Bike with single rear disc brake ... would you?

Triathlon Forum
1

Would you ride a bike that only had a disc brake on the back ? I guess I could say rim or disc brake but some people believe disc brakes off better stopping so let’s stick with that.

Under what conditions would you , if you would ? Flat road , by yourself? Coffee run ride ? I know hipsters ride single speeds with out a “ real” brake all the time. What are you giving up by loosing the front brake ? How much stopping distance do you loose ?

As kids growing up I think most of us started on a bike that only had a rear brake when you back peddled. It worked didn’t it ?

2

Sure, I’d ride it if only going up a hill and not down. Otherwise, no. The stopping power isn’t there.

3

I know hipsters ride single speeds with out a “ real” brake all the time.

Anyone without a real brake would be riding fixed gear, not single speed (unless really stupid). Important distinction.

4

I’ve tested hundreds of setups to determine CPSC compliance for stopping distance at 15mph. What I’ve found is that it usually takes about 10-15% farther to stop using just the front brake than with both brakes, while using only the rear requires about 50% farther to stop. If I could have only 1 brake, it would be the front…

5

I know hipsters ride single speeds with out a “ real” brake all the time.

Anyone without a real brake would be riding fixed gear, not single speed (unless really stupid). Important distinction.

A lot of park/street BMX bikes are run brakeless…

6

A lot of park/street BMX bikes are run brakeless…

Yeah, fixed course stuff would be different - or stuff where you don’t really exceed much over 15MPH.

Talking street bikes mostly, where’d you want at least a minimal ability to slow down.

7

How about go the other direction?

Colnago double front disc!

https://s3.amazonaws.com/www.bikerumor.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/01081240/Campagnolo-Smart-Disc-Technology_double-disc-brake-equipped-Colnago-V3RS-DV_Double-Ventoux-carbon-road-bike.jpg

8

Great information… thanks. I wouldn’t have guessed a 50% increase with just rear

9

Aerodynamically a rimbrake in the front and a disc in the back seems to make the faster bike vs both being discs.

Not quite germane to the convo but pretty cool to think where bike aerodynamics could be if the industry hadn’t shoved disc brakes front & rear on us.

10

How about go the other direction?

Colnago double front disc!

https://s3.amazonaws.com/www.bikerumor.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/01081240/Campagnolo-Smart-Disc-Technology_double-disc-brake-equipped-Colnago-V3RS-DV_Double-Ventoux-carbon-road-bike.jpg

If we’re going for the “what the…” factor, the bike in an article linked from that has to take the cake - https://bikerumor.com/2021/03/25/wild-looking-ryuger-eidolon-covid-ebike-is-a-full-suspension-carbon-commuter/ - full suspension, aero carbon frame… The dual disc brakes are the least of the strange.

11

When I was a kid, every bike on the planet only had rear coaster breaks. They worked great. Preference? No? But certain death? No.

12

No. Just no. I’ve ridden a fixed gear on the road for about 20 years. Always with at least a front brake (plus my legs as a rear brake). The front brake does the majority of your stopping because of weight distribution, which is of course amplified when you are braking. On a fixed gear, you can lock up the rear wheel and skid, or put out almost unlimited braking power using your legs quite fast, but it is still the front brake that will keep you from hitting that car that just maybe overtook you and turned in front of you.

13

The dual disc brakes are the least of the strange.

And it’s an April Fool’s joke. Yours isn’t. :slight_smile:

14

Great information… thanks. I wouldn’t have guessed a 50% increase with just rear

When you brake, the weight shifts towards the front wheel due to the deceleration; so you are quite limited in how hard you can apply the rear brake before the wheel locks. This gets even worse if you are going downhill.

Single coaster brakes worked (kinda) for kids’ bikes because: the speeds are lower, the system mass is smaller, and the tires are typically wider/softer. One of the famous locations in Marin (where mtn biking originated) is Repack Hill, so named because the rear coaster brakes they were using would get so hot on the descent that after one run you needed to repack them with new grease…so not really great for adults going down steep inclines.