Now You Can Hang Out in the Syndicate Pits with the Mechanics! 9

It's like being there. Marshy and crew discuss the pros and cons of brake rotor size.

Credit: Santa Cruz Syndicate

Hydraulic Disc Brakes Rotors Santa Cruz Syndicate

Hydraulic Disc Brakes Rotors Santa Cruz Syndicate

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2 sspomer https://p.vitalmtb.com/photos/users/2/avatar/c50_Screen_Shot_2015_03_09_at_2.10.12_PM_1425936051.jpg?1425935424 https://www.vitalmtb.com/community/sspomer,2/all 06/26/09 1272 170 19048 794 299 2047 2969 19 35

sspomer
3/5/2019 9:42 AM

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9 comments

37223 LLLLL /images/default/avatar/c50.png https://www.vitalmtb.com/community/LLLLL,37223/all 08/30/15 1 https://www.vitalmtb.com/community/LLLLL,37223/setup 1 164 346

LLLLL

3/5/2019 4:35 PM

Try it. It was the only way I could get my lever feel the same same rotors fr and r only way to go!

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29757 Jeffrey6675 https://p.vitalmtb.com/photos/users/29757/avatar/c50_image_1392748324.jpg?1392747365 https://www.vitalmtb.com/community/Jeffrey6675,29757/all 02/18/14 1 1 1

Jeffrey6675

3/5/2019 1:11 PM

I thought smaller in the rear cuz of rock strikes and such.

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45480 7willmorris https://p.vitalmtb.com/photos/users/45480/avatar/c50_IMG_0096_1581566857.jpg?1581565898 https://www.vitalmtb.com/community/7willmorris,45480/all 10/25/17 1 12 https://www.vitalmtb.com/community/7willmorris,45480/setup 5 9 4

7willmorris

3/5/2019 12:44 PM

I've always thought of it as a modulation thing. With a larger rotor I find it harder to keep the rear wheel just below the point of breaking traction. Last year I was running a 200f/180r setup and never felt like the rear didn't have enough power and was very satisfied with being able to control the rear wheel locking up. My current rig has 200s front and rear (and the same brakeset) and I find myself skidding around unintentionally a lot more even after 4 months with the larger rotor.

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28469 kleinblake https://p.vitalmtb.com/photos/users/28469/avatar/c50_image_1461198712.jpg?1461198694 https://www.vitalmtb.com/community/kleinblake,28469/all 11/14/13 5 22 71

kleinblake

3/5/2019 4:36 PM

By that logic you should downsize your front rotor for the same reason

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45480 7willmorris https://p.vitalmtb.com/photos/users/45480/avatar/c50_IMG_0096_1581566857.jpg?1581565898 https://www.vitalmtb.com/community/7willmorris,45480/all 10/25/17 1 12 https://www.vitalmtb.com/community/7willmorris,45480/setup 5 9 4

7willmorris

3/5/2019 5:35 PM

That would be applicable if controlling the point at which the front wheel locked was the issue but it isn’t

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4240 jeff.brines https://p.vitalmtb.com/photos/users/4240/avatar/c50_149187_936024901533_10205078_50991835_3734911_n.jpg?1321466271 https://www.vitalmtb.com/community/jeff-brines,4240/all 08/29/10 1 7 13 4 https://www.vitalmtb.com/community/jeff-brines,4240/setup 23 504 852 23 5

jeff.brines

3/5/2019 11:17 AM

C'mon Marshy!

The reason why has nothing to do with engine braking or looking cool. When brakes are applied weight is shifted forward. When the weight moves forward, you will have more 'weight to stop' at that point (others would say more traction, hence bigger brakes equals faster stopping). Hence larger rotor - better heat dissipation and more net "power".

Either way, this is why cars, motorcycles etc. go this route.

That said, I'm a run em big on both wheels kinda guy.

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4240 jeff.brines https://p.vitalmtb.com/photos/users/4240/avatar/c50_149187_936024901533_10205078_50991835_3734911_n.jpg?1321466271 https://www.vitalmtb.com/community/jeff-brines,4240/all 08/29/10 1 7 13 4 https://www.vitalmtb.com/community/jeff-brines,4240/setup 23 504 852 23 5

jeff.brines

3/5/2019 12:59 PM

"Sources"...

https://physics.stackexchange.com/questions/143823/why-are-a-motorcycles-front-brakes-more-effective-than-back
https://www.quora.com/Why-are-front-brakes-always-larger-than-rear-brakes
http://knowhow.napaonline.com/front-brakes-vs-rear-brakes-whats-the-difference/

That's just via a quick google search

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6576 Big Bird https://p.vitalmtb.com/photos/users/6576/avatar/c50_SmileySmall.jpg?1320728633 https://www.vitalmtb.com/community/Big-Bird,6576/all 02/01/11 16 64 1543 3583 14

Big Bird

3/5/2019 10:56 AM

The rear brake might be used More but never as Hard. And one can see obstacles that might damage rotors and be able to steer the front around while having less control in the rear due to not having eyes on it.

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756 Scrub https://p.vitalmtb.com/photos/users/756/avatar/c50_90973730_1283011954.jpg?1290151549 https://www.vitalmtb.com/community/Scrub,756/all 09/03/09 4 6 35 https://www.vitalmtb.com/community/Scrub,756/setup 4 142 936 2 2

Scrub

3/5/2019 10:45 AM

DH rig has 180mm rotor in the back here, less likely to hit rocks and when it does its cheaper to replace. Smaller rotors taught me to not use them as much and overheat them so they work when I need them to work. I ride steep trails and you learn to not cook them to the point of failure. In my early years of riding disk brakes I learned on 8'' Hayes Mags, brake systems have come a long way since then.

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