mountian bike to road bike for commuting

kenan

After feedback from people who have changed their mountain bike for a road bike to commute as I'm planning to do this. Read lots of threads of bike vs bike etc but wanted feedback from people who had made the change.

Currently riding a HT I put together from spare parts in the garage and now those bits are falling apart thought I’d get a road bike to replace it.

meanredspider

Much faster and much better. Only things to watch out for

Road rim brakes are not great in the wet - especially compared to discs - unless your road bike is fitted with discs

Can't fit studded tyres for ice (if that's a concern), or proper guards or (if you need it) a rack

Cyclo-cross bike can be a great compromise - hence Boardman CX thread

asprilla

You can fit a rack and guards to some road bikes, it varies from model to model. 'Road bikes' are as varied in their options as mountain bikes.

kenan

The road bike I'm looking at has mounts for full guards which is all I require, it at the lower end as would like to try a road bike for a while before committing to a more expensive one as they hold their value well.

cyclingprop

meanredspider wrote:

Much faster and much better. Only things to watch out for

Road rim brakes are not great in the wet - especially compared to discs - unless your road bike is fitted with discs

Can't fit studded tyres for ice (if that's a concern), or proper guards or (if you need it) a rack

Cyclo-cross bike can be a great compromise - hence Boardman CX thread

Rim brakes are fine if you have decent levers and don't expect the pads the bike comes with to be high end.

Lots of roadbikes come with guard mounts, and rack mounts.

If you need studded tyres then you're not riding on a road you're riding on ice. HINT.

meanredspider

cyclingprop wrote:

Rim brakes are fine if you have decent levers and don't expect the pads the bike comes with to be high end.

Not going to bother listing the well-rehearsed arguments but, in the wet, rim brakes don't come close to discs. I have two road bikes fitted with 105 brakes and salmon pads and I have a road bike fitted with BB7 - the difference is startling.

cyclingprop wrote:

Lots of roadbikes come with guard mounts, and rack mounts.

And lots (most?) don't (neither of my Focus road bikes do) - worth being aware of (which it seems the OP is)

cyclingprop wrote:

If you need studded tyres then you're not riding on a road you're riding on ice. HINT.

Except for the 95% of the journey when you're riding on road. Doesn't really matter how much ice there is if you come off on the one small patch.

The OP is interested in the differences. I'm just pointing out that there are potentially some key differences but these can be avoided - especially by CX bikes.

cyclingprop

I could have started every line with "In my opinion" but didn't feel the need. In hindsight...

You said rim brakes aren't great. I said they are fine... at no point did I say discs weren't stronger/sharper/more powerful. In the winter you might not actually want to go straight in to a skid anyway.

Trek sell quite a lot of roadies with mounts, for example.

meanredspider

And I was just trying to point out the key differences he was likely to encounter having made the switch from MTB to roadie and through CX, roadie & MTB. Never skidded the front tyre on my disc-equipped roadie in any conditions - another benefit being the ability to modulate braking more effectively.

supersonic

Many rim brakes are better than cable disc brakes. Even in the wet. It really does depend on the models.

meanredspider

supersonic wrote:

Many rim brakes are better than cable disc brakes. Even in the wet. It really does depend on the models.

Please point me towards them because I've yet to find any. Not one.

Provided they're not astronomically expensive, I'll fit them to my Focus Cayo because I'd like that to stop even approximately as well as my Volagi. It's on Salmons right now.

Kieran_Burns

Define 'better'.

The biggest advantage I find with disc brakes is their predictability. You don't go through the heart-stopping "WOOOAAAHHH!!!!" moment when first applying them in the wet, before they actually start working.

meanredspider

Kieran_Burns wrote:

Define 'better'.
.

Yup. I'd use terms like consistent, predictable, progressive, powerful - all of which I think (cable) discs do better than rims - especially side-pull.

sketchley

meanredspider wrote:

supersonic wrote:

Many rim brakes are better than cable disc brakes. Even in the wet. It really does depend on the models.

Please point me towards them because I've yet to find any. Not one.

Provided they're not astronomically expensive, I'll fit them to my Focus Cayo because I'd like that to stop even approximately as well as my Volagi. It's on Salmons right now.

Might not be the pads, the calliper and lever make a difference as does the rim material (breaking surface)

sketchley

kenan wrote:

After feedback from people who have changed their mountain bike for a road bike to commute as I'm planning to do this. Read lots of threads of bike vs bike etc but wanted feedback from people who had made the change.

