Rim vs Disc Brakes

In this video expert bike fitter Neill Stanbury discusses his opinion on the ongoing debate of rim brakes vs disc brakes. The market is shifting towards all bikes with disc brakes, but should you be following the herd?

Full RCA Video available on our YouTube Channel

#cycling #bike #fit

[packratty]

As a 50+ lady, I can absolutely send myself over the handlebars with rim brakes in dry conditions. But rain, modulating ability and wheel choice make disc brakes better.

[staticv]

If you can go over the handlebars, then you're not limited by traction, but by center of gravity.
A traction limit would have you stay upright on your bike while both tires just scrub away beneath you.

[hogey]

It's been great getting back into riding in this era of cheap, good disc systems. But it's amusing seeing "market forces" and the childish aspects of human nature making rim brakes seem obsolete.

[matt_m]

How do you get a better contact patch? Wider tires. How do you get wider tires? Disc brakes.

[rttm]

Discbrakes are for any weather bike. They work much better at winter. When braking surface is getting a film of ice, the rimbrakes won't start braking instantly when you pull the lever. Or you have to grab them really hard, but then at moment the ice gets cleaned away from the rim. It will lock the wheel instantly and that's really dangerous at winter. Discbrakes clamp the braking surface so much stronger, it will shater, melt, or rub away ice instantly and you probably won't feel any difference.. it maybe squeak only more than on good weather, but that only until the ice is cleaned off..

[sportnation]

Every industry needs new repeat business, so what did the industry do? It drove bike sales by forcing people onto disc brakes. The marketing team will take care of the rest

[gregvassilakos]

You have to be careful not to let rim brakes drag on a long downhill. I have been on long downhills were I was very conscious that I needed to keep off the brakes until I was about to enter curves, at which time I would clamp down on the brakes firmly for a short period of time. GCN did a test in which they let disc brakes drag on a long downhill. The brakes got hot, but did not fail.

[BestKiteboardingOfficial]

They have an edge in the wet, but dry, anyone can put themselves over the bars or lose true traction with rim brakes.

[jamesmckenzie]

Rim brakes are great when you are riding in excellent conditions with carbon based braking surfaces. Anything other than this, disc brakes are the only way to go. Downhill, wet, or rough roads. That's 99 percent of the riding I do.

[paulrawlinson]

If the contact patch is the limiting factor you don't go over the handlebars, you lock up and slide. Really the limiting factor becomes the rotational inertia of the bike... that is how likely it is to tip over forwards, because this is more likely to happen than the front wheel locking up in a straight line. I have tried variously over decades of cycling and never managed a straight line front wheel lock up on a road. Either the front wheel slides out on a corner, or you go over the handlebars.

[arcaixsaberhand]

I'd choose disc. No rim wear, no problem in the long run.

[gulfcitynd]

MTB disc brakes rim is fine for the road

[jamesskinner]

Its not just about contact patch on road, its about the modulation of the disc which is far better than rim brakes also.

[paulwilliams]

And they are miles better at stopping in anything but perfect conditions. Mountain bikes, motorbikes and cars use them for a reason.

[dh]

How many more years before people just accept that disc brakes are better and we should move on?

[ChiTownBrownie]

Rim brakes grab further from the axis of rotation so they have more power in that sense. If you are riding in mud (cx) or mountains that require a lot of braking disc makes a ton of sense. If you just ride in a flat or hilly area, rim brake will be just fine.

[creativechimp]

My old 2014 carbon road bike has rim brakes and my MTB discs. Would I buy a road bike with disks next? Yes, they certainly inspire more confidence in some situations, but the way the conversation is often led is almost like you can't ride in the winter or wet with rim brakes. I've never had a disc brake road bike, and with decent pads and on an alloy rim and understanding the limits, I've always ridden through winters and the cold months here in a very wet UK with no issue, including some very steep descents; you just have to understand you can't just slam them on last minute.

[edwarding]

I would say the reason for disc brakes is to get wide rims and thus tires. They aren't developing road racing rim brake bikes to have wide rims and tires.

[dennisdose]

One factor I never see discussed is the effect on the moment of inertia of the wheel. Most people understand that disc brakes increase the total weight of the brake system. However, the rim itself can be made lighter since it doesn't need extra material for the braking wear surface. This decreases the moment of inertia at its greatest distance from the axle greatly reducing its moment. The extra mass of the disc is close to the hub, which gives it a far smaller contribution to the inertial moment.
Though heavier overall, the disc brake wheel should accelerate more quickly than a comparable rim brake wheel and be faster and less tiring to ride.
I suspect that this would more than offset the static weight penalty of the disc brake system.

[GuidossInnit]

Have never been on a rim brake bike and thought ‘I need more stopping power’. My main concern is to not lock up the wheels as I have plenty of stopping power