I hate disc brakes - help!

[cycle tramp]

Cool watching Aaron Gate's epic stage win at the tour of Luxembourg on a rim brake bike. Where can you even get a rim brake bike these days, ebay?.

In about five years time - everywhere. Only they'll be called discless racers. Apparently they're working on making the rim brake more effective at the moment...

[De Sisti]

[AcidRedStar]

Bike of the Year 2027 is the new 'discless' Trek Madone. It will have 700mm rotors seamlessly integrated into the wheel and ultra lightweight calipers mounted at the top of the fork.

[scottg]

Bike of the Year 2027 is the new 'discless' Trek Madone. It will have 700mm rotors seamlessly integrated into the wheel and ultra lightweight calipers mounted at the top of the fork.

Also comes with inflatable tire liners to replace the messy liquid latex currently in use.
and cable shifting replacing environmentally problematic batteries.

[Cowsham]

Bike of the Year 2027 is the new 'discless' Trek Madone. It will have 700mm rotors seamlessly integrated into the wheel and ultra lightweight calipers mounted at the top of the fork.

Activated by aerodynamic rods replacing troublesome cables.

[AcidRedStar]

Nah, rod actuated brakes weigh the same as road hydro. Integrated discless will be far lighter, with easier maintenance. Can't wait!

[Jon in Sweden]

Yeah, still hate disc brakes!

The disc brakes on my Orbea are driving me nuts. I had a late night puncture on the back wheel yesterday, replaced the tube at the roadside and continued on home. Brakes rubbing a bit all the way home.

I've spent about an hour trying to fix it today, but no matter how many times I loosen off the mounting bolts, insert the shim, apply the brakes, tighten up the bolts and remove the shim, the brakes always rub.

They don't run initially after removing the shim, but they do as soon as you apply the brake.

I tried removing the calliper and gently prising the pads apart with a flat head screwdriver, but the pistons and pads just seem to reset to the point where they rub a bit.

It's so incredibly frustrating - I used to run a sawmill and calibrate the heads myself. I know how to set things up to millimetre precision, but these sodding discs just won't play ball.

Can any of you suggest anything I can try?

[slowster]

I've spent about an hour trying to fix it today, but no matter how many times I loosen off the mounting bolts, insert the shim, apply the brakes, tighten up the bolts and remove the shim, the brakes always rub.

They don't run initially after removing the shim, but they do as soon as you apply the brake.

The procedure you describe is the basic minimum. There are a number of things which might be causing the problem, and various extra procedures which you might therefore need to follow. I suggest you watch this video.

[Jon in Sweden]

I've spent about an hour trying to fix it today, but no matter how many times I loosen off the mounting bolts, insert the shim, apply the brakes, tighten up the bolts and remove the shim, the brakes always rub.

They don't run initially after removing the shim, but they do as soon as you apply the brake.

The procedure you describe is the basic minimum. There are a number of things which might be causing the problem, and various extra procedures which you might therefore need to follow. I suggest you watch this video.

Thanks for that. I'll run through that tutorial when I'm back home.

It's just so much more simple with rim brakes

[LancsGirl]

Discs brakes are noisy in operation but most can be set up not to squeak.

Mine (BB7s) are silent...in the dry.

If they're wet, that's a whole different story. They howl like banshees (quickly searches to find out what a banshee actually is)...https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banshee...sounds about right.

I don't mind the noise too much, when wet. If there's nobody around it doesn't matter. If there is anybody around, pedestrians, motorists, it will alert them to my presence, in conditions where everybody has to take more care.

[slowster]

Thanks for that. I'll run through that tutorial when I'm back home.

One of the tips in the video is to use a torch behind the caliper in order to make it easier to see the pad/disc clearances. I find it better to hold a piece of white paper behind the caliper, and if the light level is too low for that to be sufficiently visible on its own, to shine a torch on the white paper.

but the pistons and pads just seem to reset to the point where they rub a bit.

If the disc does not rub until after you first apply the brake, the pistons and pads might not have 'reset', and instead the wheel might be moving slightly in the dropout with the application of the brake. That is more likely to happen with a quick release wheel (as opposed to thru axle). I think the Orbea Vector Drop may have QR wheels with external cam QR skewers. External cam QR skewers provide inferior clamping force, and I would not use them with disc brakes because of the risk of the front wheel being ejected from the drop out under braking forces. Enclosed cam skewers (which are now made almost only by Shimano) are more secure/reliable and provide greater clamping force. If you have a rim braked bike with Shimano skewers, swap the front skewer to your Orbea as part of your experimenting to fix your disc brake rub.

[Marcus Aurelius]

I feel your pain ( to an extent ). The only time I would choose disc brakes, would be on a mountain bike. I absolutely hate them on road bikes. Which is ironic, because I was ( unfortunately) forced into discs on my best road bike. It’s ‘progress’ nahhh it’s not my bag.

[Jon in Sweden]

Thanks for that. I'll run through that tutorial when I'm back home.

One of the tips in the video is to use a torch behind the caliper in order to make it easier to see the pad/disc clearances. I find it better to hold a piece of white paper behind the caliper, and if the light level is too low for that to be sufficiently visible on its own, to shine a torch on the white paper.

but the pistons and pads just seem to reset to the point where they rub a bit.

If the disc does not rub until after you first apply the brake, the pistons and pads might not have 'reset', and instead the wheel might be moving slightly in the dropout with the application of the brake. That is more likely to happen with a quick release wheel (as opposed to thru axle). I think the Orbea Vector Drop may have QR wheels with external cam QR skewers. External cam QR skewers provide inferior clamping force, and I would not use them with disc brakes because of the risk of the front wheel being ejected from the drop out under braking forces. Enclosed cam skewers (which are now made almost only by Shimano) are more secure/reliable and provide greater clamping force. If you have a rim braked bike with Shimano skewers, swap the front skewer to your Orbea as part of your experimenting to fix your disc brake rub.

Thanks for all the advice. I got a torch onto the case and with some careful tinkering, they seem to be OK.

I've noted your point about the QR skewers too. I will change them. I very rarely brake here, to be honest. If I was going somewhere where heavy braking was part of the trip, I'd be on a rim braked Canyon, thankfully.

[jb]

Disc brakes are rim brakes. There's more chance of a 120 dia disc being true than a 622 mm rim the problem lies with the tight clearance of a disc brake. Cable brakes offer greater adjustment and are generally better suited to road use IMO. A little more owner involvement is the cost though. Hydraulic breaks rely on the elasticity of the seal to pull them clear of the rim which is variable at best. Unless they are the Hope closed system long since placed in the draw marked 'practical but not trendy'

[rareposter]

If I was going somewhere where heavy braking was part of the trip, I'd be on a rim braked Canyon, thankfully.

Unless I was specifically buying a retro bike, I'd never get a rim-braked bike ever again!

Better braking, wheels last longer, nothing to worry about with cable (hose) routing, ability to use much bigger tyres... Far more benefits to disc brakes than simply the braking.

A few years ago on an event in the Alps, I saw a few blown tyres from the heat that was coming off the rim brakes. Never seen it before, always thought it was a bit of a myth but I guess with thousands of riders plus a baking hot day, it was almost inevitable that I'd witness it. Initially I thought someone had put tacks on the road from the number of punctures but it was people dragging brakes, the rims getting super hot and then the tubes bursting.