Disc brakes ?

[silverclaws]

Having not experienced disc brakes, I wonder about them,

When did they first appear on '90s MTB's ?

And weight, how do they compare in terms of weight to a rim brake set up ?

 

[Chute55uk]

prob a bit heavier than a rim brake setup first started seeing them on production bikes mid 90's but someone posted on here earlier today of a bike that looks way old and its got some crazy disc brakes on ithttp://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=199178

 

[kaytronika]

I remember seeing my first Hope mechanical disc brake bolted on to a GT Zaskar in about 1996.


Although this for sale thread shows they were starting to appear earlier than that..

http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?p=502073

 

[jimo746]

I think the Big "S" had disc brakes out in the 1970's although not for the off-road Market. The first discs I remember seeing were Prostops or early Hopes and that must have been early 1990's, but it wasn't until the mid-90's that they really took off (certainly for XC use) imo.

I'm just about to fit a disc brake to the front of one of my retrobikes, it still has a canti brake at the rear though. They are a bit heavier than a rim brake setup generally but there really is very little in it, the big difference is in the stopping power, especially in the wet, and I think that is well worth it.
Personally I favour hydraulic discs over cable ones, not had much experience of cable discs though.
Oh, you do need a disc compatible hub though, which can make the switch to discs a bit costlier.

 

[FairfaxPat]

When I worked with Mert Lawwill developing the Fisher RS-1 and the Leader fork, we met the Hope guys at the trade show in Anaheim in '91 and bought their first disc brake for the rear wheel on our bikes. Shimano made one quite a bit earlier, but it didn't sell well and was discontinued.

 

[zigzag]

TheKen's running some first gen Hope brakes from '91 on his Xizang...

More info here

 

[highlandsflyer]

When I worked with Mert Lawwill developing the Fisher RS-1 and the Leader fork, we met the Hope guys at the trade show in Anaheim in '91 and bought their first disc brake for the rear wheel on our bikes. Shimano made one quite a bit earlier, but it didn't sell well and was discontinued.

Totally awesome to hear these anecdotes. Thanks.

 

[Glassman]

love the gt mate awesome.

 

[jimo746]

love the gt mate awesome.

I agree

but what's going on with that front brake cable?

 

[scant]

pro stop, aka mtn cycle were in 1991. compared to cantilevers of the time they were exceptionally heavy.