Disc or not?

essex-commuter

So, if you were building a new drop bar bike for commuting would you definitely go down the disc route or are you more than happy to use rim brakes?

I'm having a dilemma

ugo.santalucia

I have gone the disc route 5 years ago and can't think of a single good reason to go back to rim brakes... mind you, I am not a weight weenie.... it's pretty damn hard to build a road bike with discs that weighs less than 8-9 Kg

asprilla

My most recent commuter has discs. Glad I did it just for the cold wet days.

redvee

If I can get the bike I want on C2W in a few months then my Kaffenback will go SS with discs.

rolf_f

Lots of variables. Eg discs make increasing sense the heavier you are, the wetter your climate, the hillier your terrain, the more frequently you need to brake.

Eg in my case I weigh nack all so rim brakes are plenty powerful, the climate is pretty dry so there aren't many wet days and the traffic isn't that stop starty. On the other hand, the final stretch of my commute home involves braking from 30-40mph to a standstill on a descent and I suspect that one bit of road costs me a small fortune in brake pads when we get a week or two of dirty wet roads. But then the same brakes are weighing me down less on the way up the hill in the morning.

I suspect if I was buying new I'd still stick with rim brakes just because they are less capable of being annoying than disc brakes but if I lived elsewhere it might be a different story.

slowbike

I'd like disc brakes although I've never really used them ...
I can see the temptation to go with them on a new build/bike, but for me I'd probably be swayed to rim brakes because I can swap wheelsets with my existing sets (all rim brakes). I use a CX as a commuter (usually, but getting used to the clip-on aero bars so taking that bike instead atm) and as it's road all the way I like slicks - but I also use it for family rides which tends to have a bit of off road - so swap over to the more suitable CX tyres for that - using a second wheelset makes that swap quick and easy ...

davis

Wot Rolf said.
If you're in the horrible muck (or on the brakes) all the time then they're great, mainly 'cos I don't like spending money on rims.
But if the "perfect" bike for you doesn't take discs, I'd still go for it.
All other things being equal, I'd go for discs, anyway.

markhewitt1978

For a commuter discs make a lot of sense if only because you'll be riding in all sorts of conditions all year and it's in poor conditions where disc excel over rim brakes.

notsoblue

I've got disc brakes on my commuter/tourer and I think they're awesome. Its great to have no loss of performance in the wet, especially when you're carrying a load. I'd miss them if I went back to rim brakes for that kind of riding. I don't see much need for discs on my road bike, though it would have been nice to have had them for La Marmotte (multiple punctures due to hot rims heat causing the inner tube to herniate past dodgy rim tape into the spoke holes).

EKE_38BPM

Discs all the way for me.
Better braking in all conditions, no rim wear, much less issues with buckled rims, easier to remove/replace wheels.

I doubt I'll ever buy a new bike with rim brakes again.

ugo.santalucia

EKE_38BPM wrote:

easier to remove/replace wheels.

I tend to disagree with this... I find fitting the rear can be a bit of a faff... with the rotor displacing the pads, or not wanting to get in the slot... it might take a minute at times... definitely not something a mechanic would want to do at the Tour de France

meanredspider

My fair weather bike here in Amsterdam is the Foil and, because I hardly ever need to brake, rim brakes are fine. But, because I've been away from the Volagi for weeks at a time, when is jump back on it in Scotland, the disc brakes always really impress themselves upon me - they're awesome. So:

Amsterdam - Foil, standard double, 12-23 cassette, rim brakes
Inverness - Volagi, compact, 11-28 cassette, discs

I'm a huge fan of disc brakes and would always go for them if I was in any sort of doubt.

meanredspider

ugo.santalucia wrote:

EKE_38BPM wrote:

easier to remove/replace wheels.

I tend to disagree with this... I find fitting the rear can be a bit of a faff... with the rotor displacing the pads, or not wanting to get in the slot... it might take a minute at times... definitely not something a mechanic would want to do at the Tour de France

Actually, I almost wonder for the pros whether front disc and rear rim isn't the answer. As I do nearly all my disc braking through the front (and, under heavy braking, the rear locks pretty easily anyway) I could see that as an option.

ugo.santalucia

I love the commuting forum... plenty of sensible advice here...

well, except the SCR thread of course...

veronese68

Discs for me every time. Don't you have a Boardman CX with discs? So you know the advantages and if necessary can swap wheels negating that argument for rim brakes. If I was looking to build my bike now I'd probably go hydraulic. The new Shimano hydraulics with mechanical shifting would probably be the best in terms of bang for buck. If that's too steep I'd look at TRP HyRd.

menthel

Fairly ambivalent personally. Had discs on the scourer before it was trashed and having moved to rim brakes I don't really care either way. As for the nice bike, I find that rim brakes do all I require. When it comes round to getting a new bike in future I would consider discs but it wouldn't be top of my priorities.

rubertoe

105 5800 and RS758 shirley.


