Filthy

[Marcus Aurelius]

There’s no such thing as the wrong weather, just the wrong kit.

[foxyrider]

.......Good in theory - my disc bike gets through pads and discs even faster than I do rim blocks! It currently needs a pair of rotors and pads to get it back on the road - rim brakes are soo much cheaper to keep running.........

You've posted this before but it isnt my experience and going off others' posts I'm not alone.
What disc brakes do you have and what pads do you use?

HyRd's 160 rear, 180 front i've tried every type of pad and a fair few mfr's too. I think mostly I expect too much out of them, the same performance as my rim brakes and same level of maintenance - just not true for me.

Most notoriously I fitted new pads before a three week tour up through Holland and Germany to Denmark. When I got home I needed new pads, the biggest downhill was off the ferry! Generally the bike is lightly loaded and I was about 85kg last time I used the bike.

The big front rotor has done maybe 5000km since fitting and is now burnt (despite being a composite) and worn to about 50% original thickness, across the same period i've got two bikes with rim brakes that've done @ 3x that each without any real signs of rim wear.

Even using Swisstop pads i've not spent anywhere near as much on rim pads as I have on disc pads. One set of Swisstop are now well over 10000km in and still haven't reached the wear line despite Pennine and Alpine use in conditions as bad as snow and even off road riding.

[reohn2]

Foxy
I can only say that it's a mystery to me,my experience of disc brakes(cable BB7's both cable pull types)is that they not only outperform rim brakes but outlast them to large degree.
I don't understand it

[foxyrider]

Foxy
I can only say that it's a mystery to me,my experience of disc brakes(cable BB7's both cable pull types)is that they not only outperform rim brakes but outlast them to large degree.
I don't understand it

As I said, I think it may be that my expectations are very high. If a rider is used to using fairly poor brakes (for whatever reason, poor set up, materials, design) an even mediocre disk brake will be a step up and the bees knees, add in everyone and their dog telling you they are better and it's no surprise a large number of people believe that to be so.

On the other hand i've always been keen on having a brake set up that works well. So i'm used to very fine modulation, small lever movements and excellent feedback. I can set up my d/p's to give wheel lock / over the bars performance which is more than good enough for me! Subsequently i'm yet to use any disc brakes that are comparable in performance, there might well be some out there but i've not used them.

[reohn2]

Foxy
I can only say that it's a mystery to me,my experience of disc brakes(cable BB7's both cable pull types)is that they not only outperform rim brakes but outlast them to large degree.
I don't understand it

As I said, I think it may be that my expectations are very high. If a rider is used to using fairly poor brakes (for whatever reason, poor set up, materials, design) an even mediocre disk brake will be a step up and the bees knees, add in everyone and their dog telling you they are better and it's no surprise a large number of people believe that to be so.

On the other hand i've always been keen on having a brake set up that works well. So i'm used to very fine modulation, small lever movements and excellent feedback. I can set up my d/p's to give wheel lock / over the bars performance which is more than good enough for me! Subsequently i'm yet to use any disc brakes that are comparable in performance, there might well be some out there but i've not used them.

But I've used,canti's,V's,single and DP caliper brakes with a variety of pads and set ups in search of good braking,loaded,unloaded,on solos and on tandems.
So I think I have a fairly comprehensive idea of what is a good or bad brake system.
I've also posted before on the forum that in the dry there isn't much difference between good rim brakes and cable discs,but in the wet it's night and day in favour of discs,and that disc pads and rotors last far longer than any rim brake pads or rims themselves if used in harsh conditions such wet UK winter weather.
My experience is backed up by other people's similar experience who've also used BB7 cable discs.
That's why I find your experience puzzling,perhaps it's the type of disc brakes you currently use.

[mattsccm]

I fail to see why people set such a store in the weather forecast. My wife does. She watches one on the TV then turns over for another. Why?
Look out the window. If its raining take a coat. If its the UK and not the middle of a heat wave, take a coat! We all know that in the UK our climate isn't such that weather is 100% reliable and thus forecasts can't be so why even think about it?

[mattsccm]

How can running discs cost as much as rims in foul weather?
For about 10 years I have done about 4000 miles a year on the local gravel. A front rim would last about a year with cantis until it folded up. Haven't even taken the paint off one I the 6 years since I went discs. . Pads last about a month but at a few quid they cost no more than blocks did so they cancel each other out. . Discs last maybe 2 years and cost about the price of 2 sets of pads.

[foxyrider]

How can running discs cost as much as rims in foul weather?
For about 10 years I have done about 4000 miles a year on the local gravel. A front rim would last about a year with cantis until it folded up. Haven't even taken the paint off one I the 6 years since I went discs. . Pads last about a month but at a few quid they cost no more than blocks did so they cancel each other out. . Discs last maybe 2 years and cost about the price of 2 sets of pads.

A month! Even in winter I generally get 6 months out of rim blocks - the ones I replaced this weekend we're at least 18 months old, they just died rapidly this week. The wheels are 4 years old at least, Khamsin CX, and are barely showing any wear.

I worked in a local bike shop for many years and staff and customers alike would have tales of wearing out a set of pads in a single ride on the local trails so it's not just me on that side. We also did a fair trade in rotors, bent, damaged, worn, its anecdotal but by comparison we changed far fewer rims from brake wear.

