boomhauer

thanks for this comment. I'm a new convert to hydralic disk for the reason of reduced and/or lack of maintenance. I hate maintenance. I'm willing to spend a lot for this. So far so good. I love the one-finger stopping power.

Not real sure how realistic my expectations are. SHimano hydralics came in the mail pre-bled. It's like a dream come true.

DropBarFan

I'm confused: my Surly Disc Trucker 56 cm 559 mm wheel frame has a fixed-position bracket, can't see how a larger rotor could fit?

elcruxio

Pretty much all disc brake calipers are post mount attatching nowdays so you'll need to use an adapter with IS frame mounting brackets. I honestly have no issue with this since the frame doesn't have threads that can go bust and if threads do go they go from a very cheap adapter.
Anyways, usually you'd use a 0mm post adapter with the regular 160mm rotor. With a 20mm post adapter you'd get a 180mm rotor and with a 40mm adapter you'd get the 203mm rotor.
The good thing about Avid BB7's (which also justifies the cost a bit) is that they come with an array of adapters. Like I mentioned earlier, if I had a 203mm rotor lying around I could have used that since I have adapters for every possible disc brake need imaginable.

elcruxio

This issue can be 100% solved by just taking the rotors off before transport.
6 bolt system is so handy in that you just need a T25 torx head to get the rotors off. Centerlock is also handy, but one needs a cassette lockring tool for that.

saddlesores

or you could just replace the 6 torx bolts with standard hexhead bolts......

elcruxio

True, but hex holes that small tend to be weak and unstable, especially when one would be forced to use either a buttonhead (one size smaller hex hole than the screw would normally warrant) or a low head screw (more risk of slipping and rounding the hex hole). Torx works loads better with small screw heads. Also a T25 should not be an issue as it can be found in almost every singe multi tool on the market today.

str

mountain bikers use them for how many years, and travel around the world. you still can take them of for flying.

str

did not read your comment, my last comment would not have been needed.

so maybe the 6 bolt system is better for touring bikes, with one key you can take the discs of, i case of broken spokes. with center lock you have to carry two tools with you if you want to be on the sure side.

Jaywalk3r

I recently flew with my disk brake equipped bike without taking any special precautions to protect the rotor. It was loaded and unloaded onto four panes during the trip, with zero issues. I was far more concerned about the potential of my spokes being damaged than I was about a brake rotor. Rotors aren't indestructible, but they're also not all that fragile.

saddlesores

in case of broken spokes (if no fiber fix):

for 6-bolt, need a torx wrench (or hex key...) to remove the disc,
cassette tool (and crescent wrench!) to remove the cassette.

center lock uses the cassette tool to remove both the disc and cassette.

manapua_man

This pretty much lines up with my experiences and opinion. The one time I pulled the rotor off my front wheel I ended up having my big chain ring bent beyond repair instead.

GeoKrpan

Six bolt is probably better for touring but the Torx screws strip pretty easily. They are torqued very tightly from the factory. Before your tour loosen them and then retighten but not as tight as from the factory. I stripped out a Torx screw and ground off the head with an electric grinder. The stub of the screw came out using just my fingers.

There are two types of CenterLock lockrings. The cassette type and this type.



This tool removes it.


I believe the second type must be used for thru-axles.

I like CenterLock and if I were touring with them I'd have straight pull hubs that don't require rotor or cassette removal to change a spoke.

For the cassette lockring the tool must be deep, the shallower ones won't work as I found out.

DropBarFan

Thanks...I was thinking about this today & did a bit of research incl looking at SRAM's PDF about BB7 rotors/adapters for road or MTB. Apparently the 20 mm adapter/180 mm rotor works for the BB7 road version but AFAIK that's the largest rotor. & I do remember that the BB7 road brakes came w/some extra adapters so perhaps I already have the 20 mm one. I'm not worried much about heat dissipation since I'm lightweight but if the 20 mm larger rotor helps reduce hand effort it seems worth a try.

Gadgets4grls

Hi DropBarFan,

While I can't comment on the BB7 I can attest to the reduced hand fatigue of the larger rotors and in my case TRP Hy/Rd.
I suffer carpal tunnel so my hands/wrist are pretty sensitive to stress/fatigue. I was riding a Fuji Tread commuter with front rear racks and stock brakes and was suffering pretty much after every ride. So I went the upgrade route. First was metallic pads than up-sized rotors which helped finally to Hy/Rd calipers which in my case made biggest difference.
I switch from the Tread frame to a Surly Disc Trucker which is heavier than the Tread base weight by a good 10-15 pounds, steel frame/racks from aluminum.

