best pads for Zipp NSW

[dorin]

hi everyone,

last weekend i did a known route in Switzerland, 3 Swiss Passes, total climb 3'400m, same descend as is a round route. it was the first time i was taking the Zipp 303 NSW for a long climb/descend, the final descend is about 1'500m, i alternated between the front and rear brake, engaging them only when needed, no heat/lamination issues, all good.

However on Monday i had the "pleasure" to ride them under a heavy rain on the way to work and trust me i dint need coffee for good hours. the breaking was almost nonexistent. once i was engaging them i needed to wait for 1-3 seconds for the water from the rim to be pushed away and then they were blocking casing nerve wrecking skidding. i ended up descending on the sidewalk, seeing the car's exhaust so close is no fun.

i use the SwissStop Black Prince, anyone has any experience with the included Zipp Tangente Platinum Pro Evo, do they behave better in rain? or any recommendation for some pads that wont cause grey hair when is raining?

Cheers,
Dorin

[StradaJon]

There's a list of what and what can't be used here

http://www.zipp.com/support/maintenance/brakepads.php

avoid Swisstop Yellow even if they do say they are ok.

[dorin]

Thanks Jon, I was looking for real life experiences, the black prince are excellent in the dry, on the wet not so. Wondering how the tengente perform in wet, or any other (from the approved list)

Cheers,
Dorin

[1415chris]

Although I did not ride in Alps, just Surrey Hills... and not in proper wet weather yet, my NSW 808 with Platinum Evo are great. They are not bad with Black Prince either, tad better in Platinum Evo favor.
So if you want to change pads, the only option is Zipp's blocks.
The pads were new?
The reason I'm asking is that once riding in the rain on Firecrests and, don't remember what pads I had, Black Prince or Platinum Evo (pads were worn off around 50%) braking was awful. I have noticed that with the wear they loose the grab and power, not that much in dry but especially in wet.

[dorin]

Hi chris,

The pads are new, I even had a spare set with me as I read they (or used to) eat very quickly and knowing I have almost 4'000m of descend wanted to be prepared just in case.

At the end was raining, didn't feel any noticeable lag, but a day later was a different story. I wonder if the usage was that aggressive, I can't say I noticed any significant mass loss.

I'll give a try to the tangente, and first day with rain I will take them both out (around the house), swap on the road and compare

[1415chris]

You may try, after wed ride, cleaning the pads' breaking surface. Use sandpaper to remove any residue.
And let us know how it went.

[dorin]

Can't believe I'm saying this but waiting for the rain and will report on all 3: used BP, new BP and Zipp Tangente