Brakes? How important are they?

[saskatchewanian]

Originally Posted by HudsonAktau

Who tried to install rim brakes on the rim without braking surface? Will it work Ok or better to avoid that?

Depends on the rim.

If the sidewalls are not flat then you may get fluctuations in brake power and weird forces on your pads if the rim is just the tinniest bit out of round.

If the rim states "disk only" then chances are the sidewalls are already fairly thin and it is not advisable to use rim brakes as they will wear the sidewalls even thinner over time, eventually causing rim failure.

If the rim was designed for rim brakes but just has not been machined/surfaced there is no danger, only the paint can be a detriment to proper brake function.

To remove paint from the sidewall of a rim you can remove the tire, jam a sanding block between the rim and frame and spin away. That worked really well on my old airfoil rim.


failing that there are all sort of disk options now