I'm probably running well into the tandem weight range, with pannier and trailer, and have no problems with hand fatigue/pain even when stopping my train of a bike.

Gadget

Biketouringhobo

I also like my Avid Single Digit V-Brakes with Avid Speed dial brake levers

DropBarFan

From various threads, carpal tunnel seems fairly common; some folks have arthritis or small hands or just not much hand strength. Even w/o those problems I think it makes sense to get the best brakes, within reason--it can save one's life. IMO doesn't make much sense that super-fit pro MTB riders get awesome brakes while touring bikes for older less-fit riders get mediocre brakes.

I once read a story (perhaps apocryphal) about pro road racers: Mafac used to make a racing gruppo & supposedly their brakes were terrible--on mountain descents Mafac-equipped riders would slow down by putting their hands on other rider's backs & for explanation, simply say "Mafac", heh.

fietsbob

you just take the disc off the hub, & pack it separately.. if that is important. if not, bend it back again.

manapua_man

If you're going to pull the rotors off, might as well remove the chain rings etc. too. I mentioned in an earlier post what happened the one time I bothered removing my front disc.

fietsbob

Centerlock (with the same tool as their splined freewheel remover or cassette lock Ring),

on my Schmidt SON Delux 20 on my Bike Friday makes that simple..[Rear , Rohloff is 4 chainring bolts holding it on.]

I've unpacked 6 bikes tourists sent ahead , in the past fortnight .. thats just another service my friends at the LBS offer.

djb

thats a drag about your chainring, but that is of course just bad luck and unrelated to taking or not taking off a disc rotor. It unfortunately comes down to the "giant roulette wheel" of chance when flying with a bike, and the baggage handlers that come into contact with your bike box.
And of course, of how you pack things in the bike that can get wacked up against other stuff. From my flying experience with bikes (touch wood, no bent chainrings) I'd be inclined to take off the rotors myself. Pretty easy insurance and won't take long.
I figure my take on plane travel is to to control as much as I can to minimize damage if there is rough handling, and after that, there's not much I can do if a baggage handler is going to do a Samsonite gorilla ad remake wth my bike box.....(these were tv ads done in the 70s or 80s of a gorilla bashing the crap out of a Samsonite suitcase, to no ill effect).

fietsbob

You, apparently, did not do an Adequate job of Packing the bike for shipping.

LBS has a lot of packing with every new Bike they get,

and you taking a lot of foam tubes plastic pieces to hold the fork apart

and cover the disc and all those bits, and the Box away rather than the Garbage truck

will always be free.

Or pay the shop to do it for you , at say $80, as one pair of touring bike riders paid for each Bike they sent. [FedEx/UPS]

then another $50 to put each back together , ride ready when they get here with their bags..

DropBarFan

Chainrings are of course vulnerable, in S&S packing I remove crankset, seems like a wise move for any air transport. I like how the Hollowtech crank disassembles easily us old square-taper. Working on BB7's last week & was surprised how the (stock) rotors had minor but significant untrueness. Fixed most w/Park rotor truing wrench; I read that Park offers a little truing jig that fits into their wheel jig, might be handy to get things dialed in.

elcruxio

Yeah. For some reason all Avid rotors come out a bit wonky. They're cheap though, and they work surprisingly well. I don't like truing disc brakes as much as truing wheels, but you only really need to true a disc brake once.

On other news, even though I just put in a 180mm rotor I pulled the trigger and ordered a 203mm rotor. As I like to ride fast especially on the downhills, and our oncoming tour is going through both the alps and the balkan mountains (whatever they are called) and me, myself and I, my bike and gear combines to a weight of the standard tandem team, I decided that the 180mm may prove a bit small especially in the more technical descents. My GF still has the 160mm rotors and I'm not going to upgrade her front rotor to the 180mm since her combined weight with the bike and gear is about the same as my weight in my birthday suit.

I found the ugliest but also the beefiest rotor out there for the purpose. Should have plenty of excess weight and heat capacity. Avid Cleansweep G3 203mm

djb

Re larger rotors, I would just add the cautionary note to be aware and attentive of what your braking system is telling you during long descents. Do not drag your brakes, as any braking system no matter how robust, can end up over cooked and develop serious fade issues. Even with proper braking technique ( hard braking, letting off completely, then hard application when needed to get speed down) if a downhill is very technical, ie hairpins over and over and a long descent, even a light rider braking properly can overtax the system.
Basically, even with bigger rotors, be aware.
If possible do some tests beforehand.

fietsbob

Magura's rotors are thicker than Avid's, if that matters .. Galfer makes Discs like Magura .