[RCExpedice]

I also replaced only the levers with BL-MT501 and I can brake with two fingers. With the original levers I had to take 4 fingers on the handlebars to brake at all.

[salmanshami]

Nice video but the MT200 and MT400 brakes don't suck at all. They are pretty good brakes for the money. I can't imagine a situation unless you are going on steep downhill terrain where these brakes wouldn't work.

[imnotajedi]

I did something similar swapped levers between bikes. However the boot covers were different size.

[underbikedoverconfident]

I always wondered if this worked but didn't want to spend the money to find out. Thanks!

[dadlife]

Those Deore XT lever blades break off real easy, but there's replacements for them. Just youtube it, I know a guy who made a video about aftermarket Deore XT blade replacements

[eugene]

The whole Deore brakes set these days is only like 25 to 70 dollars more than the mt 200s or 400s so just spend a bit more and get deores. Even budget oriented kev central says that

[Joey.Oranje]

My mt201 are braking badly. Replace the pads and cleaned the rotors but still sucks. Considering buying some deore levers now. Hope this helps.

[christinemorgan]

Upgrade hacks for the win!! Thank you so much :)