I'm sure many people are quite happy with their discs and I know that they can offer brilliant stopping power - I wouldn't argue that. OTOH IME the only one of my bikes I have brake wear/setup issues with has discs. So my personal experience is that they are not the panacea they are touted as.

[whoof]

The forecast for the weekend near me was showers and drizzle on Saturday and dry with a cold Easterly wind on Sunday.
On Saturday I had a lie-In then pottered around the house whilst it rained and drizzled. On Sunday I did a 50 mile ride without any rain but with a cold Easterly wind. Today it was forecast to be dry, it is and tomorrow is forecast as heavy to moderate showers, we'll see.

[andrew_s]

A combination of crap on the roads and the foggy, damp weather has left my black bike a sort of dirty limestone colour despite it wearing full guards.

There's full guards and full guards.
For maximum protection, the front guard has to reach further forward than the top of the wheel, and have a flap fitted that gets to within 3-4 cm of the ground, and it should be reasonably wide (~15 cm) if you want to keep as much muck as possible off the transmission.

There aren't many full length guards that allow this - I'd recommend Berthoud long.

[foxyrider]

A combination of crap on the roads and the foggy, damp weather has left my black bike a sort of dirty limestone colour despite it wearing full guards.

There's full guards and full guards.
For maximum protection, the front guard has to reach further forward than the top of the wheel, and have a flap fitted that gets to within 3-4 cm of the ground, and it should be reasonably wide (~15 cm) if you want to keep as much muck as possible off the transmission.

There aren't many full length guards that allow this - I'd recommend Berthoud long.

15cm wide! That's actually wider than my forks, sounds more like a moped guard than something running 23mm tyres!

The bike does have proper full size guards with wrap around the tyre, does sport a front mudflap which is as close to the ground as is safe and usually doesn't have any issues - the roads are crappier than usual this autumn.

[Debs]

....the roads are crappier than usual this autumn.

i think we simply get used to the cleaner roads of summer/autumn and forget how horrid the roads become this time of year.
I know i do; year after year i'm always shocked how mucky the roads [suddenly] get at this time of year

[awavey]

My experience is backed up by other people's similar experience who've also used BB7 cable discs.
That's why I find your experience puzzling,perhaps it's the type of disc brakes you currently use.

I think the pad material makes a marked difference in the feel and performance of them. So getting them matched up properly makes a huge difference, I wasnt impressed at all when I first got a bike with discs and effectively manufacturer OEM pads, as they felt no better than my poorly setup rim brake bikes, I persisted with them as I felt I hadnt really any choice I though,till the front pads had worn down, then replaced them with some Clarks VRS competition pads, literally because they were the only ones that fitted, were in stock and on sale at the time, and they were much better, better feel, better performance, its been totally different experience

so Im definitely a convert and much happier with discs now to the point I wish my commuter bike had discs, as Im getting fed up in this weather at least, getting home cold and wet and then having to dig around in the brake blocks to pick out tiny flecks of aluminium or tiny stones that have compressed in them nearly daily, and then constantly having to clean the rims, or you get a small build up which gets stuck in the wear indicator gap in the rim and feels, and you just know you are trashing both blocks and rims like this, to the point you are almost thinking if you use the brakes too much theyll start grinding again and youve got another filthy maintenance/repair job when you get home.

[Chat Noir]

My partner was doing a market at Saltaire on Saturday so after an early start to help her set up I was off cycling my way to Haworth, Oxenhope, Hebden Bridge, up the cobbles through Heptonstall and over Widdop to Colne. By this stage the drizzle had stopped and even some sun but a cold wind from the north east, which I noticed even more on the old road to Skipton from Colne. Doubled back to Crosshills (were those bits of snow above Cowling on the hills?) and back to Bingley. Dreary rather than wet, not really mucky apart from on the odd hill, and my recent winterising of the Dolan kept me pretty dry but the 1660 m of ascent in 50 miles was tough.

Yesterday, though, a bit different, zero degrees in York first thing, roads with good coverings of mud and then the weather got pretty filthy as well. Met friend in Leyburn for a 50 mile jaunt, turning off at Wensley to ride up into Coverdale where the roads were properly muddy in places, although once past the buildings not an issue, especially on the new road surfaces.

View from above Park Rash before dropping down to Kettlewell and the obligatory stop at Zarina’s.

Actually, the wind was so fierce coming down we both had some difficulty controlling the bikes at various points. The weather app told us the winds were 30+ so a bit tasty. Then went up Langstrothdale and over Fleet Moss, now ‘escorted’ by the same wind before we entered thick cloud.

Looking out over Fleet Moss, complete with bedstead.

The descent was made more exciting by a flock of sheep appearing from behind the crash barriers and scattering across the road but I still topped 45 mph which probably wasn’t wise given the strong winds. Further leisurely stop at the cycle café in the old station in Hawes to emerge into steady and increasing rain, heading across the Ure to follow the quiet and wet roads the 18 miles back down Wensleydale to Leyburn, soaked but grinning after nearly 1500 m ascent. Filthy but fun - sort of.

[ianrobo]

I do not mind the wet to be honest but the wind is the issue, I had to do 10km back into the wind after work today, that segment was 20 minutes slower !!

tomorrow morning looks evil though with the wind .. will be fun !