So far, we’ve seen plenty of SRAM’s Red hydraulic disc brakes in the wild, but almost forgot that a rim brake version was in the works, too.
This pic comes from CyclingTip’s Instagram stream, with a hat tip to Simon for the heads up. No details, just this collage, but if you recall from their original quasi-announcement and subsequent leak, the calipers should be good for the wider Zipp Firecrest rims (24.62mm at the brake track for the new 202) and 28C tires. Of course, the “summer 2012” availability has blown past, so we’re guessing late spring or early summer 2013.
Looks wise, it seems like a pretty straightforward design. The hoods and levers look the same as those we’ve seen on the disc brake equipped bikes, with the fluid pushing a small piston to close the calipers. It’s a far more traditional design than Magura’s RT6TT brakes, with nice rounded sections and a fairly narrow profile compared to the lever arms and cable clamps required for mechanical brakes. They’re a little dark, but appear to be a single pivot design with an adjuster barrel with inline quick release lever that looks very similar to the current mechanical Red brakes. If our assumption is correct, we’re thinking the additional power of a hydraulic system negates the need for a dual pivot caliper, which could save some weight.