Currently riding a HT I put together from spare parts in the garage and now those bits are falling apart thought I’d get a road bike to replace it.

I switched from flat bar hybrid (albeit a quick one with no suspension, road wheels and skinny tyres) to a road bike last August. Defiantly a good move. Drop bars, sti levers etc are very intuitive so do not be put off by moving from the flat bar, however I'd recommend practicing emergency stops somewhere safe first. I did have some problems with brakes initially and thought this was the switch from vbrakes to callipers, it wasn't it was the quality of the calliper and the pad, since uograding both I stop just as well now if not better than the hybrid. I also had problem with should pain as position was somewhat different, a combination raising the hoods slightly and time to let the muscles stretch sorted this out. When you get a road bike take some time to make sure it's setup correctly for you, a bike fit is the expensive way to do this and but there also some good online guide, for me making sure saddle was correct horizontally so knee was above cleat in 3 o'clock position was key for comfort.

meanredspider

Sketchley wrote:

Might not be the pads, the calliper and lever make a difference as does the rim material (breaking surface)

Possibly - on the Cayo I have 105 levers currently, operating 105 calipers applying Salmon pads to RS80 wheels via Jagwire cables - I have a set of Ultegra levers I could swap them for (though I'm doubting that will make a big difference). We should bear in mind that this advice is for a relative beginner - if it takes SRAM Red or Shimano Dura Ace components applied to Zipp wheels to make brakes work, I think we'd be losing some sense of perspective.

For comparison the Volagi has Ultegra levers operating BB7s via Jagwires and runs Superstar Organic pads.

supersonic

Some disc brakes are so poor that I cannot lock the brake up at all. V brakes I am more familiar with, but if you go drop bars then your options are limited. However if you were to go a flat bar route and fit say speed dial 7 levers, basic Shimano calipers and Kool Stop Eagle pads then they out perform all cable brakes I have tried, including BB5/BB7. I can lock the wheels up on my bike with 1 finger with total control, and are good in the wet too. And cost less than the BB series, which are even more expensive than budget hydro discs.

And don't rule out the flat bar 'road' route with tris/bar ends.

In the end it is what works for you, are many ways of cracking this nut.

meanredspider

Not herd of Kool Stop Eagle until now but they just seem to be a different (V-brake?) carrier for the range of Kool Stop compounds. V-brakes are clearly superior to side-pull "roadie" brakes but not, as far as I'm aware, available for drop bar levers even where the frames are equipped for them. If we're talking flat bars then you might as well go hydraulic disc.

I'm trying to help the OP understand what he might be giving up going the roadie commuter route. If he picks a roadie, it will 95%+ chance be standard side-pull rim brakes. Generically, in the wet, they are probably some of the least effective brakes around today (there's always exceptions). If he's light, it might not matter much.

Sooner or later, full drop bar hydraulic disc brakes will be available (Parabox seems unnecessarily complicated) - still undecided if I'd go that route when they finally get launched.

cyclingprop

Fwiw there is a massive difference between the tiagra levers and calipers on my commuter, and the ultegra on the nice(r) bike. Words cannot describe. Both running swissstop green.

I also find much more flex in the tiagra kit whereas the ultegra feels like it passes all brake effort to the rim

meanredspider

There was certainly a difference when I upgraded the SRAM Apex on my Boardman CX to 105 - I say " upgraded" but they are supposedly equivalent from the two manufacturers. The BB7s I had on that bike worked great with 105 and I can't tell any difference in flex to the Ultegra. SRAM Apex is horrible in many ways.

cyclingprop

Pass. When I spoke to my mate in the bike shop about it he said something about different cam profiles in the levers and calipers which result in different amounts of force applied for the same lever travel.

asprilla

meanredspider wrote:

Not herd of Kool Stop Eagle until now but they just seem to be a different (V-brake?) carrier for the range of Kool Stop compounds. V-brakes are clearly superior to side-pull "roadie" brakes but not, as far as I'm aware, available for drop bar levers even where the frames are equipped for them. If we're talking flat bars then you might as well go hydraulic disc.

I'm trying to help the OP understand what he might be giving up going the roadie commuter route. If he picks a roadie, it will 95%+ chance be standard side-pull rim brakes. Generically, in the wet, they are probably some of the least effective brakes around today (there's always exceptions). If he's light, it might not matter much.

