Disc brake compatability

simbil1

I'm new to disc brakes and want to get a set of 29ers as an alternative to the 26" wheels (the 29ers will fit so long as the tyre is not too big).

My bike runs avid juicey's and has 180 front and 160 rear rotor on mavic wheels.

I've seen a few wheels on ebay, but they are often with shimano hubs with centre lock discs.

So, can I use centre lock and put disc rotors on them and run them with my setup? I presume I need to match my existing rotor sizes - or can I run a 160 up front instead of a 180?

supersonic

Generally yes, but the non avid rotors can sometimes not clear fully, or with some combos deeper pads will catch the rotor arms rather than the braking surface.

What budget do you have? I am sure I can find you a 6 bolt set up ;-)

You can use spline to 6 bolt adaptors also.

simbil1

Thanks Supersonic.

Looking at £150 for a pair, of a bit more for something lighter (looking at road use). Are you a wheelbuilder?

supersonic

Used to be a shop mechanic, built a few! But plenty of bargains to be had on the web from shops. Unfortunately don't see many disc hubs built in 700c rims (29inch) and you do tend to pay a bit more. Sometimes worth calling a place like Merlin and seeing if they will build you a set of MTB hubs onto 700c rims.

simbil1

I've seen a few places that build shimano disc hubs onto 700c, just go to make sure I can get a disc on the shimano hub that will work with my setup. I take it the safest route would be to get avid discs on the shimano hubs?

supersonic

That would definitely work - other rotors should (may!) but can be hard to tell until you have actually fit them! I am just being cautious.

Many Shimano hubs are available 6 bolt though.

Splasher

I talked to Merlin and Stif about such wheels and they didn't want to know. They get so many wheel orders, all they're interested in is turning around standard stuff.

In the end, I got XT 6 bolt hubs built with DT comp spokes and Mavic Open Sport rims by Rutland Cycling for £120. Talk to Dan or Luke if you want to go that way.

supersonic

That is a very good deal.

BlackSpur

Can't you get Centre Lock to 6 bolt adaptors?

BlackSpur

http://www.cyclesportsuk.co.uk/product_info.php?products_id=4034

Like this.

simbil1

Thanks - I'll give Rutland a go, that sounds like a very good deal.

It's nice to know there is an adaptor if I get stuck with a centre lock system.

After some more digging around on the net, it seems that some disc rotors are of a different thickness, have slightly different diameters (eg. 180 is actually 182) and different braking surfaces which may or may not work well with your pads. So all in all, I think I'll get some new wheels built and get exactly the same rotors so there is no faff when switching wheels.

uk_mr_brownstone

I've a similar question with a specific example- anyone tried compatibility of the hayes stroker trail using shimano centrelock hubs/discs? I'm not able to change to 6 bolt.
the stroker trails i'm looking at on merlin are post mount so should be fairly easy to set up generally.

I've read some comments about certain pads not working well with some rotors, but i'm guessing that that stands even within manufacturers depending on some specific pad materials, but I wanted to make sure there were no alignment issues as this is more important

thanks in advance!!