Norco or Specialized??
Discussion
benny.c said:
As an aside, there is no way I would want bar end shifters on an off road bike. When there's not much traction I want my hands on the hoods, not fumbling around on the end of the drops.
Ah, it depends on how your drop bars are set up.Edited by benny.c on Thursday 14th January 22:32
John Tomac seemed to do OK back in the day.
Edited by Barchettaman on Thursday 14th January 22:43
'The market gets what the market wants'...!
When pads on disc brake equipped bikes get contaminated from road grime/oil they don't stop for s
t. I never see that mentioned in all these stories touting the "benefits" or disc brakes for road bikes...oh, except for that one article I saw about removing the pads before washing your bike to prevent contamination. That crap will contaminate rim brakes as well, but it wears off quickly, and you'll get most, if not all, of your braking power back fairly quickly. Disc pads, once contaminated, are shot, and you don't have full power until the pads are replaced and the rotor cleaned.
Apparently the custom builder Santana no longer specs full discs on their tandems, only discs on the rear and Shimano dual pivot or V-brakes up front. The local hills have apparently claimed the lives of many disc calipers they've tested!
What one should be wary of is buying a road bike now, and then discovering in a couple of years time that there are compatibility issues and that piecemeal replacement of pads, calipers, wheels, brifters, cables, etc is difficult or impossible and that you have to replace everything in one go. Or worst of all, something like caliper placement is now different and it's not even possible to get new parts that are even compatible with the frame and the whole bike is effectively obsolete.
Look at where we are right now, and it may get worse before it gets better. Most disc road bikes take QR wheels with 135mm rear spacing, but there are a few that take 130mm. And we're starting to move to through-axles, but nobody's settled on rear spacing or diameter. If everything goes to through-axles using whatever standard the UCI sets, most disc wheels, forks and frames currently on the market will be obsolete.
Now, the 3 main hydraulic road brake systems (SRAM, Shimano, Magura) each use different, incompatible brake fluids, so you are locked into using Shimano brakes with Shimano levers, etc. At least on an mtb one can use, say, Shimano or Hayes brakes with a SRAM drivetrain, and simply upgrade or switch drivetrains without having to touch the brakes. Or change brakes without touching the drivetrain. With Shimano or SRAM brifters, mixing isn't possible. If you like your SRAM drivetrain, but want Shimano's disc brakes (or vice-versa), it's not going to happen.
One more anecdote. I was chatting to a guy on the London-Tonbridge train at the weekend, he had a very nice Cannondale road bike with hydraulic discs. Would you recommend, I asked? Nope, he said, the brakes are constantly cocking up and need an unacceptable amount of fettling....
I'm not against anything really, but discs on a road bike are not the panacea the industry would like us to believe. Plus this is PH so we *like* to discuss stuff!
When pads on disc brake equipped bikes get contaminated from road grime/oil they don't stop for s
t. I never see that mentioned in all these stories touting the "benefits" or disc brakes for road bikes...oh, except for that one article I saw about removing the pads before washing your bike to prevent contamination. That crap will contaminate rim brakes as well, but it wears off quickly, and you'll get most, if not all, of your braking power back fairly quickly. Disc pads, once contaminated, are shot, and you don't have full power until the pads are replaced and the rotor cleaned. Apparently the custom builder Santana no longer specs full discs on their tandems, only discs on the rear and Shimano dual pivot or V-brakes up front. The local hills have apparently claimed the lives of many disc calipers they've tested!
What one should be wary of is buying a road bike now, and then discovering in a couple of years time that there are compatibility issues and that piecemeal replacement of pads, calipers, wheels, brifters, cables, etc is difficult or impossible and that you have to replace everything in one go. Or worst of all, something like caliper placement is now different and it's not even possible to get new parts that are even compatible with the frame and the whole bike is effectively obsolete.
