I'm Shunning discs.

rubertoe

Now dont get me wrong, I shall not be replacing my kaff anytime soon and I love discs on the commute.

But they irk me. They need constant adjustment, they are noisy and the are fugly and I am not sure that I can get over these things anytime soon.

I am sure that the braking is not that much better than calipers anyway and the only other downfall I can see is that you might need to replace rims occasionally - But don't we all replace wheels anyway.....

Now I am sure that I would be persuaded with Sram E tap hyrdos or Shimano 9000 Hydros - But unless I sell a kidney or a child then that's not likely anytime soon - Here is hoping for 105 DI2 hydros in the near future.

Failing that (and that's if they are still available to buy) I'll get a caliper equipped bike (pinerello knows) with direct mount brakes.

bendertherobot

#popcorn

itboffin

I'm with you, I love em on mtb but on the road I cant see the point, tyre grip goes long before brakes stop working unless like me you've not changed pads in 4-5 years.

I've been looking at my R5 and thinking do i go etap but then i'd need to swap my new rotor 3d cranks or do i go rotor uno hydraulic, but those appear only as disc, damn it just go eps but then i'd have to get my frame drilled, FFS just stop this madness there's nothing wrong with calipers on road bikes

hopkinb

itboffin wrote:

there's nothing wrong with calipers on road bikes

As long as you only ride in the dry, or even in the wet where you don't have to brake in a hurry due to something unexpected happening.

If I ever get a dry weather only "best" bike, I'd be indifferent between the two. For anything else, I'll have hydro discs please, because they just work, they never need adjusting, and being a heavier cyclist, they don't chew through rims.

hopkinb

bendertherobot wrote:

#popcorn

bendertherobot

Current score 2-1 (ish)

smokey_bacon

Go on then....Ive just switched back to rim brakes after using cable discs which did my head in in the end.

teebs_123

Just switched from disc Di2 back to rim brake Di2.

Personal choice, so I'll see how I get on. Also just bought some 9100 Dura Ace Brakes for my new summer bike, they give Immense stopping power, even on damp carbon rims, better than my discs..

rower63

I got to our work basement last week to find a guy with his bike upside down, ranting about "these f*cking discs!!" They'd seized and he couldn't turn his wheel. "As soon as I get this fixed, this bike's for sale and I'm back on rim-calipers". Too complicated and requiring constant maintenance for your average bike-user I think.
Even though I could manage discs if I wanted to, I'm with him. I can easily lock up in the wet with my rim brakes, so I see no need to make the change.

itboffin

why do we hear so many reports of disc riders on here wearing out pads? I havent changed the pads on any of my disc bikes since i bought them one of them is 9 years old.

My guess is you switched to disc from pads after wearing out rims due to excessive braking, now the problem is frequent pad wear, what springs to mind is watching drivers on the motorway repeatedly speed up then braking hard in traffic, the M25 seems to be the home of this style of "driving"

IMO

smokey_bacon

itboffin wrote:

why do we hear so many reports of disc riders on here wearing out pads? I havent changed the pads on any of my disc bikes since i bought them one of them is 9 years old.

My guess is you switched to disc from pads after wearing out rims due to excessive braking, now the problem is frequent pad wear, what springs to mind is watching drivers on the motorway repeatedly speed up then braking hard in traffic, the M25 seems to be the home of this style of "driving"

IMO

This plus im sure lots go for organic pads to stop the squeeling you get (even though you still get it!!) and they last precisely no time during autumn and winter.

itboffin

also to add to my comment about having not changed discs, well i cant now as the bolts have bonded with the wheels on two different sets of wheels

bendertherobot

5-1

*My R685 are easily the best brakes I've owned.

5-2

MrSweary

Well, I have ultegra hydro (685/805) on my Racelite and I'm a fan. The stopping is definitely better than my old ultegra rim brakes in the dry and hugely better in the wet - you really notice these things when you have a long, fast, busy drag like CP Park Hill on your route. They are maintenance free and only make a noise when it really rains. I don't think they are fugly - in fact I think they look quite cool.

That said my riding is mainly commuting and I would still have a rim brake 'nice' bike for weekend runs without any qualms. I would also gladly accept an expensive disc brake bike like say a Canyon CF SLX Disc 9.0 should someone offer me one for free as my 'nice' ride.. I await a pm..

itboffin

bendertherobot wrote:

5-1

*My R685 are easily the best brakes I've owned.

5-2

i'm calling you on that #fake

hopkinb

I've just put in the third set of front pads in 16 months - approx. 5.5k km per set, not changed the rear. Never bled them. Only need adjusting when I put new pads in.

vimfuego

Oh OK then.

Wouldn't be without hydros on the commute (should point out I'm on a hybrid not a roadie). Mine don't squeal and have been fairly easy on pads (organic or sintered) plus in the main they don't need much looking after, have had one occasion in the last 4 years to manually reposition a caliper. As above I guess, whilst the roads in London are covered in kinds of sh*te wear is probably as much to do with how you use them as anything else.

Anyway, from my own experience, I know for sure that the discs have got me out of some potential scrapes that I'm not convinced rim brakes would have done - obviously can't prove it either way, but that's my feeling so I'm sticking with them.

