New Road Bike: Disc or no Disc

[Thrillho]

I'm sure this has been covered many times before--but its new bike time and I am trying to decide between disc or no disc. The frame will be the same either way (either disc version or rim brake version)--and likely will be built with campy eps either way. This will be the bike that I race on next year. Most of the the races in the parts are "hilly." I am 150 lb, all-arounder type. I like the weight savings and traditional look of the rim brakes--and I like the idea of using my current wheels. But I also don't want to plunk down on a bike that is almost immediately obsolete. Give me some wisdom and insight.

[eddief]

Unless you ride in the wet, can't understand why you'd do disc. Oh yeah, maybe you want to do wide tires. You can go bigger than 28 mm with medium reach brakes and Whisky medium reach caliper fork. Less parts, less weight.

On the other hand, I was doing an 8 kilometer, 8% descent last month in France on my medium reach travel bike and I was wondering if my brake pads would catch fire or my rims would melt. I was thinking disc brakes would have provided a sense of safety in that situation.

[FlashUNC]

Campy hydro is pretty awesome, for whatever that's worth.

[Thrillho]

Originally Posted by eddief

Unless you ride in the wet, can't understand why you'd do disc. Oh yeah, maybe you want to do wide tires. You can go bigger than 28 mm with medium reach brakes and Whisky medium reach caliper fork. Less parts, less weight.

Good points. I should add that I have another bike for the wet and I have a bike with 28s and another with 32s. So we're talking strictly road racing and training--although sometimes the racing may be in the wet.

[R3awak3n]

this is a question only you can and should answer.

[ColonelJLloyd]

Originally Posted by r3awak3n

this is a question only you can and should answer.

+1

[hummus_aquinas]

Disc!
Consider that the only tubeless, wide rims worth using are disc-only. Even though I'm not in the market for a road bike with disc brakes I'm totally swooning over the City + County Road One:

[David Kirk]

I think it completely depends on where and how you ride -

- do you ride hilly or mountainous terrain in all weather and use carbon rims? If so get the disc.

- are your rides done on flat or rolling terrain and the only time you get wet is when you run through someones sprinkler to cool off and the main use of the brakes is so that you don't hit the garage door when you get home? If so rim brakes are the ticket.

dave

[pdmtong]

If you are going to get discs, make sure you go hydro not cable.

IMHO the only disadvantage of discs is the added weight. That is a tradeoff you will need to decide.

I do not think rim brake bikes will be obsolete. So focus on what is important to you.

And, if you have never ridden a disc road bike, go ride one before deciding. too many people have opinions on disc or electronic and never used either.

[Mark McM]

Originally Posted by pdmtong

IMHO the only disadvantage of discs is the added weight. That is a tradeoff you will need to decide.

That's not the only disadvantage. The OP stated that this bike will be specifically for road racing. Therefore, another issue will be quick availability of spare wheels in case of a flat tire in the middle of a race. Do the races have mechanical support (wheel van)? Will there be a wheel available of the right type to fit your frame and brakes? A quick wheel change can save a race. A slow wheel change (or having to fix a flat tire due to a lack of wheel availability) can ruin a race. To ensure wheel availability, there's a good chance the OP will have to buy not just one new set of wheels, but two sets.

[John H.]

The reality is that a fast wheel change in an amateur road race is a fantasy. I raced category 1-2 races for many years- I can count on one hand the times that a wheel change got a rider back in the race.

Weight- maybe, but not likely. If your standard is 13 lb.- disc will not meet your standards. If your standard is 15 lb.- disc can make that.

Originally Posted by Mark McM

That's not the only disadvantage. The OP stated that this bike will be specifically for road racing. Therefore, another issue will be quick availability of spare wheels in case of a flat tire in the middle of a race. Do the races have mechanical support (wheel van)? Will there be a wheel available of the right type to fit your frame and brakes? A quick wheel change can save a race. A slow wheel change (or having to fix a flat tire due to a lack of wheel availability) can ruin a race. To ensure wheel availability, there's a good chance the OP will have to buy not just one new set of wheels, but two sets.

[Mark McM]

Originally Posted by John H.

The reality is that a fast wheel change in an amateur road race is a fantasy. I raced category 1-2 races for many years- I can count on one hand the times that a wheel change got a rider back in the race.

It is true that in road races it can be difficult to chase back to the pack after a wheel change - but it does happen. But even if a rider can't chase back into contention, at least they can finish the race. This becomes even more important in the case of stage races, where a rider must finish every stage (within a time limit) to continue.

Criteriums are different matter. If a wheel is available, it is very easy to get a wheel change within the time of a free lap, and be right back into contention. I've had the misfortune of have flat tires in several criteriums, and with a spare wheel available, I've easily gotten a spare installed with time to spare within the free lap period, and gotten right back into the race.

[John H.]

Right- But with a truck bed full of various wheels it becomes a crap shoot anyhow- 10 speed, 11 speed, Campy, Shimano.
Is it wheels in, wheels out- Neutral, etc..

I still say that making new bike considerations based on ease of wheel changes in an amateur bike races is silly.

Originally Posted by Mark McM

It is true that in road races it can be difficult to chase back to the pack after a wheel change - but it does happen. But even if a rider can't chase back into contention, at least they can finish the race. This becomes even more important in the case of stage races, where a rider must finish every stage (within a time limit) to continue.

Criteriums are different matter. If a wheel is available, it is very easy to get a wheel change within the time of a free lap, and be right back into contention. I've had the misfortune of have flat tires in several criteriums, and with a spare wheel available, I've easily gotten a spare installed with time to spare within the free lap period, and gotten right back into the race.

[Mark McM]

Originally Posted by John H.

I still say that making new bike considerations based on ease of wheel changes in an amateur bike races is silly.

It's more a question of availability than ease. And for availability, all you really have to do is possess (and bring) your own spare set of wheels. Regardless of wheel type, a racer should always have a spare set of wheels (for a variety of reasons*), but as the OP was commenting about using his current set of (rim brake) wheels, I was just reminding him that if he went with disc brakes, he needs to invest in 2 new sets of wheels.



*Reasons why a racer should have a spare set of wheels:

Ability to preserve a set of good tires by training on the spare wheels.

Have a set of spare tires for the wheel van or pit.

Have wheels with different size cassettes ready for different course profiles.

(It would really suck to have a flat tire on the first stage of a 5 day stage race, and discover the wheel van had no wheels that fit your bike, and then not making the time cut that day so you couldn't race the next 4 days. While I don't know anyone who missed the time cut on the first day of a stage due to a flat tire, I do know people who missed the time cut for other mechanical reasons)

[biker72]

I've gone from 3 bikes with all rim brakes to 3 bikes with all disc.
Do I really need them???? I think on my travel bike for sure. On the other 2 probably not but I do like them.
I like the thru axles for perfect alignment of the disc every time I reinstall a wheel.

I really don't think rim brakes will be obsolete any time soon.