I read the entire article hoping to learn why rim breaks are better than disk breaks. Other than "they're simpler", I came up pretty empty.
Disc Brakes Took over the Cycling World. Here's Why That Was a Mistake
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Re: Disc Brakes Took over the Cycling World. Here's Why That Was a Mistake
#12The author is wrong about cyclocross. I think people riding cross, wanted disc brakes to get wider tires and much better braking. If you've seen pictures of cross bikes after a race, cantilever rim brakes tend to get caked in mud if it's wet at all and they tend to lose a lot of power because of that.
As sonmeone else pointed out, disc brakes let you use wider tires which give you a smoother more comfortable ride whether you're riding a road bike or a commuter bike. Also disc brakes automatically adjust for pad wear so there's less fiddling around once the disc brakes are initially set up.
Re: Disc Brakes Took over the Cycling World. Here's Why That Was a Mistake
#13Bendix drum brakes baby
Re: Disc Brakes Took over the Cycling World. Here's Why That Was a Mistake
#14This guy speaks for himself.
Rim brakes are not better for most riders most of the time. Hydraulic disc brakes deliver superior braking power, better modulation, are safer, lighter, and more reliable. Braking power in particular is very important to regular people who just want to ride their bike and use their brakes without needing death grip forearms.
The guy sounds like a super bike snob. He even knows that rim brakes are unsafe in the rain and he just dismisses that for no reason.
Re: Disc Brakes Took over the Cycling World. Here's Why That Was a Mistake
#15Disc brakes are absolutely better. No one laments the loss of drum brakes on cars, and apparently this person is the only one lamenting the loss of rim brakes.
He also seems to be a grouchy whiner about other things, like mountain bikes, suspension, hydraulic brakes, and even one finger braking...
Probably only rides alone.
Re: Disc Brakes Took over the Cycling World. Here's Why That Was a Mistake
#16Uhhh yeah, do yourself a favor, pay no attention to this article. Always buy hydraulic disc brakes whenever possible. The rest of the bike can be whatever, but when it comes to stopping power, you will smile endlessly from the smooth yet responsive safety hydraulic disc brakes provide. They are inexpensive and easy to replace, and need much less maintenance to adjust. Every single time you brake, at all, you will be…
I love my disc brakes, but I don't like the hydraulic aspect of them. I do wish that they used cables, instead. Those are easier for me to maintain/repair. I only use my bike to commute, though, and I don't think that there's a real difference in performance between hydraulic and cable with that use case so it's all about ease of maintenance for me.
Re: Disc Brakes Took over the Cycling World. Here's Why That Was a Mistake
#17This guy speaks for himself. Rim brakes are not better for most riders most of the time. Hydraulic disc brakes deliver superior braking power, better modulation, are safer, lighter, and more reliable. Braking power in particular is very important to regular people who just want to ride their bike and use their brakes without needing death grip forearms. The guy sounds like a super bike snob. He even knows that rim br…
Hydraulic disc brakes are not lighter than rim counterparts. When manufacturers have both versions of a bike you can usually expect a ~1kg penalty for the disc version.
Re: Disc Brakes Took over the Cycling World. Here's Why That Was a Mistake
#18This seems a bit extreme. My take: * Mountain bikes are better with them. I hate the low tolerances in terms of adjusting the damn things though. * I guess they're better with carbon rims on road bikes? * But the 'limiting factor' in stopping a road bike in most cases is the road/tire contact patch, not the brakes. I can lock up a road bike just fine with caliper brakes.
> they're better with carbon rims on road bikes
Carbon rims are becoming more popular across cycling not just on road.
They are stronger, lighter, less fragile and the quality is improving such that I bought a pair with a lifetime warranty.
And carbon rims are worse than aluminium with calliper brakes especially in wet weather conditions.
Re: Disc Brakes Took over the Cycling World. Here's Why That Was a Mistake
#19Ehhh. Rim brakes are cheaper, that’s true. They’re easier to adjust as well.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with a road bike with rim brakes on it.
But so long as they’re set up properly, discs are also nice - and far more confidence inspiring.
Re: Disc Brakes Took over the Cycling World. Here's Why That Was a Mistake
#20I switched to tubeless on rim brakes and had a downhill blowout from pressure cooking the sealant. I also tend to abuse my rims and rarely true them, so my brakes are always loose or rubbing. Both these problems may go away with carbon rims, but pincher brakes with carbon pads don’t have much stopping power. Discs do, but they are heavy and put extra torque and heat stresses on the frame, as well as a twisting moment to the straight spokes on the front, which they obviously weren’t designed for.
Okay, ready for a new idea I just thought of? Hydraulic rim brakes. They are built into either side of the fork and push bigger pads into deep carbon wheel surfaces for as much braking power as you want, with the torques applied to the strongest points of the wheel and frame, and no twisting moment applied to the spokes.