cshong88

Been following the Vuelta and am noticing how many of the riders are still riding traditional rim brakes, even the Specialized sponsored teams when it comes to the Tarmac. Now that the UCI has fully approved disc brakes and it seems like every manufacturer has a disc brake version of their lightweight and aero models, any thoughts or inside info as to the prevalence of disc brakes in the pro peloton next year? I wonder if any more teams will go full disc like Trek did this past year. Or perhaps riders will use disc brakes for the aero bikes (especially given a lot of the new aero bikes are disc brake only) and still stick with rim brakes for the lightweight climbing bikes?
Interested to see what a team like Sunweb will do - new S5 being disc only - wonder if the team will go to disc only and ride the R5 disc as well or stick with the rim version for climbing/GC riding.

Lazyass

Regardless what anyone's opinion on discs is, it won't be long before only low end road bikes have rim brakes. Just like what happened to MTB's. Manufacturers aren't going make two different brake versions of their bikes forever. We are currently in the transion period.

DrIsotope

I don't give a crap what pro teams do. They operate based on sponsorships-- what pays is what plays.

I buy based on what products best suit my needs.

Oh, and any and all debates about performance are moot-- disc rims look better. Brake tracks are an eyesore.

ddub

I believe the OP's topic was not directed at anyones opinion on disc brake marketing for the masses but rather why the pros haven't flocked to them. I don't think weight is an issue as the latest disc frames are plenty light to make the UCI minimum. My view is that the lengthly rear wheel change could be an issue for the GC contenders wanting disc brakes. I watched a pro team change a disc front in a race this year and it was painfully long A wheel change on an ascent could spell doom for the climbers overall aspirations. Bike swap is the answer IMO. This however, won't always work when the roads become narrow and the team car isn't near. UCI mandate of disc brakes would level the field somewhat but they might as well mandate a pedal they must use so neutral support can provide a rideable bike for all. Just my opinion and I may be totally off topic.

Maelochs

I think @ddub nailed it. For pros, everything is about what helps the team to win, and if discs aren't Way better at braking but are way slower for wheel changes .... negatives outweigh positives, discs don't make the cut.

Pros and the rest of us live in different bike worlds of course.

one4smoke

I do believe Sagan has been using discs on his Tarmac...

Maelochs

That's one in four .. . from that picture. Way less actually ... i have watched every stage and have been watching.

Also ... Sagan isn't going to lose GC position because he is a little slower up a climb. he (as far as i know) is not even vaguely concerned about GC ranking.

one4smoke

OP said..."Been following the Vuelta and am noticing how many of the riders are still riding traditional rim brakes, even the Specialized sponsored teams when it comes to the Tarmac."

Pointing out that's not the case.

fietsbob

Because there is wider TV coverage, Tour de France is a better Marketing opportunity,
than the Vuelta.

for the companies that sponsor a team's bikes...

to show off the stuff they want You to buy..

ddub

Bingo! I only recall seeing the Trek team on discs today. But the TV coverage rarely gives us a good look at the rest of the peloton so hard to say what teams sported discs. I just enjoy watching the pros whatever they are riding. Their ability to descend quickly (even on rim brakes) is amazing.

Steve B.

As I understand it a lot of add'l factors for the pro's. If there are different disc standards and sizes (140mm rotor vs. 160mm), it kills the concept of neutral support. Mavic always has a motorcycle with wheels out near a break-away(s) and the peloton. They can't easily carry a wide assortment of wheels with differing systems, thus rim is the common standard and safest bet if you want a quick wheel change.

fietsbob

Watched the tour, even the, commentators , had to remark

on how much slower the wheel changes were.

ddub

I'm not pro or con on the pros using disc brakes but I did watch a race this summer when one of the Aqua Blue Sport team riders had to have a wheel change. It was dreadful. Also watched a few rear wheel changes in the mountain bike world champs. They were super slow but thanks to some very talented riders the big delays weren't a
deciding factor for the lady's winner.

Dave Mayer

Why few disc brakes? Because they add unnecessary weight at the worst place on a bike.

if it weren't for the arbitrary UCI weight limit, all of the disc-equipped bikes on the pro tour would disappear overnight. But as it stands now, the disc bikes are relegated to the flat sprinter stages, where they cause the least handicap.

Add to this the heavy marketing pressure from the bike manufacturers - who need the Pro circuit as a marketing conduit to dentists and newb Roadies. Again, if the pros were left to their own judgment, nobody would be on discs.

