Brake advice for cx/gravel bike..

[Tommasini53]

I have decades of experience building up road bikes. I have NOT followed cx/gravel very closely, so I'm not up on the benefits of the disc brake systems.

If I am not planning to ride frequently in mud/wet conditions, do I need disc brakes?? I ask because I'm building up a cx/gravel bike and I have plenty of high quality rim-brake wheels that I could use on a gravel/cx bike. AND i'm just riding -- i'm not racing.

So I'm interested to hear from experienced gravel crowed and cx'ers just how great are the benefits of disc vs rim braking. Who makes the absolute best cantilever brake systems? WHo makes the best disc systems?

This is totally new to me so send me to your favorite link if you have some good educational material on the web. should be fun....:banana:

[gavingould]

i don't think there's a one-brake-fits-all 'best' solution.

benefits of disc, in my opinion -
3. not reliant on the wheel being quite true for pad clearance - if you break a spoke, you're not going to be rubbing brake the rest of the ride
2. performance in the wet - at least in my experience, discs outperform canti pretty well here - in mud you can still burn through disc pads pretty swiftly
1. modulation - i've never used mechanical discs, but hydraulic offer drastically more modulation than any cantilever i can think of.

some may have different experiences than i have - for me the best cantis were Avid Shorty Ultimates (i ran them narrow both front and rear)
i've had Shimano's R785 hydraulic disc system on my road/gravel/cross race bike for 14 months, the performance is fantastic and has required zero maintenance. no adjustment, no bleeding, no nothing. seriously.

as opposed to the cantis, which were pretty fussy to get set up for a decent mix of power and modulation, then would need adjustment for pad wear and cable stretch...
cable pull discs i've heard can be fussy too, but a good hydro system, for me that's the stuff. they offer both power and control in spades at the cost of a little more weight.

HOWEVER - as great as they are, i don't think most people need them, by any means.

[ceolwulf]

Agree with the Avid Shorty Ultimates being the best cantis.

At this point I think the only advantage cantis still have is that they are lighter. And if you're not shouldering your bike five times a lap and need those few seconds, it's irrelevant.

[guido]

For gravel I am completely happy with Tektro C720s. They are simple to set up and perform very very well. Some folks prefer the Koolstop salmon colored pad or the triple compound, but I have had fine success with the standard pad too... I think a lot of folks concerns with their power, and the need for a different pads, are due to bad setup, mostly too low of a saddle height.

As to disks, I think the tradeoffs in excess fork stiffness and being a pain to service a long way from home don't outweigh any benefit you get from them. My 2 cents.

[bobswire]

Don't dismiss long reach caliper frames. Gravelbike (http://www.gravelbike.com/?p=3865) has had great success with long reach calipers as well as disc depending on conditions. Personally I use a Soma Stanyan as my do all/gravel bike since it uses long reach brakes and works great for the type of terrain I ride, like fire trails, loose gravel, potholed roads.
I have no problem running 32mm tires or 28 with fenders. If you need larger tires than those then canti or disc.

[MattTuck]

If not riding in the mud/wet, what tires will you be using?

Could you get away with long reach caliper brakes?

Personally, I question disc brakes on road bikes. I think they are a ploy by the industry to force another non-compatible standard upon us. And putting them on gravel/cx is just a trojan horse in that plan. So you'll already have discs in your garage. But that is just me.

If you're doing serious gravel/fire-road type riding, or cx, I think it can make sense. The above reasons are legit. Though, for adventure riding, sometimes simpler is better and it is nice to have equipment that can be fixed in the field if something breaks.

[Ken Robb]

There are many posts on this subject in the archives. I wonder: if a bike is to be ridden on surfaces with limited traction how much braking power can it really use?

[sandyrs]

There are many posts on this subject in the archives. I wonder: if a bike is to be ridden on surfaces with limited traction how much braking power can it really use?

At the same time, if a surface has limited traction, you want good modulation to be able to take advantage of what little traction you have. Lack of modulation has been my major complaint about the otherwise-excellent Mini Motos I currently have on my cyclocross bike.

[yarg]

In my neck of woods, gravel roads means steep down hills. On many rides the effort to control the bike was somewhat draining. I just built up a gravel bike with shimano RS685 hydro brakes that are definitely going to eliminate this problem, they are fantastic.

[eippo1]

In my neck of woods, gravel roads means steep down hills. On many rides the effort to control the bike was somewhat draining. I just built up a gravel bike with shimano RS685 hydro brakes that are definitely going to eliminate this problem, they are fantastic.
I found that true when going from cantis to spyres as well. My hand and wrists killed me with all the breaking on the downhills. The modulation with the discs really made a huge difference for me.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

[Lovetoclimb]

Get Paul Minimoto rim brakes and enjoy!

