Another good reason to not adopt disc brakes on road bikes.

[Slick]

Less than 5000 miles I reckon, I’ve done 3 times that on rim blocks that cost a tenner.

5000 miles is a lot more than I got from mine, very lucky to get anywhere near half that for the original and less for the sintered replacement.

 

[Brandane]

usually a ratio of 2 rears for 1 front

Am I reading that correctly - you get through 2 rear rims for every front rim?
I've never done a high enough mileage on any rim to have to replace it. But as I tend to put more braking force on the front rim compared to the back (probably about 65/35, in keeping with my motorbike training) I would expect the front to wear quicker than the rear. Or does the extra crud picked up by the rear wheel cause that much extra wear?

 

[NorthernDave]

I've got disc brakes on all my bikes and wouldn't even consider buying a bike with rim brakes now unless I was in the market for something outrageously exotic.

I've had rim brakes bikes in the past and even after forking out for brake upgrades (including £20+ Swissstop blocks) they were never quite good enough, especially in the wet.

Case in point, today I've been out for a ride with a couple of mates. The roads were filthy in places and the unrelenting grinding from one of lads bike every time he used his rim brakes was horrible to listen to, compounded by him struggling to slow down which led to him being very cautious on descents, while my discs just worked, virtually silently, time after time.

Money well spent in my book.

 

[Donger]

Still too early for me to offer an authoritative comparison, but I have two Ridgeback Panorama touring bikes. One with rim brakes and a new one with discs.
Although I loved the old one, I chewed through front and rear rim brake pads at least twice a year and a set of rims lasted me about two years, even though I only do about 3,000 miles per year. Being a super-heavyweight rider, I had the stopping distance of an oil tanker.

I'm hoping the disc brakes last me a bit longer and save me money on replacement rims. But even if they end up costing me more, I'm already finding that they have transformed my ride experience. I do not ride fast or tend to enter sportives or anything like that .... just regular hilly club rides and audaxes, carrying a lot of weight. I was getting tired of having to jam my brakes on harder and much earlier than everyone else I ride with when descending hills, and tired of the sniggers at the squealing noise they made, alerting everyone to my approach before I ever came into sight. The discs are just so much grippier, quieter, and they take less effort and don't leave me having to decide which hedge to aim for if I meet a car coming the other way on a narrow descent.

I am a convert, however the price comparisons stack up. Still early days, though, and I'm sure I will encounter things I've not yet thought of, but I'm 100% sure at the moment that it will be the disc bike I'll be taking to the Vosges this year. Can't wait to let loose on some long descents instead of cramping my hands up for minutes on end struggling to keep the speed down.

 

[Deleted member 1258]

It’s not a ‘bit’ though, it’s probably 5 times as much. If someone wants to hoof themselves in the nuts to that tune, to try and be a hero in a Sportive, they are welcome to it. I guess that’s why off road / Hybrids have flown under the radar, they tend not to get the miles, to make it such an issue, and the vastly superior braking performance is more palatable.

Who's being a hero? Less than a mile from the finish in a giratory system and the lights changed when we were on top of them, I was genuinely impressed by how quickly he stopped. I'm not in the market for a new bike at the moment but when I am I will be looking at disc braked bikes. I'm small, light and not one of the demon late brakers, I cover between four and five thousand miles a year and on rim brakes I expect to get more than a year on a brake block and seven or eight years before rim wear becomes a problem and I'm thinking that on disc brakes I'll get good life from components.

 

[Drago]

I've never worn out a rim, and the longest I've currently owned a rim brakes bike is 22 years. Having said that, I read the road/terrain well ahead and I'm very light on the brakes as a consequence. Ditto in the car, where brakes tend to corrode to death before I wear them out.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

My disc brakes are up to 34,000 miles on the original discs. They last plenty long enough. Most I get out of rims on my rim braked bike is about 18,000 miles.

 

[mjr]

Having been comprehensively out braked by a rider on a disc braked bike on a sportive recently I'd happily pay a bit extra for the better braking.

<suits-you>Did you take him roughly from behind, sir? Did you, sir? Did you?</suits-you>

Bike disc brakes are rubbish because the discs are too exposed to the elements, the pads are too small and they need elaborate fork fixings. If you want reliable all-weather low-maintenance braking, do it properly and get hub brakes.

 

[Deleted member 1258]

I didn't realise this was such an emotive subject.

 

[Dirk]

Having been comprehensively out braked by a rider on a disc braked bike on a sportive recently I'd happily pay a bit extra for the better braking.

If I can get the back end of my Focus Cayo off the deck under heavy braking at pretty much any speed - fastest I can recall was about 48mph down hill - how much better braking do I need? It's running caliper brakes; Ultegra with Swisstop greens.

 

[Brandane]

If I can get the back end of my Focus Cayo off the deck under heavy braking at pretty much any speed - fastest I can recall was about 48mph down hill - how much better braking do I need? It's running caliper brakes; Ultegra with Swisstop greens.

But..... Just think how much easier it would be to put yourself over the bars with DISC brakes!
I have 2 bikes with hydraulic disc brakes, and 3 with rim brakes. I am undecided as to which I prefer. Discs possibly shade it, but it certainly isn't a deal breaker when it comes to buying a new bike.
PS.... OP, still wondering how you get through 2 rear rims to 1 front. I can't possibly STILL be on your ignore list surely? . Maybe better that way.....

 

[Turdus philomelos]

Owing to the last few months weather conditions I have replaced two set of rim brake blokes, plus rear wheel due to rim wear.

More expensive replacement than disc pads.

 

[booze and cake]

Am I reading that correctly - you get through 2 rear rims for every front rim?
I've never done a high enough mileage on any rim to have to replace it. But as I tend to put more braking force on the front rim compared to the back (probably about 65/35, in keeping with my motorbike training) I would expect the front to wear quicker than the rear. Or does the extra crud picked up by the rear wheel cause that much extra wear?

I've worn through 4 wheelsets I've had since new, and the rear has worn out first on every one. I was a bit puzzled by this at first because as you say the front takes most of the braking force, and I only have Campag single pivot rear brakes which are significantly weaker than the dual pivot fronts. This must be due to the extra crap thrown onto the wheel. If you were to do random look at most bikes the rear wheel is nearly always dirtier. I don't have any mudguards on my bikes so that surely increases the wear rate on the rear too.

 

[Dirk]

I don't have any mudguards on my bikes so that surely increases the wear rate on the rear too.

I would have thought that mudguards would increase rim wear.

 

[booze and cake]

Not having a front mudguard is obviously going to throw more crud onto the rear though innit