Look at where we are right now, and it may get worse before it gets better. Most disc road bikes take QR wheels with 135mm rear spacing, but there are a few that take 130mm. And we're starting to move to through-axles, but nobody's settled on rear spacing or diameter. If everything goes to through-axles using whatever standard the UCI sets, most disc wheels, forks and frames currently on the market will be obsolete.
Now, the 3 main hydraulic road brake systems (SRAM, Shimano, Magura) each use different, incompatible brake fluids, so you are locked into using Shimano brakes with Shimano levers, etc. At least on an mtb one can use, say, Shimano or Hayes brakes with a SRAM drivetrain, and simply upgrade or switch drivetrains without having to touch the brakes. Or change brakes without touching the drivetrain. With Shimano or SRAM brifters, mixing isn't possible. If you like your SRAM drivetrain, but want Shimano's disc brakes (or vice-versa), it's not going to happen.
One more anecdote. I was chatting to a guy on the London-Tonbridge train at the weekend, he had a very nice Cannondale road bike with hydraulic discs. Would you recommend, I asked? Nope, he said, the brakes are constantly cocking up and need an unacceptable amount of fettling....
I'm not against anything really, but discs on a road bike are not the panacea the industry would like us to believe. Plus this is PH so we *like* to discuss stuff!
Have read lots of good reviews about the GT Grade for go everywhere style riding http://www.tweekscycles.com/bikes/road-bikes/gt-bi...
Well, I finally got around to getting one of these - saved a bit extra and picked up a Norco Search C105 today. Carbon frame, 105 kit, full hydraulic brakes, 35c tyres. Looks good, rides great - much smoother over broken surfaces than I was expecting and still nifty enough on tarmac for my abilities. Through axles are a good item for a bike like this too. Within a few km felt like I'd had it years.
As an aside, its my first road bike since my Peugeot Premiere, bought new in 1986 - how things have changed...
As an aside, its my first road bike since my Peugeot Premiere, bought new in 1986 - how things have changed...
PomBstard said:
Well, I finally got around to getting one of these - saved a bit extra and picked up a Norco Search C105 today. Carbon frame, 105 kit, full hydraulic brakes, 35c tyres. Looks good, rides great - much smoother over broken surfaces than I was expecting and still nifty enough on tarmac for my abilities. Through axles are a good item for a bike like this too. Within a few km felt like I'd had it years.
As an aside, its my first road bike since my Peugeot Premiere, bought new in 1986 - how things have changed...
Brilliant! But now you have bought it try not to stress the spokes or pull the front wheel out of the drop out due to torsional stresses. Be careful when you order luggage racks for it as the disc mounts complicate rack attachment oh yeah don't forget this when fitting your kickstand!As an aside, its my first road bike since my Peugeot Premiere, bought new in 1986 - how things have changed...
Deffo avoid diesel on the road! Don't brake too hard or you'll over heat the bearings and require new wheels in 300 kms and always remember to take your Allen keys with you so you can adjust your callipers.;)
Fluffsri said:
PomBstard said:
Well, I finally got around to getting one of these - saved a bit extra and picked up a Norco Search C105 today. Carbon frame, 105 kit, full hydraulic brakes, 35c tyres. Looks good, rides great - much smoother over broken surfaces than I was expecting and still nifty enough on tarmac for my abilities. Through axles are a good item for a bike like this too. Within a few km felt like I'd had it years.
As an aside, its my first road bike since my Peugeot Premiere, bought new in 1986 - how things have changed...
Brilliant! But now you have bought it try not to stress the spokes or pull the front wheel out of the drop out due to torsional stresses. Be careful when you order luggage racks for it as the disc mounts complicate rack attachment oh yeah don't forget this when fitting your kickstand!As an aside, its my first road bike since my Peugeot Premiere, bought new in 1986 - how things have changed...
Deffo avoid diesel on the road! Don't brake too hard or you'll over heat the bearings and require new wheels in 300 kms and always remember to take your Allen keys with you so you can adjust your callipers.;)
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