[JAGI410]

For rim brakes, the Velo Orange a grand Cru caliper or the Paul mini moto. For discs, anything but BB7's

[oldpotatoe]

I have decades of experience building up road bikes. I have NOT followed cx/gravel very closely, so I'm not up on the benefits of the disc brake systems.

If I am not planning to ride frequently in mud/wet conditions, do I need disc brakes?? I ask because I'm building up a cx/gravel bike and I have plenty of high quality rim-brake wheels that I could use on a gravel/cx bike. AND i'm just riding -- i'm not racing.

So I'm interested to hear from experienced gravel crowed and cx'ers just how great are the benefits of disc vs rim braking. Who makes the absolute best cantilever brake systems? WHo makes the best disc systems?

This is totally new to me so send me to your favorite link if you have some good educational material on the web. should be fun....:banana:

No..lots of 'fashion' is going into 'gravel grinders', and their marketing make you believe that you MUST have disc brakes..it's the newest, greatest, most sell-able thing now, along with losing your front der, and getting a cogset that's bigger than the disc brake rotor on the back(never thought front der shifting in the dirt was that hard..lot of MTBers don't either).

Disc brakes, along with tubeless(another huh?, IMHO) were made for MTBs ridden in muck, mud, wet, slop, OR good chance of wacking a rim..disc brakes shine there. Plus tubeless, low pressures, no pinch flats.

But if your riding is dry, no need for the expense, complication or weight of disc brakes, IMHO.

Paul, TRP, shimano, all make great cantis and some with really nice V brakes.

But if ya gotta, shimano discs, coupled with either mechanical or Di2, are the best out there. They make sram pale in comparison.

[shovelhd]

Now that is a great reply.

[Gummee]

I passed a few guys on discs who couldn't brake at the Hilly Billy Roubaix yesterday. We had tons of rain at the start and then lots of riders churning the 'roads' into peanut butter mud or worse.

'IDK what's wrong?! I can't brake!'

Me: 'you wore your pads out...' (See all the CX Nats posts from WI)

That was soon after the first aid station. There was another 50ish mi left to ride! ...and LOTS of steep downhill to come.

So... discs are not the be-all, end-all in braking.

M

[firerescuefin]

I passed a few guys on discs who couldn't brake at the Hilly Billy Roubaix yesterday. We had tons of rain at the start and then lots of riders churning the 'roads' into peanut butter mud or worse.

'IDK what's wrong?! I can't brake!'

Me: 'you wore your pads out...' (See all the CX Nats posts from WI)

That was soon after the first aid station. There was another 50ish mi left to ride! ...and LOTS of steep downhill to come.

So... discs are not the be-all, end-all in braking.

M

That's less a brake issue...and more a pad issue. What you posted is not new to folks that run discs (with the wrong pads for those conditions).

[mktng]

I've been happy with Paul's touring brakes. Despite being a pita to adjust. Once you've figured out the best way to do it... Road side adjustments are super simple. They also make me feel confident in all conditions. So far so good. Plus I'm heavy. I'd love discs. But I have bigger issues to worry about.... Like fender mounts :P.

[Ken Robb]

That's less a brake issue...and more a pad issue. What you posted is not new to folks that run discs (with the wrong pads for those conditions).

How easy is it to change disc pads on a bicycle? I have done so many times on motorcycles and cars. Is it reasonable to plan a mid-race swap on a long sloppy ride?

[thwart]

See the threads about the infamous CX Nationals in Verona in early '13… semi-frozen clay/mud… many of the folks riding discs literally had no brakes after one lap.

Which IMO is less than optimal. ;)

If you've got a bunch of stuff already around that would work with rim brakes (be they cantis, long-reach calipers or V-brakes), then I think you have an easy decision to make.

[Lewis Moon]

I absolutely love my Avid Shorty Ultimates. In the narrow configuration they seem to bridge the gap between cantis and linear pulls (V). Power enough to lock up both wheels, light, good clearance, great "feel" and easy to set up.

[unterhausen]

In my neck of woods, gravel roads means steep down hills. On many rides the effort to control the bike was somewhat draining.
same here, it's amazing how much brake you can use. I hated descending with cantis, but long reach dual pivot worked fine. I like having discs, one reason is I can swap road wheels in very easily.

[GRAVELBIKE]

Tire size often dictates brake choice. For tires 32mm and narrower, I prefer dual-pivot sidepulls. For 32-38mm tires, I like mini-v's. And for anything wider than 38mm, discs. Note that fenders also affect brake choice.

[GRAVELBIKE]

How easy is it to change disc pads on a bicycle? I have done so many times on motorcycles and cars. Is it reasonable to plan a mid-race swap on a long sloppy ride?

It depends on the brake caliper. It's pretty quick/easy to change pads on a top-loading caliper. Remove the e-clip, unscrew the retention pin, swap pads, then reinstall the pin/clip. If the old pads were really worn down, you may have to push the pistons back into their bores, though.