I'm looking to replace one of my Avid disc rotors because it's bent. On eBay, there have been 165mm Avid rotors. I know these probably wont fit my 2002 brakes (which are 160), but I want to double check. Can I use 165mm rotors?
Avid rotors: 165mm vs 160mm
- Thread starter kingLatency
- Start date
I'd just look for some Hayes 6" rotors. They are compatible, cheaper and more readily available than the Avids. The 165mm rotor won't work with an '02 caliper unless you space it out a little. That extra room was built into the caliper in the earlier models.
and the rotor swappin is cool too, i was runnin a avid 160 on my hayes for a month, worked great, only thing is that the avid rotor is a little thinner than the hayes, so if you run a hayes rotor, watch the pads, cause youll think they have more live since they arent closing as much, i pulled the avid rotor off, and checked it out cause my caliper was maxed out (mechanical caliper) and i still had some pad life. so keep check on the pads.
If you are running a 165 in a 160 caliper, a couple washers should do... place them between the caliper and the 74 mm mount.
It's easy to space them out with washers, I found some in the right size that are 2.5mm thick at a hardware store. This means I can swap wheelsets between my bikes that have the old and new version calipers without a problem, so I use 165mm rotors all around. Yes, I could have just as easily gone to 160mm, but I have a surplus of 165mm rotors, and that would have meant buying 6 new rotors otherwise.
However, it's very important that if you do this, you get longer CPS bolts! It's especially important with the front CPS adapter for IS standard mounts, you will notice there isn't a lot of length to begin with, and without extra spacers the bolts just make it to the end.
You can get longer bolts at a hardware store, or from Avid I believe. 2.5mm may not seem like much, but there is a minimum thread depth needed and it won't be met if you space it out. Anyway, you might never have a problem, but imagine the results if it did fail.
However, it's very important that if you do this, you get longer CPS bolts! It's especially important with the front CPS adapter for IS standard mounts, you will notice there isn't a lot of length to begin with, and without extra spacers the bolts just make it to the end.
You can get longer bolts at a hardware store, or from Avid I believe. 2.5mm may not seem like much, but there is a minimum thread depth needed and it won't be met if you space it out. Anyway, you might never have a problem, but imagine the results if it did fail.