Who says disc braked road bikes are ugly?

I happen to think this is rather stunning. Rather expensive, but stunning none the less

This one?

That would be the one from Cyclingtips this morning then? Pity it had cable disks.

+1

Think they’re all nice despite the discs.

I still think discs are the way forward BTW, just aesthetically not as nice.

Something just looks a bit wrong with the skinny stem and fatter head tube on a couple of those bikes.

The rest of the bikes look great.

The Enigma Evoke looks best of the lot around the stem area.

if anything it’s the crankarms/chainrings that let all of those ^ down.

Pity it had cable disks.

And what is wrong with cable disk brakes ?

Which ones have you tried and dismissed, and what hydros are better?

I have just fitted the new Spyre SLCs and they are excellent. Have XTs on my mtb and they are no better than decently set up BB7s either.

Tom doesn’t make any ugly bikes and he’s a lovely bloke.

And what is wrong with cable disk brakes ?

From a maintenance point of view cables stretch, and cables/outers get worn, so they need replacing. A properly bled set of hydro disc brakes can be left alone for years.

Discs for me are definitely the way forward on road bikes as it paves the way for tubeless clinchers. I find it odd that some manufacturers don’t route the cables/hoses internally though.

And what is wrong with cable disk brakes ?

Which ones have you tried and dismissed, and what hydros are better?

BB5’s and 7’s, dire brake wear due to only aligning on one side, had club mates go through pads in one 60 minute cross race, however using both Ulterga and the Rival on the Giant TCX advanced and the CAAD super X things were improved immensely, its the way to go and I’m sure my next CX bike will have them.

Never tried the hybrid designs due to never having seen them on a bike, however its a mute point as they’re hybrid and not disk.

Happy?

Think they’re all nice despite the discs.

Deff this. All those pictures are from the drive side as well, so your not getting the full aesthetic impact.

From a maintenance point of view cables stretch, and cables/outers get worn, so they need replacing. A properly bled set of hydro disc brakes can be left alone for years.

Maybe mineral oil but most dot based hydros will need bleeding. Hydro cables will get just as worn as cable outers, but with more potential issues due to the wearing. Plus you will be lucky if you don’t develop some sort of sticking piston issue in that time.

My gore rideon cables have lasted since 2010 without adjustment…

I’m on the fence with it tbh reg weight vs feel
I have a defy advanced 2 arriving in Nov and think it looks tidy enough to live with Im looking forward to not working my way thru rims

dire brake wear due to only aligning on one side

there is only a slight deflection of the rotor, nothing likely to increase pad wear. Choice of pad material is more relevant.

The new spyres are also symmetrical acting, and I think have more usable pad/rotor gap than BB7s, which means you won’t wear down your pads so much in muddy/gritty conditions due to rubbing, which is also an issue with most hydros.

The trp’s are a dream to setup compared to bb’s and tektros

They’re certainly less ugly than the rim brake retro things, but they still have drop bars and that triangle thing going on so they’ll always be a long way up the ugly scale.

The spyres look interesting and certainly allow upgrading at a better cost considering the price of the Ultegra STI’s!

Why do tubeless clinchers need discs?! You do know tubeless clincher is here now and has been a few years? My 6700 Ultegras are tubeless compatible, main issue is the limited choice of tyres and their high price compared to decent tubed tyres.

The Swedish Chef – Member

a mute point

a moot point

I know it’s not strictly a road bike but I think this is lovely…

Pity it had cable disks.

My BB7s are so good I can’t see why you’d want hydraulics.

had club mates go through pads in one 60 minute cross race,

Really? Like, really really? Sounds like dodgy pads or BS to me. After all, how much braking do you do in a cross race?

had club mates go through pads in one 60 minute cross race,

Ive had mates with hyraulic-braked MTBs get through a set of pads in 1 wet Gorrick XC round.

I’ve killed a set of rim brake pads in a very wet & gritty cx race before, so hardly news worthy is it?
Disc brake road & cross bikes will never look as good IMO, but it’s the future & it’ll be staying to embrace it.
My new CX bike is disc even though it doesn’t look as good & a rim brake version was available-just thought I’d rather have the performance advantage.

Why do tubeless clinchers need discs?

Heat build up in the rim when braking is a problem (especially on long descents) that can blow tyres of rims.
There’s an interesting article in cyclist this month comparing the various tyre/tube options for a road bike. Tubeless by all accounts is just about the best option, but until the heat is removed from the rim manufacturers of rims/tyres won’t get behind it.