Hydraulic Vs mechanical brakes
#126
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Anytime there is a discussion on brakes it's almost always the hydro disc fan boys who try to convince everybody that cable actuated brake systems are weak, unreliable, prone to failure, complex to set up, complex to adjust and inadequate for any type of serious riding.
Anytime people mention brakes most people tend to have their favorite brakes and some people will say that another brake system is bad no matter what it might be and it can come from all sides. Most brakes are either crap or decent according to so many different people.
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Hmmm...okay. Would that vary greatly with riding conditions? Kapusta saying he is bleeding his brakes 2,3,4 times per year is puzzling to me, but this is only based on my own experiences.
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#128
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No need to call out any specific person. We now who they are . Just read some of the negative comments by one specific poster about how hydro discs are an absolute perfection and anything that's cable actuated is junk that's riddled with problems and complexity.
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#129
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Is it "they" or "one specific poster"? Painting out a scenario of a group of "hydro disc fan boys" when it's only one person is not at all the same thing. Someone spelling out their reasons why they have a preference of one type over the other, including pointing out their perception of flaws with the disfavored system, is par for the course on both sides of this particular fence. Sometimes people use personal experiences for their justifications. Sometimes people make up theoretical conditions without any experience at all.
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#131
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Making claims like single speed is better always in every geared discussion has a similar ring to it and while I love single speeds, I also loved geared bikes as well and one can love and have both and be happy. You would be good to seek happiness. I know it is tough, depression is easy to get and hard to shake but you gotta try. Variety is the spice of life : )
#132
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It’s kind of a dirty job, and not one which i like. But it takes less time than adjusting the shoes on a rim brake system. A typical rim brake adjustment for me involves dressing the shoes with a file, wiping down the wheel braking surfaces with aceton, adjusting the shoe alignment and toe angle, the tension springs if I am working on v brakes, and of course adjusting the cable length.
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Yes. Changes in temperature can cause changes in pressure in braking systems, which can cause them to draw in air. As brake pads wear, brake fluid levels get lower, and adding fluid can introduce air into the system. I run Magura disk brakes, and as I don’t ride my mountain bike that often, the pads don’t wear much, and the fluid level remains pretty consistent. Also, they use mineral oil instead of brake fluid, so moisture absorption is less an issue. However, if I do need to add fluid, by the time I position the bike on the work stand, move the lever to make it level, and get out the fluid, syringe, tools, and hose, there is only another step required to bleed the brakes, so why not do it?
It’s kind of a dirty job, and not one which i like. But it takes less time than adjusting the shoes on a rim brake system. A typical rim brake adjustment for me involves dressing the shoes with a file, wiping down the wheel braking surfaces with aceton, adjusting the shoe alignment and toe angle, the tension springs if I am working on v brakes, and of course adjusting the cable length.
It’s kind of a dirty job, and not one which i like. But it takes less time than adjusting the shoes on a rim brake system. A typical rim brake adjustment for me involves dressing the shoes with a file, wiping down the wheel braking surfaces with aceton, adjusting the shoe alignment and toe angle, the tension springs if I am working on v brakes, and of course adjusting the cable length.
What you wrote in your second paragraph, while it may be your practice, is nothing like how most people adjust their rim brakes.
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#136
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<eyeroll>
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Glad I'm not in the market for a new bike. I'm even more confused now after reading through the thread. Are disc brakes good or bad?
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You decide.
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That's why they call it confirmation bias i.e. your opinion was fixed before you even read it. If someone said disc brakes were no hassle you would just ignore it.
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Worried about brake bleeding? I wouldn't. You don't need to do it often (a bit like your car) and if you can't be bothered it's a quick shop job during a service. I've never had to bleed my oldest road disc brakes (2019) and typically bleed mtb brakes once every couple of years as required. Pad changes vary depending on riding conditions. I wore out a set of SRAM organic pads in a week riding in the Alps (should have switched to sintered for that trip really). Same pads locally last all year with plenty of short, steep descents. Changing pads is a 5 min job.
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My opinion was "fixed?" Duh!! That's why they call it an "opinion." And they still sound like a PITA. In my opinion.
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People can and often do change their opinion as they gain more knowledge and experience, but I'm guessing that would be an alien concept for you.
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The problem the comment is not relevant with modern hydraulic braking systems. My wife and I have GRX-equipped adventure bikes, which we store in an unconditioned garage, and we have travelled extensively with these bikes. In a few instances, we have taken these bikes from a cold northern winter climate to Laos in one case and to southern Portugal the other as well as numerous trips to the desert without yet needing a bleed. I have placed hydraulic disc bikes on planes for years and have yet to have an issue: the most extreme conditions, temperature and pressure differential. You can't accept that disc brakes work are reliable and provide superior braking. If you like legacy rim brakes, good for you, but looking for unfounded reasons makes no sense.
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#148
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You were happy to take those reasons as amounting to discs being a PITA, but quick to disagree with his comments about adjusting rim brakes - which in his opinion was actually more of a PITA. Yet somehow your brain managed to reverse what the poster actually said to suit your own narrative. It's comedy gold.
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Other than the rim wipe-down, what 50PlusCycling described sounds exactly like what it takes me to replace rim brake pads.
- slide out the old pads
- slide in the new pads
- adjust the cable tension with the brake's barrel adjuster
Several seconds of braking downhill "tunes up" the new pad surfaces.
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