Disc V Rim. The Final Word

nicksnikita

Can’t decide between disc and rim? Go for a combination of both.

Interesting.

https://www.donedeal.ie/view/34518642

Planet x pro carbon

Wishbone Ash

It was common for MTB's to have rim brakes on rear and disc up front.

Paddigol

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120816874#Comment_120816874

What was the thinking behind that out of interest?

I'm finding it almost impossible to find any half decent new bikes with rim brakes now. The industry seems to have gone all in on disc. I'm even more screwed as a Campy disciple... pretty much no new bike for sale in the entire galaxy that fits my wish list. Big big change in the market in just a few years.

Wishbone Ash

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120817260#Comment_120817260

I've no idea - not into MTBing.

I bought a bike with discs recently and I'm converted. When I ride one of my other bikes now the braking feels crap. Chalk and cheese. I won't be going back.

Paddigol

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120817515#Comment_120817515

I've got both. I'm perfectly happy with my rim bike once the cable tension is set right and the pads are Swissstop. Nothing against disc other than aesthetics and them being more fiddly for maintenance.

devonp

2 words...direct mount !! not as good as disk(dont like'em) but better than std single bolt mount

maybe even only on last gen high end frames,...Canyon Aeroad had them , Colnago Vr series(an option)..POG used (uses?) them sometimes, some of the last Trek Emonda and Giant TCR's ?. I think you can still get Chinese frames DM (if you dare)

Mefistofelino

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120817260#Comment_120817260

Partly came out from impoverished riders wanting to move to a disc set-up but not being able to replace the entire frame, so a fork swap-out would allow them to convert the most important brake to disc.

Large bottle small glass

Didn't Spa cycles or some UK manufacturer release an audax,/touring bike with both in around 2015 or so

koutoubia

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120817260#Comment_120817260

I was in the same boat as you a few months back. Wanted a new frame in rim brake.Just had too many wheelsets to justify a new disc frame.

Ended up getting an ELVES Falath Pro 2022 with direct mount brakes.

However like your good self endowed with excellent taste in Campagnolo ,the eps cables would not fit through the guides in the frame ..not even close to justify the use of a dremel so opted for Force etap shifting with chorus cranks,chain, cassette and direct mount brakes.

The direct mount brakes are deffo a step up from standard but cant comment on how they against disc.

Raam

Discs all the way. I love mine.

But that first grab of the brakes after it starts to rain, the screech always scares the bejaysus out of me.

fat bloke

Anyone who says they've changed to discs and wouldn't go back, I'm always curious as to what bikes they have and had. If you had a mediocre rim braked bike around 7.5 to 8kg and you changed to a higher up the range disc bike coming in at similar weight then I could well understand the sentiment. But if you had a top tier, say 6.3kg rim braked bike, cervelo R5, canyon cf SLX, cannondale supersix evo hm, trek emonda slr, etc. And you went from that to a fairly top end disc bike, you're still looking at or around 7.5kg, and there's simply no hiding that kind of a weight differential. Of course they're all great bikes and new bikes are lovely and disc brakes brake really well but there's nothing like the feeling of riding a featherweight bike and disc braked bikes do not offer that. At least not yet anyway.

But I've no doubt but that that will be the next big thing. Superleggera disc bikes. And I'm not convinced that the current crop of 8kg superbikes will age well and be desirable used buys in the next few years.

beggars_bush

Went from disc back to rim.

For a number of reasons

Cost of bikes and value in rim brake frames

Cost of wheelsets

Only time I notice difference is on steep descents tbh especially when it's wet

magicbastarder

Some people aren't as focused on weight as you though. To them, an extra kilo when you're not racing is barely worth the difference of having better brakes.

Raam

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120819415#Comment_120819415

Current disc bike is about 7.3kg

I have/had the following rim brake bikes (~approx weights):

• Cervelo R3 (~7-7.5kg)
• Cervelo S3 (~7.5-7.8kg)
• Cervelo P3 (~beats me)
• Wilier Cento Uno (~7-7.5kg)
• Wilier Zero 7 (~5.5kg)
• Specialized Allez (alu frame, so who cares)

Alanbt

I have spare wheels, groupset and frames to keep me in rim brakes for many a year to come.

