disc brakes in cyclocross at last

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Smokin Joe

Legendary Member
Maybe they'll now see sense and allow them on road bikes too.
 
Why fix something that isn't broken though?

Surely there's more chance of failure with disc brakes? Sorry, Don't know much about them myself. I assume they run on some sort of hydraulic type thing? or are we talking about the cable operated ones?
 

Smokin Joe

Legendary Member
Why fix something that isn't broken though?

Surely there's more chance of failure with disc brakes? Sorry, Don't know much about them myself. I assume they run on some sort of hydraulic type thing? or are we talking about the cable operated ones?
It's not a question of fixing something that isn't broken, but of greatly improving something we already have. The first disc brakes I experienced were cable operated on a motorcycle, and the improvement over drums was dramatic.

I always find it ridiculous that you can walk into Halfords and pay £99 for a bike with better brakes than you get on a five grand state of the art road bike.
 

oldroadman

Veteran
Location
Ubique
Actually we already have disc brakes on road bikes, the "disc" is simply the rim. There is no way I would want to be in a peloton of slightly less than confident bike handlers knowing that they have brakes even more powerful than the current type. And your comparison is hardly equal, the "disc" brakes on £100 MTBs are nowhere near the performance of top quality brake systems.
Rims lighter than now will simply result in more breakages, that's something for weightweenies, not people who want to compete on light but reliable kit.
All that said, I have no doubts it will come eventually, and the mix of systems in a road race will cause all manner of problems!
 

MacB

Lover of things that come in 3's
To be honest as long as they hit the cyclocross/commuter/audax/sportive/leisure road bike market then that'll be enough in the way of sales to push the design aspects forward. I don't have any experience of road racing, bunch riding, but could you see an adoption of disc brakes on training(Winter particualrly) bikes? Or would the disparity of training on one brake and racing on another be too much?
 

frank9755

Cyclist
Location
West London
Maybe they'll now see sense and allow them on road bikes too.

This comes up a lot, but is generally suggested by mountain bikers rather than those who race on the road.

There are three issues:


- Current rim brakes are adequate for road riding. I can't recall ever wanting to have had stronger brakes while riding on a road. Skids lead to falls and stronger brakes are more likely to lock up wheels. For this reason, many V-brakes on cheaper (on-road) bikes have adjustments made to make them weaker but with better modulation.

- Stronger brakes in a race = dangerous
The last thing you want when riding in a bunch is to give someone the ability to stop dead. That would be dangerous; it would cause pile-ups and injuries. Remember that, for this reason, track bikes have no brakes at all.

- Weight. Not mainly that of the disc brake mechanism, but of the heavier duty fork and wheels that would be needed to use discs.

I've never ridden cyclocross but it seems to me that discs make great sense for that application, where muddy rim brakes are bound to lose effectiveness.
 

oldroadman

Veteran
Location
Ubique
This comes up a lot, but is generally suggested by mountain bikers rather than those who race on the road.

There are three issues:


- Current rim brakes are adequate for road riding. I can't recall ever wanting to have had stronger brakes while riding on a road. Skids lead to falls and stronger brakes are more likely to lock up wheels. For this reason, many V-brakes on cheaper (on-road) bikes have adjustments made to make them weaker but with better modulation.

- Stronger brakes in a race = dangerous
The last thing you want when riding in a bunch is to give someone the ability to stop dead. That would be dangerous; it would cause pile-ups and injuries. Remember that, for this reason, track bikes have no brakes at all.

- Weight. Not mainly that of the disc brake mechanism, but of the heavier duty fork and wheels that would be needed to use discs.

I've never ridden cyclocross but it seems to me that discs make great sense for that application, where muddy rim brakes are bound to lose effectiveness.

+ lots, spot on. Not needed.
 

snailracer

Über Member
The main reason disc brakes are not on road bikes is the conservatism of the UCI. They want bikes to look and work like they did in the "good old days", which is why bikes still have diamond frames and handlebars a certain way.

Road bikes would look nothing like they do now, if the UCI stopped dictating to manufacturers how to design them. Sorry, but current road bikes do not look like they do to go fast, but to look pretty.
 

MacB

Lover of things that come in 3's
The main reason disc brakes are not on road bikes is the conservatism of the UCI. They want bikes to look and work like they did in the "good old days", which is why bikes still have diamond frames and handlebars a certain way.

Road bikes would look nothing like they do now, if the UCI stopped dictating to manufacturers how to design them. Sorry, but current road bikes do not look like they do to go fast, but to look pretty.


That's an interesting take on it, it's not a subject I know a huge amount about, general reading on the web does seem to return the idea that, 'they're made this way coz it's been proven to be the best design'. I'd be very interested to follow some links to alternate ideas etc.
 

Smokin Joe

Legendary Member
Let's nail one thing straight away. More powerful brakes do not lead to wheel lock-ups, quite the reverse in fact because the decrease in effort needed to apply the same amount of force allows a better feel and more controlled braking. That's how it works with cars and motorcycles. Stopping dead is impossible because your tyres wouldn't allow it. Weight isn't an issue because pro teams often have to add weight to their bikes to bring them up to the UCI minimum.

Having done road racing there would be no problem, in fact it would be safer for the reason stated above. A peloton with some riders on discs and some on rim brakes (which would only be for a short time anyway) would not cause problems, just as it didn't when the more powerful dual pivot brakes replaced the single pivot which were very weak in comparison. It will come, and after a short while we will look at rim brakes as a fairly quaint antiquity.
 

tigger

Über Member
More powerful brakes, better modulation meaning less chance of a lock-up, lighter rims that will last about ten times longer.

What's not to like?


+ 1 for use on road bikes. Even top end current brake performance is terrible comparatively. I have a 1.5 mile -7% decent on one of my routes. I was out in medium wet conditions the other day and felt lucky to be alive afterwards!

So long as there is good modulation the extra stopping power will not cause problems in a peloton I think. And the weight is reduced from the rim as Joe says. So better rotational performance + stopping power = better racing!

The UCI haven't allowed discs on the road because they're concerned it evolves the bike too much I understand... crazy

One question - where will all the fluid be stored? Is there enough room in the hoods?
 
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