«It's one of the ways we get the famous marginal gains – explains Formolo, about to return to the Tour of Poland – in this case with Carbon-Ti chainrings and brakes. I speak from experience, but Every time I go to a bike shop, they ask me about the brakes.. It was enough for him to see the photos. They're good, they're really good. And they're beautiful, too..."
True debut at the Giro
We spent a lot of time at observe the disc brakes X-Rotor SteelCarbon 3 of Carbon-Ti mounted on the Colnago of the UAE Team Emirates, first at the Giro d'Italia and in the last few days at the Tour and what Formolo says is true: the view seduces. We are talking about the disc, composed of a central carbon body and a steel braking surfaceThey're beautiful, but do they work? And what are the benefits?
«The weight factor is important for the Grand Tours – explains Marco Monticone, product manager of the Brescia-based company – so much so that widespread use among top athletes, Almeida first, it started at the Giro d'ItaliaThere we found ourselves in extreme conditions, with storms, rain, and very long descents made in extremely critical conditions.
«The weight advantage is about 27 grams, which for them is a significant number.We get there thanks to the carbon fiber central part that no one else makes and allows us to save weight, while maintaining the same stiffness characteristics required for WorldTour competitions».
Industrial secret
Very little is known about the materials used and the related numbers: the industrial secret is opposed to the demand and it is to be understoodThe tests that led to the finished product continued for years: There can be large differences between different types of carbon with the same thickness, so developing the best composite proved to be a key step. In fact, we are talking about third generation of a product born almost 15 years ago.
Formolo's observation continues. The Veronese used the brakes X-Rotor Steel Carbon 3 at the Giro d'Italia, being part of… Almeida's elite guard.
«You may notice lightness indirectly – he says. What you notice is that They brake equally well even after the longest descents. Wet or dry.. In fact, sometimes I found myself getting to the bottom and wondering if I would have done as well with traditional brakes."
Steel braking track
Marco Monticone's refutation arrives promptly and goes into detail about the construction of the discs themselves.
«By saving so much weight in the central body thanks to the carbon – he says – we were able to dedicate more material to the most important part for the disc's performance, i.e. the braking trackWe haven't made that lighter. There are lighter discs than ours, but our product has a braking surface designed to have high performance and improved cooling on extremely long descents».
Cold braking
At this point we point out to him an observation made by Alessandro Covi, the Piedmontese who just recently moved to Spain to race in Villafrance de Ordiza and then San Sebastian and who also used the new brakes at the Giro.
«They always brake well – he says – maybe you have to pump more at the beginning of the descent, but then the efficiency is always the same and high level."
Sensations and habits
Monticone takes notes, pauses briefly, and reports what he also received from other riders on the Emirati team.
«That was the report of some athlete – he says – according to which The more the brakes are stressed, the better they work, which is extremely important for themI've always had some doubts about the lower efficiency when cold. But we take all their advice seriously., but there's no reason why this should happen, because the disc heats up in less than a second. Maybe it's a matter of feeling. I realize that when you give something new material for an athlete who travels 30-40.000 kilometers a year, he will surely find something different from what he was used to using."
Semi-floating disc
Compared to some disks that have a layered construction, what is called wafer, Carbon-Ti brakes have a braking surface made from a single piece, bound to the carbon body by special titanium rivets. And that creates an advantage.
«This construction – says Monticone – means that we can define semi-floating brakesThey don't deviate by a millimeter like the floating ones on motorcycles. In this case, the braking track is integral with the carbon and no movements are felt. But when it overheats during braking, the disc is free to expand, with the rivets being able to absorb the expansionThis is why it is crucial to achieve the perfect combination of rivets, carbon, and steel."
The verification at the Tour
The Tour de France was a moment of testing. The Carbon-Ti staff has reached the UAE Team Emirates on the second rest day in Megeve, dedicating themselves to the technical development requested by the team and necessary for them and discovering that for the first time their discs were also used on the front on the time trial bike.
«Last Monday – says Monticone – we spent the whole day with the team and We collected information from the athletes, mechanics and the performance managerWe've outlined future new products that might be of interest and agreed on a few things. We received the products used at the Giro, for example the Almeida discs, so that we can do our checks."
On the sidelines of the activity of Pogacar's team, There is a service that Carbon-Ti reserves for European customers: the replacement of the worn braking surface.We're talking about a true "rebuild" of the disc, returning it to new condition for half the price of buying a new one. Nothing particularly interesting for riders accustomed to replacing worn parts, but a nice added value for those forced to pay for their bike.
