How hydraulic bicycle disc brakes work.
Touring bike disc brakes vs.
There s plenty of debate over whether v brakes or disc brakes are better for touring.
This weight number greatly depends on the wheels rims hubs and disc brake system you choose.
The best touring bike trek 520.
By the time you add everything in including front and rear brakes and the added weight of the disc specific hubs you end up with around 150 to 350 grams additional weight to the whole bike.
The reason is that more braking forces are applied to the non drive side of a disc brake bike.
Disc brakes really shine in adverse weather conditions as they re unaffected by water and dirt.
While it was a hard call between the trek 520 and the surly disc trucker winner of our customizable pick we chose the trek because we think it is a better value as an entry level bike.
After analyzing and aggregating more than a dozen professional reviews we believe the 2020 trek 520 is the best mid range road touring bicycle for most people.
As most touring bikes have a decent amount of weight over the rear wheel this kickstand type is undoubtedly the most stable given its ultra wide stance.
While it s technically more of an off road touring bike it can easily be re purposed for road and gravel use by fitting some schwalbe super moto x slick tyres.
V brakes for our purposes are a generic and misused term for the several varieties of caliper brakes that work by pinching the bicycle wheel s rim between two brake blocks to create friction and slow the bike.
More engineering is required to design and build the frame.
Consumables such as pads will be a little bit cheaper for rim brake bikes.
Disc brakes will offer you better braking in the rain that rim brakes.
If you re on a tight budget it s best to stay away from disc brakes.
Here manufacturers get rid of the steel cable and use a sealed fluid filled system instead.
It has an old school mountain bike aesthetic right down to the wtb mountain drop bars but a geometry built for touring mechanical disc brakes and enough tire clearance to accommodate 29x2 0.
This adds to the cost.
You press the brake lever the fluid forces the pads against the rotor and the resistance created between the two objects stops the bike.
Disc brake compatible bike frames also cost more than frames that are designed for rim brakes.
If you re planning on going on a bike trip where you need to carry 10 days of food and a decent amount of water you may be best served with the 35 80kg capacity models.
And as usual there s no clear cut answer.
Disc brakes offer the best braking performance for touring bikes in both wet and dry conditions.
The biggest downside to disc brakes is the added weight.
