RIM VS DISC BRAKES - THE FINAL WORD

I have had loads of people ask for my opinion on Disc brakes vs rim brakes and which I prefer - so here it is, the final word.... well, my final words, I don't plan to talk about them again!!

01:59 The Bike Industry bulldozer
04:08 Disc brakes, Pros & Cons
06:21 Disc brake wheel change
06:53 Disc brake vs rim brakes looks, which looks better? S-Works Tarmac
07:23 S-Works Venge
07:36 Trek Madone
07:37 Cervelo S3
07:39 Tour de France, Giro d'Italia, Vuelta Espana - Verdict

[xenos]

As a person who does wheelies with rim brakes. I personally like rim brakes more than disc braces. Example rim brakes are much easier to maineintance than disc brakes. And its much cheaper to have rim brakes for me. And if the brakes break. Its easy to fix.

[rickmancini]

Thanks for the video - a few comments:
- Disc brakes are obviously the best option for dirty riding - mtb, gravel, etc. Grinding grit into the bike rim, especially carbon rims, with a rim brake is less than ideal
- Disc brakes are also the best option for rims/tires that are wider than what rim brakes can clear
- Besides the above, rim brakes remain a simple, elegant effective solution for most road biking scenarios
- if you ride on clean paved roads, rim brakes are great
- Rim brakes will clear 25 mm tire; there is no advantage for wider tires on decently paved roads
- Rim brakes on alloy rims work brilliantly
- Modern rim brake carbon rims have much improved braking performance, even in the rain
- If you don’t like the carbon rim / rim braking experience, the deep section carbon rims with alloy braking surface is an often overlooked option. See the HED Jet wheels
- As another commenter mentioned, the cycling industry sucks and is constantly shoveling marketing bullshit
- The thru axle does not stiffen the frame more than a properly clamped cam type skewer
- My disc brake bike doesn’t noticeably modulate better than my properly set up and toed-in rim brake bikes

[chrisdahms]

I can appreciate this is a relatively balanced video, however as you mentioned rim brakes are lighter, cheaper, easer to install, and easier to maintain so I'll keep mine for a while 👍

[denethorpalantir]

For me,
hydro disc for the MTB
mech disc for the gravel bike
rim brakes for the road bike

[ducman]

Just keep making rim brakes and there’s no conflict with me, I don’t care what anyone buys or rides just keep the choice...

[portwest]

Rim brakes for me, I've had dura ace discs and wouldn't want them again

[GramCounter]

Sometimes, in my 5 hour ride i touch my brakes less then 10 times...and then they need to stop whole 64 kg..
Rim brakes are perfectly fine for me.
I have crux with hydro discs and the are awesome but not necessary for my road riding

[daggyag]

Ive said this so many times on so many websites, Llama, Durianrider, dcrainmaker, gcn.... Rim brakes are more than sufficient enough for all weights n sizes in cycling. The downside are the traction on the tyres. Whether it is disc or rim brakes, both will stop your tyres from spinning and both will get the job done. Your tyres and the surface you r riding on is where the question lies.
Stop listening to rumors. There are no known wear and tear rims due to rim braking and there will never be.
Rim brakes are efficient and easier to maintain and are much cheaper and they look cleaner. If you want to buy into the marketing hype, by all means. I am happy and always been happy with my rim brakes. Its not about accepting new tech or not.
Go do a test and tell me rim brakes wont stop your tyres nor is rim brakes any less effective than disc brakes.
The only problem will be tractio, friction or the lack of it between your tyres and the surface u r riding on.
Comparing to bigger and heavier vehicles is silly. They have much bigger tyres and they weigh alot heavier. We humans dont need that much braking power to stop our tyres.
Take 2 similiar race bikes, 1 with rim and another with discs. Trust me, both will stop and both tyres will slide. That already tells you that rim brakes are more than sufficient enough!

[LordAus]

I don’t see why the right rider on discs can’t win a grand tour. It’s just a matter of time really. Discs aren’t why riders are winning or losing races.

I can’t help but feel that the cycling industry has retconned us. Lighter used to mean better, but now it’s aero is more important than weight. Now everyone needs discs because carbon clinchers should never have been created, but they were all the rage before... I mean, does the industry even know what the best bike is? It changes every decade. Next they’ll tell us that a new material makes sub 500g frames possible or the UCI will finally drop the ancient weight minimum so now weight is king again — there go discs and aero.

[nikispaniki]

Minor advantage for disk. Particularly for touring where disks add one more bit of congestion around the rear drop out. Discs heat up and if you’ve flat after a long down hill it is a pain in hand to pull your wheel. If you’ve got rim brakes on a bike you like dont sweat it. You’re not really missing anything special.

[storckriese]

Maybe you shouldn't just mentioned the results of just one stage of last year's tour but also the overall standings. The whole podium - no discs.

[samanamjed]

After 1 year of lying around my discs brake squeaked and at the end both failed damn are they a pain

[caillou]

Only positive angle I see to disk brakes is that they allow larger tires. And comfort comes first from tire size. Otherwise, I wouldn’t bother with disks for the breaking power difference they offer o pared to rim brakes.
Manufacturers force disks on us. I just cannot believe the weekend sportive riders are actually asking for them that much.

[windnomade]

Finally I total agree with youre opinion!
And dont forget the heavy rider go much better with disc brakes ... especialy on descents

[matthewnapier]

Something else to consider is the weight of the rider. If you look at the size of the brakes on a car vs a truck, obviously they get bigger and more powerful. So when smaller cyclist (as many are) say they dont need disc, that may be true, but at 100kg I certainly do. I will never go back to rim. Disc 100%

[kjs]

I have both - no difference, who cares. Disc feel and work better. Rim looks better imo. Weaker riders and weight weenies complain I guess. Some cyclists are just massive wankers.

[thedownunderverse]

Took a rim brake and disc brake version of the same frame out for some back to back testing last weekend. Same group set and contact points. Same group set (aside from brakes). The disc bike felt soooo sluggish. Sticking with rim brakes here. I think carbon rims are pointless... good alloy clinchers are perfect.

[valeccylinder]

If Carbon wheels - disc brakes
If Alu wheels - Rím brakes
That si my opinion

[sbsb]

Do you bicycles have engine? Is your bicycle as heavy as a car?

[boshebosh]

I currently weight 14st 10 and see lots of rain and muck and dirt on our poorly surfaces UK roads. If I lived in Australia I would understand the reluctance of leaving rim brakes. But I don't. Disc brakes every time for me.