I’d add that it’s worth not dismissing braking power. After a decade of using Magura rim brakes and a year on disk brakes I’d somewhat disagree with Ben’s suggestion that HS33’s have lower power, as long as they are properly set up - being rim brakes they also scale in power with wheel size. But the predictability of disk brakes is certainly nice, particularly in the big wheel sizes.
Anyway re power - I find I really pull hard on brakes hard in some situations where you have lots of grip - full power needed. Plus any extra power will reduce fatigue when dragging the brake on long descents. To avoid disk rotor vulnerability for muni, if you need more power it’s probably worth moving to a stronger brake before you move to a larger rotor, as well.
Lastly on brakes - it can be the pads that lack power not the brake itself, and brake pads get stronger when they break in. Options also exist on some brake pad brands between greater performance versus greater durability.
Note - my comment on braking power notwithstanding, I do agree that we don’t max out braking power on unicycles compared to what’s required to stop a 40 lb DH mountain bike.
Also, I don’t think ultimate braking power is necessarily directly related to modulation (e.g. grabbiness)
Using a 180mm rotor works quite well for me (first MountainUni, now an internal Shimano disk). Both were used with a Shimano SLX brake.
So far i never hit the disk and the brake never disappointed me.
The only thing i noticed: the disks get really really hot sometimes! So i dont know if using a smaller disk + more braking power will be very good. I will stick with my 180mm
This is something that’s bugging me about the new uni disk brake adapters. Given almost all brakes now come in a post mount version why are the uni disk brake mounts all IS? Why not make a post mount version, thus getting rid of the need for adapters? ISTM there is no advantage at all to using an IS mount with an adapter - it’s just added weight and complication.
I rode last night in the rain, Magura rim brakes, not a whole lot of stopping power even with two fingers, hopefully this is my last week of rim brakes.
I think the amount of brake you need depends a lot on how you use your brake, I find that brakes can put me off my line, esp on tech downhills, so I glide the brake and use pedal pressure for control; last night had me thinking that longer cranks may be in order
At 200# riding the Oregon, I have never found the 160mm rotor to be underpowered, even when riding in very wet conditions; like in Oregon.
Bigger rotors and stronger calipers have one advantage in that you might be able to get away with one finger braking in certain situations where two finger braking would be required on a smaller rotor, but then that same big rotor is going to be an overkill in light braking situations.
Disc brakes are smooth and they brake when wet.
Yeah, that would have made sense, but the only reason I can think of is the ability to shim the brake in or out depending on use.
Seriously, on a uni? I can’t imagine you’d get a rotor that hot, but if you are then it might be time to try a metallic pad or change to a better rotor.
Well, this and the ability to run a larger rotor just by switching out the adapter. I’m not sure if that would be possible if the caliper mounts were not IS. Not many will want to run a larger rotor but I could see it being useful on a 36".
Meanwhile I should have thought the majority of uni riders will be happy using a 160 disc, and will be using a standard hub hence no need to shim, and a post mount would make far more sense rather than having to add another adapter.
Actually that makes sense - most use of a brake on a uni is presumably dragging, which is how you really heat up your rotors - in terms of energy, braking from 30mph on a bike is only equivalent to dragging a brake down 9m of vertical.
@Nurse Ben
Thanks for this. I figured the front would be better for cable length, but it was the fitting information I wasn’t sure about.
This info has been very useful, I’m sure I’d have ended up with the wrong bits if I hadn’t had it. In the end, I’ve gone for the Tektro Auriga Comp you linked, plus the adapter. I see in other threads you’ve got yours set up now - how’s it worked out? Was it straight forward to fit, and are you getting the all-round braking performance you need? (I’m a little way off having my new uni assembled.)
I rode the new set up last night, the Aruiga is a fine brake, esp for the price, set up was easy, great power without being grabby. Mine actually came with adaptors, so maybe your brake will have one as well and you can send the extra back. I do notice a couple things, first is the disc brake set up adds about 250 gm to your uni; heavier hub, heavier brake. Personally, since I use my brake a lot, this is a good trade off. In contrast to Maguras, they need zero manitenance, I can brake with one finger vs two and my stopping power is greater, the glide is so much smoother, and they work when wet.
The wheel build is interesting, having been building symetrical muni wheels for four years, to build a “bike styled” dished wheel is wierd, esp because one side of the spokes is so much steeper and tensioned considerably higher. I do think that the dished wheel is strong enough for tpical muni/road use, but if I was doing huge drops where I could be landing sideways, I might stick with a standard “symetrical” wheel build.
The 29er built up much easier and nicer than the 26er, long spokes make for easier tensioning I suppose.
In terms of line length, a front brake line is long enough for most 24-29 muni, but if you use a long handlebar or you are riding a 36er, a rear brake with the longer line would be better.
Clearance is scary tight, 2mm between the caliper and the spokes, a bigger disc would improve clearance, but I did not have any problems so it’s probably fine. It’s possible that some brake might not work. The D’ Brake adaptor is awesome, no mess, no fuss.
after a while of looking around for a brake for a new Muni project, i settled with what looks like the best
i bought a Hope Tech M4 Evo, with a 203mm floating rotor, verry nice!
i wanted to fit the spooner on, so came up with this:
turns out the holes drilled into the lever for grip are the perfect size to tap a M3 thread into! it seems fairly secure, although a dedicated adapter would be much better.
about avid, i love the bleeding system they have, its incredibly precise, bike shops don’t like it because it takes a while. but you can get a near perfect bleed with them, not something you can do with other brakes. I have a set of Avid Elixir CR’s on my DH bike, and they work brilliantly! although i will agree with the juicy problem, i have seen how they go spongy while turned the wrong way!