Sooner or later, full drop bar hydraulic disc brakes will be available (Parabox seems unnecessarily complicated) - still undecided if I'd go that route when they finally get launched.

V brakes don't go with drop levers but mini-Vs do. I've got TRP CX8.4s on my CX bike. Expensive but there are Tektro versions that are nearly as good for a fraction of the price.

meanredspider

cyclingprop wrote:

Pass. When I spoke to my mate in the bike shop about it he said something about different cam profiles in the levers and calipers which result in different amounts of force applied for the same lever travel.

But that kinda comes out in the wash, so to speak. You can shorten the travel to provide more force but it will take more effort - nowt comes for free

cyclingprop

True. But the ultegras do seem to work better.

meanredspider

Asprilla wrote:

V brakes don't go with drop levers but mini-Vs do. I've got TRP CX8.4s on my CX bike. Expensive but there are Tektro versions that are nearly as good for a fraction of the price.

Same as above though - mini-Vs have less mechanical advantage. In the end, for drop levers, you can only provide so much force for the travel. That translates to force & travel at the other end. It really comes down to how well that's used - the stiffness of the calliper, any "lost travel" and the effectiveness of the friction materials. It's where discs should have an advantage - callipers have a small span so can be very stiff, clearances can be very small and the friction materials optimised because you don't care about wear of the braking surface. Hydraulics have the added advantage of the fluid being incompressible and the callipers "self-adjusting"

meanredspider

cyclingprop wrote:

True. But the ultegras do seem to work better.

I hope so as I plan to stick the Ultegra levers on the Cayo - it needs all the help it can get. There's nothing to focus the mind (excusing the pun) than heading downhill fast on a wet single track road only to meet a tractor equipped with some nasty spiky implement coming the other way... :shock:

UndercoverElephant

meanredspider wrote:

cyclingprop wrote:

True. But the ultegras do seem to work better.

I hope so as I plan to stick the Ultegra levers on the Cayo - it needs all the help it can get. There's nothing to focus the mind (excusing the pun) than heading downhill fast on a wet single track road only to meet a tractor equipped with some nasty spiky implement coming the other way... :shock:

I have one Tiagra and one Ultegra lever on the Equilibrium (I don't care, honestly), can't say I notice much difference between the two. Perhaps it's either the calipers that makes the difference, or decent cables.

Replaced the cables (inners and outers) on the Day One recently and it really improved the braking.

sketchley

I have 105 levers and Ultegra level callipers (r650) on my Equalibrium, the 105 levers are fine, it was the calliper upgrade from standard tektro that made the difference for me. Perhaps your problem is the 105 calliper, no experience of them personally so cannot comment.

kenan

Other than brakes . . . .

sigorman85

I have just bought a giant defy4 found it hard for the first 2 weeks but getting used to it hills are harder but defo faster on the flat

I used to ride my spesh camber to work with city jets 1.95 on it

UndercoverElephant

Oh and OP, get a road bike, it's evolution, innit?

walkingbootweather

People's experiences will be coloured by lots of factors including the length and profile of their commute, surface, what they need to carry etc.

I have commuted a distance of between 12 and 14 miles (depending upon the route I take) on 3 different bikes this year. My fastest time on my best Ti road bike is 42 mins with an average of about 45 mins. On my Rohloff geared MTB/Expedition bike with fat tyres the best is 52 mins with an average of about 56 mins. Most days I take an old school steel tourer on which I have achieved 46 mins but average about 53 mins. In reality the differences aren't as great as these figures sound because I only tend to use the 'good' bike when the weather is fine and I feel like a bit of a blast, the others are used in all conditions.

When I'm not pushed for time my preferred route is mainly along railway / riverside paths and country tracks which would be pretty tough on an out-and-out racing machine however the old tourer copes surprisingly well.

If I was going to be limited to a single bike to commute on and I had a limited budget I would buy a steel road bike with steel or carbon fork, strong wheels, 25-28 mm puncture resistant tyres, a mid range group set, mudguards and a rack but it is nice being able to have a choice.

As far as brakes go, I'm sure that disks brakes are good particularly when it is wet or muddy, but most of the time I'm perfectly happy with Ultegra calipers and XTR V-brakes (but the cantilevers aren't very strong).

Hope you find a suitable steed. I very much doubt you would regret getting a decent road bike.