I am of the same position as EKE, i doubt i'll ever go back to rims braking.

essex-commuter

Veronese68 wrote:

Discs for me every time. Don't you have a Boardman CX with discs? So you know the advantages and if necessary can swap wheels negating that argument for rim brakes. If I was looking to build my bike now I'd probably go hydraulic. The new Shimano hydraulics with mechanical shifting would probably be the best in terms of bang for buck. If that's too steep I'd look at TRP HyRd.

Yes I have a CX, ridden virtually every day for over 2 years now.

My dilemma. I'm sick of Shimano. My race bike used Campag and I want my next commuter to be Campag. There are a severe lack of disc wheels that are Campag compatible, but I could get one built.

So it's either buy a new rear wheel, shifters and RD for the CX or purchase a rim brake bike (been looking at Genesis T2 or TK3) and build it up with Campag.

Oh and being a tart I want a change of colour so if I kept the CX I would probably get it power coated...not the end of the world at £80 odd quid.

veronese68

Ugo runs discs and Camagano or Shimagnolo or something. I think he is on Campag shifters and a Shimano rear mech, but I'm sure he can advise more.

tgotb

My new commuter's nearly finished with hydraulic discs. Will save me £70 and 2-3 hours a year replacing rims (not to say the inconvenience of having one of the rims explode in the office car park a couple of months ago).

ddraver

I'd be tempted to wait until the groupset manufactuers nail it before spending any serious money to be honest... but If was buying a frame i'd try and get one that allowed future upgrades

goonz

Had discs on my MTB and they were a revelation. If I can I would like them on my road bike too.

ugo.santalucia

goonz wrote:

Had discs on my MTB and they were a revelation. If I can I would like them on my road bike too.

Yes, you can!

ugo.santalucia

Veronese68 wrote:

Ugo runs discs and Camagano or Shimagnolo or something. I think he is on Campag shifters and a Shimano rear mech, but I'm sure he can advise more.

I had it full Campagnolo (except the cassette) but then I hated the weary bearings of Ultra Torque and a guy brought me a used square taper Dura Ace 7410 chainset to sell... I loved it, fitted it to my bike, loved it more and kept it for myself... then the new frame needs top pull front derailleur, which only Shimano makes, that's how it became a Frankenbike

goonz

Ha maybe I should have said, if funds allow and when I finish all my other projects i currently am tinkering with! :P

tgotb

One observation from running hydraulic discs on the CX bike for half a season (and cable-activated discs before then): Once you have them installed, hydraulics are lower maintenance. I was probably replacing brake and rear mech cables monthly once it got muddy, despite using supposedly sealed ones, but once I switched to hydraulics the brake cable maintenance totally disappeared. For this reason, I'd be tempted to steer clear of something like the HyRd, because you're losing out on a lot of the benefits of hydraulics (especially as it sounds like the self-adjust feature on HyRds is a bit limited).

essex-commuter

Veronese68 wrote:

Ugo runs discs and Camagano or Shimagnolo or something. I think he is on Campag shifters and a Shimano rear mech, but I'm sure he can advise more.

Ugo uses a JTek. It looks to me as if it would never work but obviously they do. Ugo, how's the indexing, smooth as if you were running a Campag cassette?

ugo.santalucia

essex-commuter wrote:

Veronese68 wrote:

Ugo runs discs and Camagano or Shimagnolo or something. I think he is on Campag shifters and a Shimano rear mech, but I'm sure he can advise more.

Ugo uses a JTek. It looks to me as if it would never work but obviously they do. Ugo, how's the indexing, smooth as if you were running a Campag cassette?

Pretty smooth and faultless...
I also use a 9 speed cassette and a 10 speed chain, to confuse you a bit further...

essex-commuter

ugo.santalucia wrote:

Pretty smooth and faultless...
I also use a 9 speed cassette and a 10 speed chain, to confuse you a bit further...

:evil: Confused as a chicken in a pillow factory.

This thread is kinda pushing me towards keeping the CX and changing over. Really good info, appreciated.

timothyw

For a commuter ride, get discs. Lets review:

The Positives:

- Better braking power & control under all conditions.
- Braking that works when it's wet
- No rims to replace, less wheel truing required.
- Brake pads last longer

The Negatives:

- A little heavier. But this is a commuter - train heavy, race light!
- Arguably harder to fettle and adjust for wear (but not in my experience)
- Limited range of road frames & wheels suitable for disc brakes.

My commute is just as fast on my heavy disc braked commuter as it is on my carbon summer bike, for the simple reason that because I can trust my brakes more I can ride faster in traffic and in poor weather without having to leave such large stopping distances.

I would add that I replaced my Avid BB5s with TRP Spyre's and they should get a lot more love on this forum - they are the lightest cable actuated disc brakes around, they don't have the awkward inbound adjustment requirement because of the dual piston design and I don't need to worry about hydraulics going wrong.

Has anyone actually put a disc fork on a decent road bike? The idea does somewhat appeal as a halfway house given the shortage of good carbon frames with disc mounts.

slowbike

Is it only me that hasn't had to replace rims or wheels ?
Perhaps its because I don't need to brake as much as I don't commute in traffic or come across many junctions ...