Which brake pads?

Discuss light weight issues concerning mountain bikes & parts.

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HaakonJohansen
Posts: 284
Joined: Mon Sep 01, 2014 4:58 pm

by HaakonJohansen

Hi there, good folks. I'm afraid I've contaminated my brake pads (stupid and easily avoided, I know, and hopefully I've learned), and I'm wondering what brake pads I should use for my Formula R1R/Ashima AI2 setup? I do want some aluminium backed ones because of the weight, but don't know what pad composition I should use, or if any brands are better/lighter/cheaper than other.

Btw: When I pull the front brake, the fork flexes fore-aft (vibrating forth and back). This can be explained by contaminated pads and the large holes on the AI2 rotor, right? Like the brake grips, then loses its grip, repeatedly.

TheRookie
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Joined: Wed Jan 18, 2012 4:23 pm
Location: Midlands, United Kingdom

by TheRookie

You seem to be able to only get organic pads with alloy backplates, I wanted some metallic for my R1's but can't find any.

Truckers do a CF backplate version with metallic pad. viewtopic.php?f=1&t=133702

Yes that can be an issue with discs with large gaps, worth making sure the pad is aligned so it's not catching the spider legs holding the disc part to the hub as that creates a big issue with pulsing.
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HaakonJohansen
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Joined: Mon Sep 01, 2014 4:58 pm

by HaakonJohansen

Thanks for the tip;) Should I rather use metallic pads than organic ones with the AI2 rotors?

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Getter
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Joined: Sat Nov 14, 2009 6:30 am
Location: So Cal

by Getter

It all depends on how much/hard you brake and weather conditions.

I use the "resin" pads on my Shimano brakes. I prefer the feel to them compared to the metallic pads. Living in So Cal it's real dry here, so no foul weather to accelerate the wear on the pads. I run Shimano m785's and the Ai2 rotors.

TheRookie
Posts: 926
Joined: Wed Jan 18, 2012 4:23 pm
Location: Midlands, United Kingdom

by TheRookie

Wet gritty mud can kill off organic pads in a ride (and Shimano resin even faster!), dry conditions are more forgiving, if you are riding LONG downhills (Alps for example) metallic pads can suffer with bad fade (they hold friction better to a certain temperature then 'fall off a cliff' plus they conduct more heat into the piston) versus organic.

There is no 'right' pad, there is a 'right for this ride' pad!

Disc makes no real difference, but for lightweight discs like Al2 etc organic will wear a bit faster while metallic is more likely to be noisy.
Last edited by TheRookie on Wed May 11, 2016 7:34 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Benno
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by Benno

Good advice ^
I use jagwire semi metallic pads. They also have alu backing plates.

HaakonJohansen
Posts: 284
Joined: Mon Sep 01, 2014 4:58 pm

by HaakonJohansen

Thanks for all the advice guys. I mostly use the bike when the weather is nice, but I do some riding in quite nasty conditions sometimes. Maybe I should try the semi metallic ones myself.

HaakonJohansen
Posts: 284
Joined: Mon Sep 01, 2014 4:58 pm

by HaakonJohansen

Also; does anyone know if the back plate material on the Alligator Professional pads is made of aluminium?

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HaakonJohansen
Posts: 284
Joined: Mon Sep 01, 2014 4:58 pm

by HaakonJohansen

Just a little follow-up on the fork vibration issue. New pads didn't solve the issue alone, but I've changed the Ai2 front rotor with a KCNC one, and the vibration stopped;)

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