Road Cycling - Hydraulic Brakes??? Is it worth it.

Just a quick post,

I am doing a 1500 Km road trip in 2 months. I am training and getting ready for the trip. I am going to be pulling a BOB Yak trailer for the trip, about 70lbs extra there. I notice that when im moving at a good pace and brake with the front brakes, i get a slight shimmy in the wheel due to the extra weight. I am wondering if adding hydraulic disc brakes will take care of this. Any ideas? What is the main advantage of hydraulic disc breaks? Are they worth the extra money, besides looking cool :/
Cant wait to leave, ready to go, hehe. Later
Cory

Disk brakes in general are known for handling mud and water the best of all the brake systems. Weather you would need them, I'm not sure. I find that GOOD V-brakes will USUALLY provide as much stopping power as disks in dry conditions. Under the extra weight however, I would assume that the disks might preform a bit better especially in the rain. (by the way, what brakes are you currently running?) The hydrolics have the benefit of little upkeep and very nice modulation. However they are very hard to set up.

In all, disk brakes are very nice, but keep in mind that you will probably have to change your hubs which leads to the extra cost of having your wheel rebuilt etc. If money is a factor, you might want to just consider getting bettor V-brakes, mechanical disks, or it might be as simple as changing your pads to a softer compound (doesn't last as long, but provides more stopping power. I would recommend the salmon coloured kool stops.)

Well, good luck and i hope you have a good tour.

If you're planning on towing the extra weight, I would recommend the discs. They have much more stopping power and will not fade on long descents like a regular rim brake will. You could even go to an 8" rotor that the Downhillers use!

As far as initial set-up, the newer brakes require a little more time and concentration, but the average Joe can do it if they follow directions. Most of the new systems are a closed system pre-bled and it's just a matter of bolting it onto the bike.

Yes, you will need a fork with disc tabs if you don't already and a new disc compatible hub (or wheel). If you've got the fork and the hub, you're only looking at $175 - 225 for a decent system.

l8r

Hydraulic does not neccessarily mean a disk brake. Magura make some highly regarded rim brakes, with brake levers for drop or straight bars.
Disk brakes can put a lot of stress on forks, all the braking goes against one of the fork arms.


If the problem is a "shimmy" what do you mean by that, shimmy is generally a vibration or resonance in the frame when going downhill at speed.
What kind of bike and wheels do you use?

Worth every penny.

Cory......Yes, it'll help in your situation but you'll need to get a new (road?) fork with disc tabs. But linear brakes (V brakes) might be more practical for touring purposes. What kind of bike will you be touring with? Give us more details... Are you heading north or south from Yokosuka? Urayamashii desu... Gambatte-ne...

BTW, I graduated from Yokosuka High School (YoHi) in 1972......

another issue with disk brkes for touring. if your out in the middle of nowhere and bend a rim it maybe difficult to find a new one that will take a rotor. while you could probably get a regular rim anywhere. other than that i think disks are a great idea.