General Bike Thread (Desiderata, Questions, Pics)

[Biscotti]

Not sure if I agree with all that! Plus, that frame is American-made.

 

[sugarbutch]

Did my first brake bleed this weekend. I’m happy I have Shimano rather than SRAM, because cleaning up and disposing of mineral oil is a lot easier than brake fluid.

 

[Biscotti]

Pretty excited about getting this "titanium"-painted carbon fork back here soon. The color is the same as mid-90s silver-metallic Mazdas.

But, rather than the high gloss clear-coat, we're going with a muted-satin finish. I think this is probably the closest match possible. Hopefully she looks good!!!

 

[otc]

Did my first brake bleed this weekend. I’m happy I have Shimano rather than SRAM, because cleaning up and disposing of mineral oil is a lot easier than brake fluid.

Yeah--I haven't done it yet, but I am incredibly glad my MTB shipped with shimano brakes even though the rest of the parts were SRAM. I have zero interest in dealing with DOT 5 on my bike...I mean, yeah you can clean it up with water, but it eats paint if you're not careful and it has poor shelf life. I can't imagine needing the slight performance advantages of brake fluid (certainly not with the mid-grade hardware I'm running)

 

[sugarbutch]

Yeah--I haven't done it yet, but I am incredibly glad my MTB shipped with shimano brakes even though the rest of the parts were SRAM. I have zero interest in dealing with DOT 5 on my bike...I mean, yeah you can clean it up with water, but it eats paint if you're not careful and it has poor shelf life. I can't imagine needing the slight performance advantages of brake fluid (certainly not with the mid-grade hardware I'm running)

Given that I can lock up the cable-actuated disc brakes on my gravel bike and do the same on the road bike with 15-month-old mineral oil, I am extremely skeptical of real-world advantages to DOT 5.

 

[imatlas]

I'm new to disc brakes: what's this about bleeding them? How often do you replace the fluid? I have Shimanos.

 

[Biscotti]

When the brake feels off!

 

[otc]

Given that I can lock up the cable-actuated disc brakes on my gravel bike and do the same on the road bike with 15-month-old mineral oil, I am extremely skeptical of real-world advantages to DOT 5.

Big downhill bikes being used aggressively at high altitude? Tandem road bikes doing long mountain road descents?

Its just hard to see where the incremental advantages in boiling point and compressibility are worth it. They both have other pros and cons (like DOT fluid absorbing water keeps it from pooling in your system, but also causes the boiling point to drop so you need to replace anyways) but it just doesn't seem worth it.

Especially as a home mechanic...you could buy a liter of shimano fluid and be set for all of your brake bleeds for life. With DOT 5 you should really be buying a new bottle every time (which, sure, each bottle may be cheap and available at any auto parts store, but...how wasteful is that?).

edit: and Seth's Bike Hacks has been running a bike with baby oil in the brakes for a long time...so in a pinch...

 

[otc]

I'm new to disc brakes: what's this about bleeding them? How often do you replace the fluid? I have Shimanos.

Basically the same theory as as brakes on a motor vehicle.

Unless you ride a TON...purge and replace fluid every 2-3 years or so? Maybe longer? Just do it when your car is done? Some people seem to do it anually as part of a spring tune-up (just like they might have replaced cables early) since it is only like a couple of bucks of fluid to purge an entire system...but that seems unecessary.

Bleed if you have performance issues...if the brakes feel soft/mushy because there is air in the lines, you might need to bleed. Then you can just do a partial bleed...don't need to flush the system, although if it comes out a funny color...again its only a couple of bucks of fluid to do a full replacement rather than a bleed.

If you had SRAM, you'd want to speed that up a little if you ride in the wet since the fluid can absorb water, especially if you've had to open it up to bleed for soft/mushy feel a few times.

 

[Piobaire]

When I get my new hoops in the fall, currently the new Zipp 303 Firecrest is the plan, I am wondering if I can get Ultegra in the cassette and discs. I think current Ultegra will work with the R7000 105 but can anyone confirm?

 

[Biscotti]

I don't see why not; Shimano is pretty cross-compatible within the family, so long as you are getting the same speed--you should be good to go! I have two bikes with mixtures of different Shimano grades, works fine (Dura-Ace brakes, Ultegra levers, Etc, Etc.).

 

[otc]

When I get my new hoops in the fall, currently the new Zipp 303 Firecrest is the plan, I am wondering if I can get Ultegra in the cassette and discs. I think current Ultegra will work with the R7000 105 but can anyone confirm?

Will work with any other shimano 11sp road parts and discs are pretty much universal as long as you match the rotor diameter.

But Ultegra only saves you 25-30 grams on the cassette. Its not until Dura Ace that you get the big weight reduction of 150g (but those titanium cogs make the whole thing expensive AF)

For rotors, you can go any manufacturer...the ultegra and dura ace ones both look pretty dope with their cooling fins, but you can run whatever you want as long as it matches your wheels (centerlock vs 6-bolt) and is the right size.

 

[sugarbutch]

Flushing the brake fluid seems like cheap insurance to me. This first one for me coincided with the second set of pads and rotor on the front axle. Rear pads and rotor are lasting longer even though the rotor is smaller.

The rotors are interchangeable. I started with 105, got Ultegra at the first change, and I think the one I just put on may be XT. They didn’t have 105 or Ultegra in stock. I went to aftermarket sintered pads at the first service, and they were noisy AF despite being bedded in properly and later cleaned/sanded. Went back to the finned organic pads from Shimano that were original spec. Good feel and quiet.

 

[Piobaire]

Will work with any other shimano 11sp road parts and discs are pretty much universal as long as you match the rotor diameter.

But Ultegra only saves you 25-30 grams on the cassette. Its not until Dura Ace that you get the big weight reduction of 150g (but those titanium cogs make the whole thing expensive AF)

For rotors, you can go any manufacturer...the ultegra and dura ace ones both look pretty dope with their cooling fins, but you can run whatever you want as long as it matches your wheels (centerlock vs 6-bolt) and is the right size.

Yeah, it's basically about the looks with the discs. The weight savings will come with the Zipps, about 2# of unsprung weight.

 

[Thrift Vader]

I don't see why not; Shimano is pretty cross-compatible within the family, so long as you are getting the same speed--you should be good to go! I have two bikes with mixtures of different Shimano grades, works fine (Dura-Ace brakes, Ultegra levers, Etc, Etc.).

This is good to know. About the same speeds and upgrading. looked at an 8 speed yesterday.