Reynolds blue, black prince, campagnolo red? Best Pads for c

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mjduct
Posts: 657
Joined: Tue Dec 27, 2011 2:19 pm

by mjduct

I've got some older carbon wheels and last week I had a descent with an emergency turn at the end, and my cervelo R5 got to play cyclocross for about 100 yards...

I know that brake pads for carbon have evolved in the past 2 or 3 years. I see a lot of pros at the giro who aren't sponsored by campagnolo are riding their red carbon pads, and there are some other manufacturers advertising more power, less squeal, better modulation, less heat, etc... With their carbon specific pads.

Any good pad test articles out there? Or good first hand experiences, I would be using these on a couple different types of wheels one with plain carbon rims (boyd) and some Chinese tubular rims with basalt.

Thanks!


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thprice
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by thprice

I have tried Yellow, Reynolds Blue and Black Prince on Far Sports basalt rims.
  • SwissStop Yellow - stopping capability poor, modulation OK, ~4000km life
  • Reynolds Blue - stopping capability OK, good modulation, ~4000km life
  • SwissStop Black Prince - stopping capability OK, not as good modulation, <2000km life
Choice was easy: Reynolds Blue

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GorrGrimWolf
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by GorrGrimWolf

mjduct wrote: I see a lot of pros at the giro who aren't sponsored by campagnolo are riding their red carbon pads.


I have noticed the same in all the "PRO Bikes from Giro" galleries online. I'm currently using Corima Red Pads (These pads remind me a Zipp Cork Pads) and they feel nice - super modulation, but they are lacking a stopping power. Someone with personal experience of Campagnolo Red pads with other wheelsets? Are they worth to give it a try or better stick with pads specifically recommended for a wheels?

eric
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by eric

I'd use the Boyd blue pads on the Boyd rims. I am 99% sure that the blue pads I get from FarSports are the same as the Reynolds blue 2013 and earlier pads- at the least they look and perform the same. And I would not be surprised to find that the Boyd pads are also the same. Reynolds has some new blue pads for 2014 with larger brake surface area.

SwissStop yellow are about the worst pads you can use- poor braking and they put more heat into the rim.

I've tried Black Prince carbon on Farsports basalt rims and the braking is not as strong as the blue pads. They're close though.

Farsport has some new black "ceramic" pads which have a nice firm feel but reduced braking power vs the blue pads. They're ok for adjusting speed on a descent but not so good for coming to a full stop.

Geoff
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by Geoff

Cork pads are still where it's at. The better modulation of the braking is everything with carbon wheels.

Bodo
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Location: Germany

by Bodo

thprice wrote:I have tried Yellow, Reynolds Blue and Black Prince on Far Sports basalt rims.
  • SwissStop Yellow - stopping capability poor, modulation OK, ~4000km life
  • Reynolds Blue - stopping capability OK, good modulation, ~4000km life
  • SwissStop Black Prince - stopping capability OK, not as good modulation, <2000km life
Choice was easy: Reynolds Blue



Same here.
Have tried all the above ... my vote goes to reynolds blue

rim: zipp 303

RedRacer
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Joined: Sat Jan 21, 2006 6:13 pm

by RedRacer

Are the Reynolds Blue pads compatible and safe with ENVE carbon wheels?

tinozee
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by tinozee

I've tried the black prince, rynolds blue and many other swisstop and zipp pads. I like zipp pads on zipp rims. Black prince stop well but squeal like hell unless you toe them. Reynolds blue seem to be the best for me on Reynolds and other flat/smooth deep carbon rims.

Now you guys have me wanting to try the red campy ones.

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sugarkane
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by sugarkane

i was really impressed with the red campag pads. normally i'd say reynolds blues or enve are the best all rounders but i used a friends bike with the reds on it and my enve wheels, the power was really good, much better than the other two :unbelievable: no idea though on the rim wear, and you have no warranty using them on now campag wheels

HillRPete
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by HillRPete

RedRacer wrote:Are the Reynolds Blue pads compatible and safe with ENVE carbon wheels?

At the rate ENVE wheels go over the table, I'd not mess with the warranty and stick to their recommended pads.

On generic rims I've had good results with Reynolds Blue also. Definitely better than Swissstop Yellow, and very affordable too.

Probably obvious, but it's very important to use good brakes. WW choice KCNC C7 for example worked relatively poorly with any combination of pads and rims (also alu rims and salmon koolstop). Shimano Ultegra, SRAM APEX, and even some cheap Tektros, just to name a few I've used, are in a totally different league. With regard to weight too, naturally.

eric
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by eric

It's always a good idea to use the pads the rim manufacturer says to use. Especially if there is a warranty that you might want to claim.

My friend who owns a Trek store regularly sees Bontrager carbon rims that have been ruined by using the wrong pads, usually SwissStop yellow. Bontrager carbon rims use cork based pads. Wrong pads = voided warranty.

cajer
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by cajer

I'm about to get a pair of bontrager wheels. Are you saying that they will only work with cork? Not even something like Reynolds pads?

Fatbiker
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Joined: Tue Aug 08, 2006 1:41 pm

by Fatbiker

For me Corima red pads are the best brake pads on carbon rims by far. So far I have tried quite a few, including the very popular Swiss Stop yellow pads, but none one them had the same modulation and brake power that Corima pads have. Added bonus is they hardly wear at all. They are pricey and hard to find, but I can really recommend them.

Fatbiker
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by Fatbiker

Bontrager cork pads suck, but I am pretty sure that Corima pads will work fine on Bontrager rims.

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eric
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by eric

cajer wrote:I'm about to get a pair of bontrager wheels. Are you saying that they will only work with cork? Not even something like Reynolds pads?


Did you check what the manufacturer says?

My Trek LBS owner friend got 17k miles from his first set of Bontrager carbon pads. They seem to brake well and don't squeal. Maybe you should try them first.

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