Darth Lefty 

Troul 

A smaller rotor with matching pads could be a possibility if r&d were to determine whether or not a select material used could support the purpose. Cost would be a given for not being economically feasible for the average disc user.

jefnvk

I don't have a complaint with my discs, but I see no benefit with them for road riding either. If there is no benefit, and one could argue there are some drawbacks (neutral support for different sized rotors, the eventuality you also pick up slower changing TA, just being a PITA when the rotor grabs the brake pad on a slightly closed caliper and won't go in on the hydros which you know they will have), I don't see it becoming a thing, now at least. In MTB and Cyclocross you have a great reason why it is an advantage, in pro peloton not really.

cyclintom

I have had both and I do not like disks.

1. Disk brake pads wear out rapidly. Unlike a car there is no fluid reservoir and no power assist so the entire brake operates with manual high ratio lever pull. This means that it doesn't require much wear before the lever bottoms out. The only way to "adjust" this is to replace the disk pad. Looking at the disk wear after just a single hard ride should tell you that these brakes because of their relatively small size and disk diameter have a lot of wear. People that are saying that "My brake pads don't wear out" do not ride their bikes much.

2. A rim brake is attached to the fork head or the intersection of the seat stays and since they rub against the furthest outer section of the wheel and the brakes are at a very strong section of the frame they are very safe. This is why we are seeing "skeleton" brakes by all manufacturers and even smaller companies such as Bontrager who while owned by Trek still have to show a profit. Light is what we're talking about and so lighter brakes because of less forces against them are the password.

3. Disk brakes are at the worst place possible on a fork. They are at the end of a long lever and have to transfer all of the majority of the braking force through the entire length of the fork and into the frame. They don't have 12 mm axles on these bikes because they don't need them. While MTB forks have to absorb horrendous forces and are strongly built because of this, a road bike fork does not and putting disk brakes on them makes heavier forks than would otherwise be necessary.

The disk brakes are here for one purpose and one purpose only - as nothing more than a sales gimmick - something new for you to need and something new to increase the profit margins on bicycles. Teams are sponsored by bicycle companies in order to advertise their products so they are not going to complain one way or the other.

Now all of you people who sprung for a disk brake may attempt to defend your purchase by telling us all how disks have a lower "wait" period for braking in the rain. After all, we all ride in the rain so that is handier than lightly touching a road brake for 2 seconds before applying it heavily.

Or that they brake more than rim brakes despite the fact that you can lock wheels with either and that the reason that they put smaller diameter disks on road bikes is because they were far too sensitive and were locking too easily. You can also tell us that you don't care that there is no disk/hydraulic system or wheel locking system or rear wheel width standard because you're happy with what you have. That's fine until it is discontinued. Like the Campy 10 speed levers you can't get spare parts for them after they made the 11 speed standard.

There are two reasons for changes in standards - improvements and sales gimmicks. While massive numbers of gears are useful for pro racers they are not for Joe Everyday Rider. Disk brakes can only be said to fall under the mantle of "sales gimmick" and my bet is that they will disappear rather quickly.

Canker

Other than the no power assist part everything else you said there is wrong. You had a faulty set of disc brakes if you had those problems or maybe you had mechanical disc brakes and think they were hydraulic. There is a reservoir and hydraulic disk brakes automatically adjust for brake wear, it is one of the selling points of hydraulic over mechanical. Second time I've seen you post this incorrect info. If the crap you posted was factual they never would have taken over the mountain bike world let alone start on the road bike world.

Maelochs

Even a decent set of mech discs …. @cyclingtom must have gotten some very cheap, very early mech discs and installed them wrong.

Considering that I travel 45 feet in those two seconds, and another 15 before coming to a stop … yes, that makes a difference in the rain.

Best news ever: You do not have to buy a bike with discs. In fact, Shimano just released its 8000 group which features a choice of rim or disc brakes. You are safe for a while yet.

cyclebycle13

Let's not forget people who are descending for long periods of time don't have to worry about their tubular tires having the glue melt or clinchers heat up and blow a tube (or carbon clinchers deform) with disc brakes.

I have a bike with disc brakes for riding in the winter and for rain rides. All other times I'm riding a bike with rim brakes.

rydabent

There are already disc bikes in Walmart. The disc brake revolution is pretty much like the click shift revolution. The nay sayers will be cast aside. And yes there were nay sayers at the time that click shifting came in. Same as with clipless pedals.

wolfchild

And yet 90% of people I see riding bicycles including myself are still using platform pedals...One of the bikes I purchased many years ago came with clipless pedals, the first thing I told the LBS to do before I took the bike home, was to remove the clipless set up and change it to platform pedals.

Colnago Mixte

Once the OEMs switch to discs, the change is in the pipeline and unless there's a widespread demand for rim brakes, this change is permanent. At this point, disc and rim brakes probably cost about the same to a manufacturer.

The real turning point will be when it gets to the point that disc brakes are cheaper, and people have to pay extra for rim brakes. I can't see that happening since most people just want their brakes to stop, and that's it, they don't care how they look.

indyfabz

Not at all. You actually stayed on topic and avoided the general "which is better" debate.