Originally Posted by
Rowan
I had an interesting conversation with a frame builder this week and the major issue with disc brakes on the front is still going to be the fork design. And it has a lot to do with how the bottom of the forks twist out of true because of the forces applied when the brake come on. To overcome this deformation, the forks have to be built to a much heavier specification -- as in heavier physically, and so they don't have the same "feel" on the road as non-disc forks.
Take it for what it's worth.
This is true and there's some similar history with fork evolution as disk brakes on motorcycles became more common and more powerful. Just one of
several reasons that motorcycle forks are larger in diameter than they used to be. The twisting of a bicycle's fork isn't too disconcerting as long as the hub stays connected to the drop outs. Disk brake compatible suspension forks used on mountain bikes often have a retention system more encompassing than "lawyer's lips" just for this reason.
Brad