Now, on the road at the weekend..... rims all the way, discs have got no place on my road bikes.

Is now a good time to bring up helmets, red lights and headphones? :-)

roger_merriman

rower63 wrote:

I got to our work basement last week to find a guy with his bike upside down, ranting about "these f*cking discs!!" They'd seized and he couldn't turn his wheel. "As soon as I get this fixed, this bike's for sale and I'm back on rim-calipers". Too complicated and requiring constant maintenance for your average bike-user I think.
Even though I could manage discs if I wanted to, I'm with him. I can easily lock up in the wet with my rim brakes, so I see no need to make the change.

Its the folks who have problems who shout.

In terms of data I've been using my old MTB for 3-4 years as a commute/town bike it's chewed though chains and what not, but the brakes have just worked.

They are more complicated but for most part they are fit and forget for x amount of years.

I suspect my style suits brakes since mine are also silent.

bendertherobot

Fake is the new black. Anyhow, I'm keeping score here

veronese68

hopkinb wrote:

If I ever get a dry weather only "best" bike, I'd be indifferent between the two. For anything else, I'll have hydro discs please, because they just work, they never need adjusting, and being a heavier cyclist, they don't chew through rims.

This, even though I'm much* slimmer. I've got a Parabox hydraulic converter under the stem and since getting the fitting sorted I haven't had to do anything to them. I just have to remember to check the pads every now and then as there is no constant adjustment like with the cable discs.

*Well, maybe a smidge

MrSweary

rower63 wrote:

I can easily lock up in the wet with my rim brakes, so I see no need to make the change.

What I've found is that I very rarely lock up in the wet (or otherwise) on discs - I used to lock up far more frequently on rim brakes. Also If I do I tend to lock up only very briefly. Better braking modulation is really a thing!

bendertherobot

5-4?

smokey_bacon

bendertherobot wrote:

5-4?

Are you asking or telling?

itboffin

Smokey Bacon wrote:

bendertherobot wrote:

5-4?

Are you asking or telling?

he's only got one more before the shoes and socks come off

rhodrich

Discs have their place on mountain bikes, where mud can eat through rims in no time, you've got heavy suspension forks anyway, and ride quality is not an issue. However, for road bikes, the need to beef up the forks to fit them destroys any flexibility in the forks, and hence makes for a very stiff and unforgiving bike.

'Stiffness' in a bike is fine if you're racing, but if you're riding for enjoyment, having flex in the fork is a very good thing. I hired a Cervelo last summer for a day's ride around Tenerife, up Mount Teide, and on the descent from the mountain (which took about an hour at 40km/h on very poor roads), I almost ended up with vibration white finger, the ride was so harsh. The bike was designed for speed, not comfort, and that had rim brakes. With disc brakes, it would have been even worse. I would have worried about discs overheating too.

So I'll stick with my comfortable steel frames, with slender curved forks and pencil seatstays. Single pivot 'GB Coureur' brakes have no problem stopping me in all weathers, and whilst my aluminium rims do wear, given that a replacement rim costs under £20 (Rigida AS23 on the Carlton) and can be replaced by me in an evening, I really don't see a problem.

bendertherobot

Smokey Bacon wrote:

bendertherobot wrote:

5-4?

Are you asking or telling?

Both

rower63

MrSweary wrote:

rower63 wrote:

I can easily lock up in the wet with my rim brakes, so I see no need to make the change.

What I've found is that I very rarely lock up in the wet (or otherwise) on discs - I used to lock up far more frequently on rim brakes. Also If I do I tend to lock up only very briefly. Better braking modulation is really a thing!

I also almost never lock up, but I can if I want to. But I did have to go to Swissstop BXPs to get that confidence and performance, the OEMs were terrible

MrSweary

rower63 wrote:

MrSweary wrote:

rower63 wrote:

I can easily lock up in the wet with my rim brakes, so I see no need to make the change.

What I've found is that I very rarely lock up in the wet (or otherwise) on discs - I used to lock up far more frequently on rim brakes. Also If I do I tend to lock up only very briefly. Better braking modulation is really a thing!

I also almost never lock up, but I can if I want to. But I did have to go to Swissstop BXPs to get that confidence and performance, the OEMs were terrible

Yup, I was running BXPs in Ultegra brakes. Locking up would generally occur in the wet when some numpty did something totally unpredictable. Not often, as I'm a very defensive rider but I would still say discs have kept me upright on a couple of occasions when rim brakes wouldn't have. The way I figure it, commuting in London you need all the help you can get!

veronese68

bendertherobot wrote:

5-4?

Did I mention I love my discs and wouldn't go back to rim for every day use?

MrSweary

Rhodrich wrote:

However, for road bikes, the need to beef up the forks to fit them destroys any flexibility in the forks, and hence makes for a very stiff and unforgiving bike.

I've found fitting 28mm rubber has made my Racelite one of the plushest bike I've ever ridden. 60psi and it floats over everything, even with a fork that is built like a girder.

rower63

... that said, my N+1.5 is a bike I see quite often on my commute (iPete knows of it and also hankers after it...), a lovely track frame fixie with front disc...