Fueling a relevant argument

[merlinmurph]

Adding to OldP's comment... especially when the added mass is close to the hub.

[Burnette]

And we know we've come full circle when we talk rotational mass

[ERK55]

Originally Posted by merlinmurph

More fuel in an RKP podcast where both Patrick and Selene declare that they will never buy a new rim-brake bike again.

Of course, they're not you, ride what you want.

I listened to that RKP podcast and they were quite emphatic.
So, I can only presume they would have no future interest whatsoever in Sachs,
Pegoretti, DiNucci, Bixxis, or J.P. Weigle.

[merlinmurph]

Originally Posted by ERK55

I listened to that RKP podcast and they were quite emphatic.
So, I can only presume they would have no future interest whatsoever in Sachs,
Pegoretti, DiNucci, Bixxis, or J.P. Weigle.

Selene - definitely not. She's an mtb rider at heart, does gravel events and I really don't think she would have any interest in those.

Patrick - hard to say. He already has frames from some top builders, possibly a DiNucci? Being a judge at NAHBS, he certainly has an appreciation for those frames

[Clean39T]

...

[Imaking20]

I think there's really no justification needed beyond "ride what you like" to end this debate.

There are lightweight tubular wheels for disc bikes also. These CLX32 are 1211g actual. I can tell you there's no sluggishness in terms of spin up..




I love rim brakes. As the article says, there's a lot to be said for properly setting up rim brakes (and I'd bet a significant portion of the population has no idea what this actually looks or feels like). EE brakes, Campy red pads and FSE or Bontrager XXX never left me wanting - and I basically ride bikes so that I can descend recklessly.

Now, I've been riding discs exclusively for the last ~4500 miles (primarily road - also a "gravel" bike). I didn't buy a disc bike because I needed more stopping power (in fact, I live somewhere now where I barely need brakes). For whatever reason, I find Shimano MUCH easier to setup than SRAM disc. There's one SRAM disc setup in the garage and, when it's gone, I'll never have another. It doesn't brake better than my rim setups, it's noisy, it's messy. Setting up Shimano is not so bad.

In regular conditions, coming to a stop somewhere, my wife's rim brake setup is usually much noisier than my disc setup. Over time, the brakes on my primary road bike have gotten noisier - and by this I mean (almost exclusively) that the pads have slowly started to retract more slowly - which means a "tsk tsk tsk" sound for about 50 feet after a hard stop. It's not a big deal - but it's a reality.

When I first built the Tarmac - there was no sort of rub or BS to speak of. Not out of the saddle, not after hard breaking, nada. I attribute this mostly to Specialized doing a fantastic job of surfacing/finishing mounting surfaces. I think maybe they realized that small alignment matters a lot and, if they want to push the industry this direction, they should do whatever they can to silence (pun not intended - but I'll take it) the argument before it starts. I can also tell you that none of the other 3 disc bikes I've built up have ever been quiet - and now even the Tarmac rubs after I disassembled and reassembled. It's made me even further realize just how finicky it is to setup discs and have them be quiet. I'm fairly certain that I have just enough tension/rotation in my hydraulic lines that my calipers are just barely not wanting to center (after many, many attempts) and now I live with a minor amount of rub... that I'm not crazy about. My last gripe about disc is that sometimes things happen; like a drastic overnight temperature change or you flip your bike by accidentally hitting something in the road - and you get to bleed your brakes again because the lever is now mush. Insult to injury - literally.

Now, do I feel like I need to abandon discs? No. Nothing is perfect - and the massive tire clearance and faster wheel swaps on my disc bike are great. Plus, my Tarmac looks awesome IMO (the reason I bought a disc bike was this paint). Am I ready to have a bike in the garage again that's easy to tinker on and I don't have to worry about technology failing me on a ride? Absolutely yes.

Sometimes it's a lot of fun to ride a bike that's at the pointy end of technology; a bike that's aerodynamically optimized, running electronic shifting, a power meter, and hydraulic discs is just that. I work in technology so I appreciate all of this.

Sometimes it's also fun to ride something that is... just... simple. Almost no technology that you can't see function with your own eyes. Cables and rim brakes. This is something I can be "mindless" about on a ride when I need to disconnect from the world. As I work in technology, I also appreciate all of this


Again, ride whatever you want. I think most of the times these debates take place because one side of the fence - who likely has zero experience on the other - drums it up to justify their stance. Who cares? It's your bike and your time - enjoy it however you want to.


There you have my longest post of the year. Time to go pedal.