Disc Brakes

Cutting and mounting an old rotor works really well for protecting both the rotor and other players.

As for functionality, I use an avid BB5 mechanical and it stops me, but I have to adjust it almost constantly as I play over a weekend. It's frustrating but when it's perfect I love it.

I think that polo wise, if you can afford it and know how to keep the brakes working effectively, they are a decent choice, expecially here in portland, and Seattle where there are lots of wet polo days. As for a wheels in true it is nice condiering the only work UI have gotten on my back wheel since installing teh disc brakes was when I lost two spokes to an opponents pedal.
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Marco!
I am the Duck.

I really like disc brakes, and Avid at least makes a 140mm rotor for the rear, which would cut down on the chances of having your rotor hit. I don't think I ever played polo on a bike of my own that DIDN'T have disc brakes, and I only had to bend my rotor back once. Granted, Ben Schultz has a bent hub flange, and if THOSE are getting bent, a rotor is not likely to do so well, but I would still chance it. I might try to get my hands on a 140 soon and test it, as my rear wheel skids a bit to easily anyway.

Anybody got a 140 they want to trade? I have LOTS of other rotors, especially 160s.

Oh, and I've never snapped a hydraulic line, but I HAVE fucked up levers a couple times, and THAT can get expensive.

yep, that's me! The bb5 uses a pad with a lot less surface area than the bb7, which is not a big deal with a large rotor, but might be less than ideal with a 140. I have yet to see any pictures of these brake guards, but that's a good idea as well.

I have been rocking a rear bb7 since last june, and I love it. Granted, it locks up the rear wheel, and I have gone through several tires bc of this, but my LBS sells used tires for $5, and I am getting better at pulsing/modulating to prevent this. I would like to figure out an "anti-lock pulsing system" for it, but, well, fuck it - too busy getting jiggy.

Used hydro to start, but didnt want to spill hydro oil all over the court... major dick move, BTW. I am missing my left index finger, so the increased power is very welcome to fight hand fatigue.

Protecting the rotor? Easy:
1 - go to dollar/savers/thrift store
2 - buy +/- 8" pot lid and remove handle, drill a hole in the center of the lid the size of your axle
3 - install on axle, disk brake side, duh. Could add another on derailer side.
4 - buy a stack of tires

Expect people to start swinging at your brake cover, especially your asshole teammates...

Plowdozer, MN --------------[] (((((O

The thing about hydros that makes me nervous is the bars spinning during a crash. I've blasted through enough housing end caps to know there's a lot of force being yanked at the lever.

140mm rotor works great for me, and my current break has slim pads, I feel they allow for more modulation and less skid if I want to feather it a bit.

i have been using a tektro aquila in the back for about 6 months and never had any issues. i also had two guards welded on, one for the disc and one for the caliper. i will try to get some pictures soon.

Yeah...when it's wet out it's either lock it up and slide or nothing pretty much. We fortunately have a covered garage spot to play in when it's rainy/snowy out.

Anyone used this thing? http://urbanvelo.org/montano-velo-fixed-hub-disc-adapter/

I just got a new frame that has disc brake mounts and my 48h wheel has an empty fixed side.

just posting my experience with discs because, well, if it helps someone then I'm pleased.

I have been using discs since the e.van crown, love it. playing in the rain is a lot more controlled. I haven't put a guard on my disc yet but I'm looking into the options on this thread (especially ebbin's, but jawn's looks to be the best). Also, ATX has a player who welded on protection for his disc and calipers, I forgot your name! but please do share your weld pictures.

Disc calipers: bb7s are the way to go, but I had one break on me (wasn't even at polo, I was fucking around and endoed, bike fell right on the brake and snapped the caliper). Currently using hayes, shitty adjustability, just as awesome stopping. bb7's are also on jason from fort lauderdale (soon to be ATX)'s bike. he adjusts them without getting off the bike. easy as that. high scores in adjustibility (especially if you wanna run doubles, but I did doubles and switched to just the back, prefer the back instead of double in normal weather, maybe consider double for harsh weather)

Longetivity: the benefits over other brakes starts with the pads-- you replace them less often (the bike shop I talked to here suggested somewhere around 3-4 years of use on the same pad, I dunno if they meant daily commuting use or a regular downhill biking use, but in my 6 months of using v-brakes I had way too many problems, at least 2 different sets of pads whereas disc is much easier to maintain. As far as the truing issue mentioned in the original post (i.e. mallet hitting disc causing it to go out of true) it's really easy to fix, get a crescent wrench, apply your wheel truing skills to the disc (spin it, check the out of true areas), tighten wrench over the untrue areas, bend it back into place. easy as that.

If you have disc brake tabs and a hub that works with it, go for it. don't hesistate. the stopping power in the rain, and in general, is great. adjustibility is great, knowing how to fix it is simple and quick.

on a side note, the NAH rules do not have any suggestions for safety with disc brakes. In my opinion, it takes a bit of effort to create a safety buffer for your rotor but by observing rule #1 and not doing dickery like pinning someone to the boards, or tail whipping, whatever, you can cut down the safety hazards a lot. I am gonna work on borrowing jawn's idea to create a safety area around my rotor, but as we are extremely safe at polo (safety meetings are standard) here in Denver, I am not worried about it.

Here's my rotor guard I just made, can use any old rotor, easy to remove the wheel as the axle slides out of the hub (Hope ProII with 9mm axle conversion kit)

Here is a closeup of my first run guard.
Nothing fancy, but should do the job of keeping the rotor from bending via mallet or wheel contact.
6061 t-6 aluminum, 5mm thick

Nope. Enough clearance for my quick release. I assume a standard axle wouldn't have an issue

Medic.Mike, I'll be doing a smallish production run (-20 pieces) in a little while, with some revisions to the original design.
I'll let you know when they'll be done if you're interested. They shouldn't cost too much.

also, i'll post a pic of the second version at some point tomorrow, for feedback. Its always helpful to have outside opinions. (hint:it has a built in bottle opener.)

I'm sure it would, but since I'm going with aluminum, 5mm plate was on sale.
I would have integrated the axle in my design, but the goal is to make something sell-able at a good price point that will work on the numerous different disc forks out there.. sadly the IS mounts aren't all positioned relative to the axle.
The other thing to keep in mind, is that the lower your mounting points go, the less flex you'll get out of the guard.
One lesson from 90's era BMX that I've learned is that no matter how strong you make something, something has to give. I'd rather break or bend a guard than have to re-weld my disc tabs on my fork.

Rotor guard on Mike's 1x1. The esteemed Beau Layman made this beauty. This is about the third or fourth one he's done for our club and its easily the hottest.

standard disc brake protection for my new polo bikes (note the highly neccesary penis shaped lightweight hole in both dropout and rotor protector. not to mention the two dropouts to adjust the trail). similar device available for the rear