Disk brakes on a folding bike

[CEBEP]

I never used disk brakes on a bicycle. Birdy Touring was my first one with disk brakes. Mine came with Shimano T6000 hydraulic brakes. I read somewhere, that disk brakes on small wheels are too aggressive and hard to manage. Reason being higher stopping power due to smaller wheels. It wasn’t the case for me with T6000. After Brompton’s caliper brakes, I had no issues getting used to disks. Lever is very light to press, one finger will do. Modulation is awesome, brakes start to bite consistently at the same point. For emergency braking it’s easy to modulate to avoid locking the wheel. Stopping performance will differ on what rubber you have and with Big Apples on mine, it stops very well. And it doesn’t dive due to Birdy’s front suspension design. Disk brakes are awesome on folding bikes.

 

[Cycleops]

Agreed, I have discs on my Bike Friday, only cable operated but work well. Can’t understand why they haven’t made an appearance on the Brompton.

 

[rogerzilla]

There's not much space, it would bump up the carrying weight, and a lot of redesign would be needed (e.g. stiffer, stronger fork, which would make the ride worse).

Modders like Steve Parry have done it, I think.

 

[Nibor]

Kinetics do Brompton forks and rear triangels with disk mounts

 

[berlinonaut]

I have a Brompton with disk brakes on a Kintectics rear triangle and fork - nothing to complain about. On another folder I do have disk brakes as well - no issues. On folders there are two potential issues with disk brakes:
• they are heavier than rim brakes. So nothing for weight wheenies.
• when the disk gets bent you are doomed for your trip. On a folder the danger that the disk gets bent is higher than on a normal bike.
Modulation or "too raw power" has never been an issue, neither on a normal bike nor on a folder. No idea where @CEBEP got this "info" from. Sometimes there's false information that get echoed over and over on the internet and sometimes this even leads to a product: On my Bike Friday with V-brakes one of the pervious owners mounted a "thingy" on the front brake that would linder the "massive power" of the brake to avoid rolling over the front wheel These thingies were popular for a while when V-brakes were relatively new, basically kind of an ABS because people were in fear because of their power. Ricidulous back then and even more today. For the same reason coaster brakes on the backwheel where popular (and more or less standard) on bikes in Germany. When I was a child I was tought (and this was the general opinion) I should avoid using the front brake to avoid rolling over the front wheel. Totally idiotic and in terms of optimal breaking against the laws of phyics. Rumors are hard to come by.

BTW: I do not think disc brakes are necessary on a Brompton. The rim brakes are fine. Advantage of disc brakes is cleaner rims and no rim wear.

 

[CEBEP]

• when the disk gets bent you are doomed for your trip. On a folder the danger that the disk gets bent is higher than on a normal bike.

Safety Disk Brake​

One of the most eye-catching, patented accessories produced by DAHON this year; it won the Gold Award at the Innovation Awards during the China Cycle Show in May. Its key advantage is its offset internal structure that effectively protects the disc, avoiding knocks and collisions; even after years of use, the disc will resist warping, offering improved performance compared to ordinary disc brakes. The Safety Disk Brake is more versatile, with better handling than that of ordinary disc brakes, thanks to its inset of 15mm. For the folding bikes market, it fundamentally solves disk brake installation problems such as bulky folding volumes and increased body weight, optimizing its appearance and performance. Internationally available from 2022, these new safety disc brakes will be fully applied to all DAHON models equipped with disc brakes.

BTW: I do not think disc brakes are necessary on a Brompton. The rim brakes are fine. Advantage of disc brakes is cleaner rims and no rim wear.

I agree that caliper brakes on Brompton are adequate in dry conditions. I don’t ride when it rains and can’t comment on that.

 

[berlinonaut]

Interesting. I do not know how big or relevant the "bent disc" problem is in reality. Possible (and I suspect that this is the case), that it is massively overrated. But if it hits you while traveling it has massive impact and most of the times there's not rally a quick fix. In terms of risc management it thus a risc that you would like to avoid.

 

[MrM83]

Kinetics do Brompton forks and rear triangels with disk mounts

I have been running a Kinetics disc brake solution for 10 years now. It works perfectly and inspires confidence. I was never impressed by the rim brakes on the Brompton, especially in the wet. Furthermore most people adding disc brakes to a Brompton will likely have a modified rear hub, which is another reason to not want to use rim brakes with respect to rim wear.

 

[TheDoctor]

I can vouch that the standard brakes on a Brommie, with pink pads on the front, are very capable of stopping the bike and 100kg of fat bastard from 50 mph. If I was going to fit a disc anywhere, it certainly wouldn't be on the back.

 

[tinywheels]

Agreed, I have discs on my Bike Friday, only cable operated but work well. Can’t understand why they haven’t made an appearance on the Brompton.

I contacted brompton a while ago ref them starting a skunkworks type division. With a remit to produce eye-catching and well engineered kit.
there is a large market for this world wide
Their reply was no need we are doing fine.
meanwhile countless manufacturers churn out bling goodies and better than standard parts.
That new lightweight brompton shows the market is waiting for quality products

 

[Cycleops]

I contacted brompton a while ago ref them starting a skunkworks type division. With a remit to produce eye-catching and well engineered kit.
there is a large market for this world wide
Their reply was no need we are doing fine.
meanwhile countless manufacturers churn out bling goodies and better than standard parts.
That new lightweight brompton shows the market is waiting for quality products

Innovation left the company with Andrew Ritchie. He left the board in 2016 over the companies plans. It's now controlled by a bunch of Investors that see no point in refining it further. They just want a return on their money and think they're doing fine as it is

 

[u_i]

meanwhile countless manufacturers churn out bling goodies and better than standard parts.

Can you offer any supporting evidence?? My repeated experience with the aftermarket 'improvement' parts is trash on top of trash and I can offer plenty of evidence: https://www.bikeforums.net/folding-bikes/1185364-flawed-aftermarket-parts-accessories-3.html .

 

[tinywheels]

Can you offer any supporting evidence?? My repeated experience with the aftermarket 'improvement' parts is trash on top of trash and I can offer plenty of evidence: https://www.bikeforums.net/folding-bikes/1185364-flawed-aftermarket-parts-accessories-3.html .

joseph kuosac, Chris king etc,I won't go on.
I did specify well engineered bling.
if your looking on ali baba,I shan't enlighten you it would be like explaining physics to a slo worm.

 

[u_i]

Kuosac seems all right, but tangential to Brompton - sacrifice one thing for another. Chris King is not folding bike specific and I am unaware of it bringing any really needed improvement over what Brompton provides. I still see no evidence for "meanwhile countless manufacturers churn out bling goodies and better than standard parts".

 

[CEBEP]

Can you offer any supporting evidence?? My repeated experience with the aftermarket 'improvement' parts is trash on top of trash and I can offer plenty of evidence: https://www.bikeforums.net/folding-bikes/1185364-flawed-aftermarket-parts-accessories-3.html .

Ridea, Color+, Multi-S to name another few