Originally Posted by
Maelochs
I will admit, compared to hydro discs, cables are not nearly as powerful, but they do not go out of adjustment.
Originally Posted by
Psimet2001
Small point of clarification - while they may not "go out of adjustment" in that they don't just change their setup on their own mechanical discs DO wear rapidly and do not compensate for that wear on their own. In the spectrum of road it doesn't on the surface seem like a big deal or a frequent occurrence but when disc first hit on the cross scene and we were forced to use mechanical discs we frequently blew through enough of a pad in 1 lap of a messy race that all braking power would be lost. Luckily we can pit and grab a new bike.
Point taken. However ….
Originally Posted by
Kapusta
This can actually be true for mtb, but not really for road. I have used BB7s for years on my mtbs. And when riding in the mountains with long descents I did need to twiddle the adjustment knobs every few rides, sometimes even each ride in particularly demanding terrain. It takes about 30 seconds to do front and rear.
I also have bb7s on a road/gravel bike. I adjust those about every 10-15 rides. Again, 30 seconds and done.
I trust both of you and your information. Since this thread specified road use, I focused on that. I have never used cable discs off-road. I certainly go more than 15 rides between brake adjustments … but perhaps because I am a slower rider on flatter terrain, pad wear is less of an issue.
On the other hand, as @
Kapusta notes … there is a barrel adjuster.
But, I stipulate that as @
Psimet2001 points out, cable disc levers do not self-adjust. No sense arguing @
bike_Wikipedia. The guy knows where of he speaks—or at least, he has completely fooled me with every post of his I have ever read.