Lighter than Ultegra? Here’s a little review of the Tektro R741
Before installing Tektro R741, I installed their R313. R741 was purchased at that time for ￥8,444.
Talk about Tektro R313 caliper brakes working great!
The R741 has cartridge type (P477) standard brake shoes. I think the brakes feel more rigid when I hold the lever, but I feel the brakes are slightly more effective. But I don’t think the braking power is that much different compared to the R313. They both work well enough if properly installed.
You can feel the difference, the pull of the lever (ST-2300) is a little lighter than R313. It is easier to pull the lever.
The installation instructions seem to be the same for both R313 and R741. The official page shows that only English is available. Unfortunately, Japanese is not available.
TECHNICAL SERVICE INSTRUCTION Dual Pivot Caliper Brake
However, if you check the installation instructions for the Shimano BR-R451 caliper brake, the installation procedure appears to be the same.
Shimano BR-R451 Instruction Manual
It’s a minor detail, but I’m not sure if the R741 needs a brake cap. The TEKTRO R340 (actually R540) that came with the Giant DEFY3 from the beginning had caps. So I put a brake cap on R741 as well.
Talking about replacing the P453 brake shoes on my TEKTRO R340 (actually R540) with Shimano R55C4.
It is unclear for what reason it is attached. If anyone knows, I’d appreciate it if you could let me know in the comments.
(BR-R451 doesn’t seem to require a brake cap.)
According to the official Japanese Tektro R741 page, the weight is 150g.
I actually measured the rear weight. It was about 155g.
This is lighter than the Shimano Ultegra BR-R8000 (182 (front) 178 (rear)).
Now, only silver can be found on the official page in Japan, but some color variations existed? Silver, black, white x black, white x red, black x red, white x blue
Six colors in total; as of April 9, 2022, no two-tone colors are found in circulation.
【AD】TEKTRO R741 Aluminum Road Bike Dual Pivot Caliper Brake Set, Black x Red