choteau

Good morning, it seems everybody "knows" steel wheels won't stop when wet. That they are "dangerous" when wet. Take your "life" in your own hands.... So, the question is.... how many of us grew up riding steel wheels and lived thru it, ( I'd say millions and millions etc. ) Tim ps this just for fun, not to start an argument

nlerner

Tim, I think the ones who didn't live through it won't be responding!

Neal

wrk101

+ The dead ones aren't on email anymore.

I lived through a lot of stupid things as a kid that others did not.

TejanoTrackie 

In the 1960's I used to own a French Peugeot UO8 with steel rims that stopped just fine when wet. The secret was that the braking surfaces on the sides of the rims had grooves in them to dissipate the water. Also, the brake blocks on the Mafac center pull brakes were huge and the leverage was tremendous. The real problem was that the brakes were too strong in dry conditions, and I endoed the bike several times when I grabbed the front brake too hard. I had a friend who owned a Schwinn Varsity with smooth sided steel rims, and he wrecked out a lot in the rain.

wahoonc

It taught you critical thinking skills...as in thinking how far ahead it was going to take to stop and the location of all the thorn bushes along the route so you didn't bail into them for an emergency stop.

BTW still alive and still riding steel rims in the rain, all be it with Kool Stop pads

Aaron

gna

I've started commuting to work on a Raleigh Sports. I just replaced the old brake pads with Kool Stop Salmons, and was impressed with their stopping power. I got caught in the rain Wednesday on my way home, and the stopping power of my brakes was reduced to "eventually."

Thinking maybe the Alloy rims may be a good idea...

Gary

unworthy1

yep, I have survived it too, but it was a different world back then: we also didn't use seatbelts (except maybe lap belts when Mom was looking), never rode with a helmet (what, is this a football game?), and used *leaded* gasoline as a cheap solvent (cheaper than paint thinner)...different world...

phillyrider

Steel wheels are not a problem in the rain. Wet trolley tracks are...I've spent the past 2-3 months getting over a broken elbow. I ride steel rims in the rain, in the dark, and in the light snow - yet somehow survive.

Like most things you figure out stopping distance & speed. It's what helmets are for...

Road Fan

Or railroad tracks on a frosty morning! The rail is iced but the surrounding pavement is not.

I think it's safe to say that wet steel rims do not brake as well as wet aluminum ones, but I agree with Philly, good use of the eyes and mind can keep you safe.

It takes a moment when braking a wet rim for the brake pad to squeeze away the water on the rim surface. After it does this, the pad is bearing on mostly dry rim surface. I've noticed such a delay on aluminum rims as steel, but it seems to be longer for steel. You need to brake sooner.

As in a lot of other topics, negative aspects can become exaggerated out of proportion. I usually think this is done by people who only have hearsay to go on.

RapidRobert

Steel wheels stop OK if you're not riding too fast for conditions and the equipment you're on. Faster stopping allows faster riding, which leads also to more accidents of other types. Progress in equipment doesn't necessarily lead to better safety, but it's nice to be able to stop predictably!

We don't need aluminum rims to stop, just like we don't need helmets to ride safely. The stereotype of bicyclists was never someone with brain damage from hitting their head. Bicycling is now, and always has been, a very safe thing to do.

rhm

I, too, survived steel wheels in the rain; but most of those years my bike had a coaster brake. The first time I rode my new Raleigh Record in the rain, I rear ended a car. I learned caution very quickly! But now that I think about it, I upgraded to aluminum rims within a few years.

Recently I've gone back to steel rims, but I don't ride those bikes in the rain.

CardiacKid

On long trips, I slept on the little shelf under the rear window of our car, while my parents chain smoked Newports.
I rode a bike with steel wheels, suicide brake levers, no lawyer tabs and sharp edges on the deraileurs without a helmet and frequently without shoes.
That doesn't mean I would do any of that today and I sure wouldn't let my children.

RobbieTunes

you go to war with what you have.....

DavidW56

What are "lawyer tabs"?

I've never ridden anything but steel rims, so I don't know the difference. When I finally plow through fixing all the low-end bikes in my garage and move 'em out, I'll be able to reach the very few better-quality bikes I own and then I'll see what it's like riding on alloy or aluminum.

JohnDThompson 

Or my personal nemesis, loose leaves over a frozen puddle. Preferably on a busy corner.

SirMike1983 

They were little tabs of metal added to the dropouts so that if the quick release came loose while riding, the wheel wouldn't escape the fork.

Ronsonic 

Yep, steel wheels and coaster brakes. Then the Raleigh roadster. Then years later my first aluminum rims and the overwhelming urge to slap everyone who didn't tell me about them before.

It was a revelation.

Now, I could probably ride steel, but that's because I'm old and slow.

TejanoTrackie 

They are even used today on track racing bike forks, which use wheels with nuts instead of quick releases! It's amazing what product liability laws have inflicted on today's consumers.

Reynolds 

Side pull calipers weren't as bad as rod brakes. My DL-1 has very little braking power if it's dry, almost nothing in the rain. I read somewhere that leather brake pads worked better, is that true?

nlerner

Yellow Jersey still sells Fibrax pads with leather inserts for just such a use:

https://www.yellowjersey.org/vinbrake.html (scroll down a bit)

Whether they work or not, I have no idea.

Neal

Zaphod Beeblebrox 

all my steel wheels as a kid had coaster brakes.

SirMike1983 

Same here: Bendix and New Departure.

CardiacKid

Safer Products?
Gas tanks on cars that don't explode at low impact;
SUVs that don't flip over when they get a flat;
Drugs for the flu that don't kill you;
Toys that kids won't chok on;
cribs that won't strange kids;
and wheels that will stay on your bike but take 5 seconds extra to remove.
Damn those lawyers!

Jude

Trolley tracks are a menace no matter what. I've managed to avoid wrecking on them so far, but I also haven't been riding much in Philly since I owned a road bike.

Also, upon bringing said road bike back to Philly, I discovered that the roads there are **** and fat tires are all that make them bearable.

tolfan

I was in 7th or 8th grade in Philadelphia when the local bus company went on strike, SEPTA, I had given a phoney address to the school district so I could go to a better school. So Septa stike bikeing to school in the rain Schwinn Continental steel wheels ran right into a horse cart selling fruit. 1st time I noticed steel wheels dont stop good. Pull hard and and double the stoping distance, the brake pads will dry the wheel and you will stop.