Real shame that seem to have stopped making higher end rim brake framesets. Luckily I have a taste for retro, plus a couple more modern carbon ones.

Cost of groupsets is mad for disc

at1withmyself

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120819432#Comment_120819432

Exactly, weight isn't everything.

Anyway no point to this thread as the rim brake bikes are just a thing if the past now. Discs are the now and here to stay. I still ride a rim brake but have long accepted their progression, it's over 10 years now, time to move on...

Mefistofelino

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120819807#Comment_120819807

Pinarello Dogma F, Giant TCR Advanced SL, Trek Emonda SL, as well as StanderTriebwerk and old style Colnagos are all available as rim brake frames.

monkeyslayer

Love my disc brakes on the good bike, just far better at stopping, and I'd rip down descents on the hydraulic discs knowing I can slow much later going into turns etc. Definitely wouldn't have that confidence my carbon wheel rim brake setup on the older machine. I do like the bike, it even looks lighter. The braking still does the job but not nearly as efficiently. Plus it's annoying how expensive carbon purpose brake pads are in comparison to how fast they wear and they're getting increasingly difficult to find. Soon as my 2 rim brake wheelsets wear out I'd probably retire that frameset.

fat bloke

Stopping isn't everything

Alanbt

Stopping isn’t everything, weight isn’t everything, pure performance isn’t everything.

Each to their own, just frustrating the choice on rim/disc isn’t always there in some brands.

Choice for consumers is good, regardless of preference

Charlie69

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120819415#Comment_120819415

S-Works Aethos disc comes in around 6.5 kg or lighter (if you have 13000 spare)

Macy0161

N+1 will be disc for me - I was a bit more on the fence until I got a gravel bike with hydraulic's (having had mechanical before that). Wider clearance an added plus, and while disc wheelsets maybe more expensive, there isn't the same issue of wear.

My cycling would be more helped by me losing the weight of any of the bikes quoted above, rather than being concerned with a kg either way on the actual bike!

ednwireland

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120817260#Comment_120817260

when disc first came in a lot of frames didn't have rear disc mounts. but forks were redesigned quicker. even though they didn't cope very well with rotational forces from brakes on on side.

Paddigol

Choice is great. Remember the furore when disc was first going to be introduced - how it was going to cause carnage, sever limbs, cause 1st degree burns etc. And that it was an unnecessary change driven by greed of manufacturers etc. Turns out it's actually great tech and suits a lot of people. It's just a pity that it's gone 180 degrees and now what suits a lot of other people - rim brakes - isn't being offered. At the risk of going off topic, as well as the lack of choice, the cost of mid-range bikes also seems to have sky rocketed since 2019. It could just be perception on my part, but there seems to be very limited options out there at the moment. Possibly things have been distorted by the surge in popularity over the same timeframe of 'gravel' - meaning that stock capacity for road bikes has been reduced to allow for more gravel bikes.

TLDR? I'm a very grumpy man.

Fian

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120818157#Comment_120818157

I got some sort of contaminant on my disc brakes on my hybrid commuter around a year ago. Still has not worn off, presumably it is on the pads not the disc itself. Screeches every time I brake. it's great!

I will be gutted when i eventually lose this warning mechanism. So handy when a pedestrian is walking in front of me glued to their phone or something and tapping the brakes alerts them to my presence without feeling as aggressive as calling out to them would. I have some parts of my commute which are either officially shared between bikes and pedestrians or another part which is a quiet cul de sac (for cars - cars and bikes can pass through it) where the footpaths are narrow and pedestrians routinely walk along the road.

Just this morning I had a 5/6/7 year old pumping along on his little bike straight towards me with his head down. A tap of the brakes and he looked up, saw me and moved to his own side of the road (on that quiet cul de sac).

Paddigol

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120833737#Comment_120833737

That howl drives me mad on my CX bike in the wet. Don't know how you live with it!

Macy0161

Possibly things have been distorted by the surge in popularity over the same timeframe of 'gravel' - meaning that stock capacity for road bikes has been reduced to allow for more gravel bikes.

