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Upgrading my giant defy 5, disc brake a must?

  • This topic has 27 replies, 16 voices, and was last updated 11 years ago by StraelGuy.
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  • May 22, 2015 at 9:42 am #24056
    Lee170

    I’ve been road cycling for just over a year now, mainly commuting but also starting to get out more and more. I’ve been mtb’ng for years which i still have but slowly turning to roadie due to family commitments and not having much time to drive to places to ride!
    I bought a alu 2012 defy 5 off gumtree last year for a measly £220.
    But I’m now thinking about upgrading.
    I love the giant defy so thinking of getting a 2015 defy advanced 1 or 2.
    Love the look of them and there comfortable.
    But I’ve seen a dale synapse 105 which is pretty nice to,
    But it has rim bakes and the defy has disc brakes,
    So does the future lie with disc brakes?
    Will I regret it if I buy the dale due to no disc brakes?

    Anyone got either of the above bikes that can shed more light about them.

    Thanks in advance

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Viewing 15 replies - 1 through 15 (of 27 total)
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  • May 31, 2015 at 6:57 pm #847061
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    StraelGuy

    I ride the Defy Advanced 2
    I ride the Defy Advanced 2 with discs and absolutely love it. Just saying…

    May 31, 2015 at 8:13 am #847059
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    Stratman

    A week later, so you may be
    A week later, so you may be sorted now, but here’s my 2p worth

    Best bike is a defy advanced, ultegra and ultegra rim brakes

    Previous commuter (up until last month) was a 531 steel framed Orbit, with ultegra drivetrain and long drop rim brakes rebuilt about 15 months ago

    Current commuter is a steel Equilibrium disc with 105 and the new mechanical gear/ hydraulic brake shifters

    The defy is comfortable and fast, and the brakes are good, I’ve done long days on it and had no problems at all.

    My commute is 20+ miles each way, and not flat, so the braking is important. The long drop callipers are definitely less responsive, and I have had a few nasty moments in the wet with unexpected stops when I’ve thought ‘I’m not going to stop here!’. I also wore out a set of rims in c 1year (c7k miles). The frame got damaged and so I got the new commuter. I decided that I wanted discs, hence couldn’t just rebuild on a new frame.

    Similar feel to the defy, but not quite as fast. The brakes however are terrific. It’s a much nicer experience knowing that I can stop easily in the rain.
    So that’s a long winded vote for a disc defy!

    I would always have mudguards though, (we don’t have a dry season in the UK) and I don’t know if crud catchers would fit.
    Let us know how it goes

    May 23, 2015 at 1:04 pm #847057
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    Lee170

    Wow this rim brake disc brake
    Wow this rim brake disc brake issue runs deep!!
    So it’s 50/50 the on rim lovers! And disc junkies!
    Gonna go and try a disc defy and a rim brake and then go from there

    Seriously though thanks for all the help/rants etc
    Very much appreciative and great reading

    May 23, 2015 at 9:20 am #847055
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    fukawitribe

    mithrasm wrote:Is it really

    mithrasm wrote:
    Is it really me that is missing the Point?

    Personally, i’d say you have the point well and truly nailed Sir.

    May 23, 2015 at 9:02 am #847053
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    mithrasm

    Well I’m 53, really fat and
    Well I’m 53, really fat and really slow.

    I have loved riding bikes all my life though, I have cycled a lot of miles over the years, for fun and to commute. I have had many different cycling holidays over the years. Some with big heavy bikes and panniers, some with lightweight road bikes and a credit card, some with a mountain bike when I have bashed more bits than I wish to bash now.

    I’ve had 1 gear, 3 gears, 5 gears, 10 gears, 14 gears, 18 gears, 20 gears, 22 gears and 27 gears.

    I’ve had mechanical gears and electronic gears, dérailleurs and hub gears.

    I’ve had rim brakes and disc brakes on both mountain bikes and road bikes.

    At this moment I own 6 bikes of various types

    And you know what? I’ve loved it all. There has not been a single new bike that I haven’t enjoyed.

    I love my new toy with electronic shifting and disc brakes (which confirms my status as “all the gear and no idea”). I’m not sure it is hugely better than the bike I last saw as my “best” bike (which I still have), with it’s rim brakes and mechanical shifting. So I would absolutely agree with the people who would say you don’t need a bike like my new one.

    However, there is always more to the story than just need. I really didn’t need my new bike. But I really do love it, electronic shifting is so cool and the disc brakes are fantastic.

    So when I ride along and people think, “who is that fat git on that expensive bike with all the bling”? I wonder if they realise that I get that, I know what they mean? But do they know how much pleasure I get from riding such a lovely bike? I know I’m never going to be the fastest at anything, I ride because I like it and have liked it for as long as I can remember, and I like my new bike – with its disc brakes and electronic shifting!

    Is it really me that is missing the Point?

