Some great benefits of Bicycle Disc Brakes
I’ve enjoyed riding my mountain bike for upwards of 10 years. Through the years it would qualify a lot more as a hybrid bicycle as a result of alterations I’ve made to add additional comfort to the ride. This becomes more necessary to us once we grow older.
One area where I believed it was constantly lacking was the brakes. Although they are Shimano center pull caliper brakes, they just don’t perform well in damp weather or muddy conditions. So I was pleasantly surprised when I recently borrowed a friends bicycle with new disc brakes. One of the main advantages of bicycle disc brakes could be the excellent all-weather operation. One more point I truly like is the fact there isn’t any maintenance needed in contrast to the standard adjustments needed on cable activated traditional brakes. When you install the disc brakes, setup the calipers it is possible to merely forget about them.
Not surprisingly should you opt to upgrade to disc brakes you will find them more costly then conventional rim brakes. But their operation is so great that most will gladly pay the purchase price. Another negative would be that the disc brake assemblies and rotor do add some weight to your bike. Again, you have to determine if considering your riding habits, this can be acceptable. In most cases to switch to bicycle disc brakes you may need new wheels also. Disc rims can not be installed on standard hubs used with standard rim brake wheels.
Though it will take some work and additional cost to upgrade to bicycle disc brakes, if you need far better and consistently improved brake overall performance in all conditions, disc brakes are a great investment. But you must decide if the cost is worthwhile. Seriously speaking, not everyone truly must upgrade to bicycle disc brakes. Most riders are quite happy with their rim brake and ride in an environment where rim brakes handle the job for example in flat and dry terrain. But as you take to more steeper trails and wetter conditions, disc brakes become most effective. Another issue to consider is if you are a 200 lb rider like me, you’ll truly appreciate the improvement in braking power.
I’ve tried the Shimano disc brakes and as with all of Shimano bicycle parts, they performed flawlessly under virtually any conditions from mountain trails to riding through creek beds.
Besides Shimano, in line with reviews, Avid disc brakes, Hayes disc brakes, and Tektro disc brakes are all easily obtainable in kits and as individual components making it possible to suit almost any application desired.
This entry was posted on Wednesday, June 30th, 2010 at 4:08 am and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.