TLDR? I'm a very grumpy man.

A grumpy man who hates "gravel"! 😀

Price of complete bikes seems to have gone up massively between bike to works for me anyway, just wouldn't be convinced it's down to Gravel!

Paddigol

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120834755#Comment_120834755

LOL. No, don't hate gravel at all. Have a CX bike that I switch to gravel in the summer. I just find it really interesting how quickly it was embraced by the entire cycling industry - from UCI, to bike manufacturers to 'road' cycling magazines. I think there's an element of the manufacturers figuring that there's more money to be made there than with mid-level road bikes. Could be completely wrong, just find it curious that at the same time as there's an upsurge in availability of gravel bikes there seems to be a drop off in choice on the road scene.

Macy0161

I'd say it's more drop off in sales of endurance bikes, and the move to wider tyres. If someone new asked me for starting off with no intention to race (so looking for a relaxed geometry), gravel bikes offer greater flexibility.

cletus

As @Macy0161 says, gravel bikes themselves are ideal for someone who wants to get out on the bike, and may not be interested in racing, FTP etc.

"Gravel" as a cycling concept has flourished for more or less the same reason, I think. Removal of the competitive end of cycling, no 'roadman' nonsense, less rules about the clothing, the type of bike etc. etc. The idea of 'rides over races', and the more ( perhaps perceived) egalitarian nature of it appeals to people who may be new to cycling, or may have been put off by the sport aspect of it.

As regards the price increase, a huge part of it was driven by shortages during COVID. I ordered a (gravel) bike during the pandemic, and over the 6 months it took to arrive, I watched the price increase by 200 quid. Just like the price of petrol and electricity, companies are quick to add on costs, but not so quick to take them off.

Alkers

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120817260#Comment_120817260

Front brake super important on mtb, so the benefit of disc over rim is massive with extra stopping power and modulation. Even a poorly setup v-brake should be well capable of locking up a rear wheel so the disc isn't as important on the rear.

mamax

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058304034/disc-v-rim-the-final-word

I looked at this as a possible winter bike, unfortunately a bit too small for me but it's really nice, rides and brakes very well, it's like new and someone will get a really good bike.

ednwireland

I don't miss cleaning aluminium slurry off my road and mountain bikes when they had rim brakes.

ottolwinner

I’ve only disc on my mountain bike good and all as they are I’m happy out with rim breaks on my other bikes.

Coppi San Remo and a Litespeed

I never like stopping on a pin unless it’s mtb. Always prefer to surf a route that doesn’t require too much braking.

eventually I’ll have to make the change but happy to hold off. The added service time needed puts me off right now too.

07Lapierre

What are people’s experiences with disc brakes squeaking when wet? They make some racket when it’s wet! What causes this? Is it down to lack of maintenance or do they all squeak when it’s wet?

Mefistofelino

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120849084#Comment_120849084

No they all don't. If a disc brake is quiet in the dry and starts squealing in the wet it may be that it has picked up contamination from the wet roads. Its usually worse riding in a group where spray from the wheels in front gets on the rotors. The problem is then that once you get some oil on the pads, it can be difficult to remove it and people don't always bother.

I don't tend to ride in groups of any great size and generally don't have noise issues with the brakes, wet or dry.

CramCycle

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120849084#Comment_120849084

It's the sound of your bikes soul escaping

Raam

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120849084#Comment_120849084

First grab of the brakes and they make noise, but if you release and then grab again the water clears and they are OK. Sometimes, maybe.

I've cleaned my rotors and pads but I don't ride in the rain much. The other week I got caught in a few showers and there was no noise at all.

monkeyslayer

Have had v little or no noise from my ultegra discs, tho I don't ride the bike in the wet much and clean it every month or so. The pads on my carbon rim brakes are noisier, make a whoosh electric car type noise when pulling slowly at speed.

dahat

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120849084#Comment_120849084

I find the best solution is a couple of taps on the earphones to increase volume cures it.

magicbastarder

I always found that the pads on the rear got contaminated quicker, but there's obvious reasons for that, the spray from the front wheel ends up on them.