    May 23, 2015 at 8:22 am #847051
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    wellcoordinated

    Disc brakes look crap on a
    Disc brakes look crap on a road bike and are unnecessary. But then again the bike manufacturers need to churn that market..

    May 23, 2015 at 7:22 am #847049
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    arfa

    Come on folks, the OP asked
    Come on folks, the OP asked disc brakes and opinions have come forth. As said earlier, it’s a Marmite question. There’s a bloke who did the giro on a retro bike with cork brake pads – whatever floats your boat.
    Any piece of design and engineering is going to be a compromise, personally I will favour reliability, durability and cost effectiveness over weight for my riding.

    May 23, 2015 at 12:47 am #847047
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    hsiaolc

    crikey wrote:Quote:I don’t

    crikey wrote:
    I don’t even know why I bother.

    Give over, you sound like a petulant child.
    It’s a new kind of brake not the return of the Messiah.
    It may well become the new standard, but it doesn’t mean that everything that went before it is rubbish.

    Usually that comes from the Parent and direct it towards a child who can not be reasoned with.

    I never mentioned rim brakes are rubbish. They served their purpose and time very well but its time to move on.

    May 22, 2015 at 10:24 pm #847045
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    crikey

    Quote:I don’t even know why I

    I don’t even know why I bother.

    Give over, you sound like a petulant child.
    It’s a new kind of brake not the return of the Messiah.
    It may well become the new standard, but it doesn’t mean that everything that went before it is rubbish.

    May 22, 2015 at 8:54 pm #847043
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    hsiaolc

    Daveyraveygravey

    Daveyraveygravey wrote:
    hsiaolc wrote:
    This thing about choosing disc and rim is getting stupid.

    Just get the disc and get all the benefits and you are not restricted to summer long rides but you can go urban and commute.

    No mountain biker will even think about getting rim brakes anymore. Why even bother with that question.

    Use your head and then apply a bit of IQ.

    Disc no brainer.


    Mountain bikes are different FFS! They need different things from their brakes – and tyres! Oh I forgot, rim brakes only work in the summer…

    Don’t get the argument. Different bike sure but braking benefits are the same.
    F1 are different to normal day car but we all use disc brakes. Just because two things are different doesn’t mean they can’t share the same technology especially if they can benefit everyone.

    I don’t even know why I bother.

    May 22, 2015 at 8:50 pm #847041
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    Daveyraveygravey

    hsiaolc wrote:This thing

    hsiaolc wrote:
    This thing about choosing disc and rim is getting stupid.

    Just get the disc and get all the benefits and you are not restricted to summer long rides but you can go urban and commute.

    No mountain biker will even think about getting rim brakes anymore. Why even bother with that question.

    Use your head and then apply a bit of IQ.

    Disc no brainer.


    Mountain bikes are different FFS! They need different things from their brakes – and tyres! Oh I forgot, rim brakes only work in the summer…

    May 22, 2015 at 8:38 pm #847039
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    hsiaolc

    crikey wrote:How on earth

    crikey wrote:
    How on earth have we managed without disc brakes up until now?
    How did |I manage to get up and down Snowdon using rim brakes?
    How did I manage to get round the 3 Peaks cyclocross 3 times using rim brakes?
    How did I manage to ride 300 miles a week training for road racing?
    How did I manage to race across Europe?

    They are a slightly better way of braking.
    That’s it.
    That’s all.

    They won’t make you faster, thinner, more attractive or taller.

    How did we manage without internet before?
    How did manage without electricity before?
    How did we manage without car before.
    how did we manage….

    So retarded argument. I find intolerable.

    May 22, 2015 at 8:36 pm #847037
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    hsiaolc

    This thing about choosing
    This thing about choosing disc and rim is getting stupid.

    Just get the disc and get all the benefits and you are not restricted to summer long rides but you can go urban and commute.

    No mountain biker will even think about getting rim brakes anymore. Why even bother with that question.

    Use your head and then apply a bit of IQ.

    Disc no brainer.

    May 22, 2015 at 7:21 pm #847035
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    crikey

    How on earth have we managed
    How on earth have we managed without disc brakes up until now?
    How did |I manage to get up and down Snowdon using rim brakes?
    How did I manage to get round the 3 Peaks cyclocross 3 times using rim brakes?
    How did I manage to ride 300 miles a week training for road racing?
    How did I manage to race across Europe?

    They are a slightly better way of braking.
    That’s it.
    That’s all.

    They won’t make you faster, thinner, more attractive or taller.

    May 22, 2015 at 7:12 pm #847033
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    Daveyraveygravey

    “Rim brakes just didn’t work”
    “Rim brakes just didn’t work” Sorry but that isn’t true. Rim brakes don’t work instantly in the wet, that is all, they just take a bit longer. I’ve ridden all my life with rim brakes and not yet had a problem in the rain that made me think I needed disc brakes. If there was no difference in price or weight then I would have disc brakes, and like I said before if I commuted every day in the city then perhaps I would choose discs.
    Oops I may upset the pro discs brigade.

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