Campag Bora brake pads advice

Back by popular demand, the general all-things Road forum!

Moderator: robbosmans

taina
Posts: 115
Joined: Mon Aug 23, 2010 8:17 pm
Location: near Seattle

by taina

I'll be receiving a Bora wheelset, with Campagnolo brake pads for post-2011 calipers. My calipers are pre-2011 Record. I plan to swap back and forth between the Boras and alloy wheels according to the weather, swapping brake pads, and also swapping brake pad holders, to make the swaps easier. If there are pads that work better on long descents in dry weather than the Campagnolo pads, I'd like to use them. I'd appreciate recommendations of pads and holders. Thanks.
Saura mon coeur que mon cul poise.

adapted from Rabelais

by Weenie


Visit starbike.com Online Retailer for HighEnd cycling components
Great Prices ✓    Broad Selection ✓    Worldwide Delivery ✓

www.starbike.com



Permon
Posts: 637
Joined: Mon Jun 23, 2008 8:52 am

by Permon

taina wrote:I'll be receiving a Bora wheelset, with Campagnolo brake pads for post-2011 calipers. My calipers are pre-2011 Record. I plan to swap back and forth between the Boras and alloy wheels according to the weather, swapping brake pads, and also swapping brake pad holders, to make the swaps easier. If there are pads that work better on long descents in dry weather than the Campagnolo pads, I'd like to use them. I'd appreciate recommendations of pads and holders. Thanks.


Very easy solution: buy the 2011 holders and Campa pads (red). The pads brake very well and changing pads in the 2011 holders is done in 10seconds.

taina
Posts: 115
Joined: Mon Aug 23, 2010 8:17 pm
Location: near Seattle

by taina

Got the 2011 Campagnolo pad holders, and black/grey Campagnolo brake pads. Dry braking is about as good as with Ksyrium SL's. No wet braking experience yet. Changing the wheels and tires (Vittoria Open Pavé Evo CG clincher to Vittoria Corsa Evo SC tubular) improves starting, climbing, and flat cruising, much more than I was expecting. I'm thrilled. The ride is smoother. I'll find out how much better they corner and descend as my confidence increases.
Saura mon coeur que mon cul poise.

adapted from Rabelais

reggiebaseball
Posts: 314
Joined: Tue Nov 02, 2010 12:13 am

by reggiebaseball

good for you!
tubulars are a really pleasurable riding experience.

enjoy, it will be wet soon enough.

User avatar
tommasini
Posts: 1460
Joined: Sun Nov 02, 2003 6:48 am
Location: Central USA
Contact:

by tommasini

The new red pads are reported to be even better....for instance in the wet. I can't say myself as I have a few more sets of the excellent grey carbon pads to use up.

Vagabond
Posts: 367
Joined: Tue Aug 30, 2011 2:08 am
Location: Washington State and the Colorado Front Range.

by Vagabond

I used Campagnolo pads this year for my Hyperons on the long descent off the top of Mt. Evans, CO. this summer. They worked fine but squealed a bit and I'm definitely not a heavy brake user. I took my bike and Hyperons on a trip this fall for three weeks which also found me descending long mountain passes in WA. and forgot to switch out pads from the pads used with my aluminum Racing Zeroes. I ordered SwissStop Pros to try something different and found them much quieter and quite frankly more effective at stopping as well. Weather was beautiful so I didn't get the opportunity to try them on wet rims. Unless I'm advised of something better, I'll be using SwissStops for the foreseeable future.
Colnago e Campagnolo

LionelB
Posts: 1595
Joined: Sun Oct 05, 2008 8:09 pm
Location: Aix en Provence

by LionelB

I use the new red campy pads on my Bora. Braking is awesome (have not tried wet weather yet).

You have to toe in the pads quite a bit but braking is completely silent for me now.

User avatar
Calnago
In Memoriam
Posts: 8612
Joined: Sun Nov 07, 2010 9:14 pm

by Calnago

I've used the older "brown" campy pads, then the gray ones, and have been using the newest red ones for a while. The red ones seem marginally better than the grey but I've yet to use them in real torrential rainy weather (lucky so far). I run them on my Boras. I have also been running standard campy pads on Ambrosio nemesis rims and I really don't care which carbon rim and brake pad combo you run, the braking on alloy rims is better. My gf runs the Reynolds blue pads on her Reynolds DV46UL clinchers and they seem to be really good. I might try them on my boras just to compare but so far I'm happy with the Campy pads on Campy carbon. Worse pads ever that I've tried were the yellow SwissStops but that was when there weren't many alternatives. They are hard, they screech and they glaze over quickly.
Colnago C64 - The Naked Build; Colnago C60 - PR99; Trek Koppenberg - Where Emonda and Domane Meet;
Unlinked Builds (searchable): Colnago C59 - 5 Years Later; Trek Emonda SL Campagnolo SR; Special Colnago EPQ

nismosr
Posts: 1317
Joined: Mon May 05, 2008 5:15 pm

by nismosr

I also use the red campagnolo pads works great even in wet condition I know because I rode 9 miles in a heavy downpour 2 weeks ago and they still have a tight grip.
2020 Colnago C64 Mapei-SR12 EPS-WTO 60
2022 Ridley Kanzo Adv Rival/GX AXS-Zipp 303s
2021 Basso Diamante SV-SR12 Disc EPS-WTO 60
2022 Basso Palta 2-Rival/GX AXS-Zipp 303s
2023 Colnagno G3X-SRAM Force-Levante

LionelB
Posts: 1595
Joined: Sun Oct 05, 2008 8:09 pm
Location: Aix en Provence

by LionelB

IMO braking on the Bora with campag red pads when it's dry is actually better than alum braking. You can modulate better.

dcj9
Posts: 418
Joined: Mon Oct 19, 2009 5:02 pm
Location: UK

by dcj9

I really don't care which carbon rim and brake pad combo you run, the braking on alloy rims is better.

+1000 :thumbup:

fdegrove
Tubbie Guru
Posts: 5894
Joined: Tue May 03, 2005 2:20 am
Location: Belgium

by fdegrove

Hi,

LionelB wrote:IMO braking on the Bora with campag red pads when it's dry is actually better than alum braking. You can modulate better.


Couldn't agree more.

Besides that, one shouldn't really compare apples to oranges.
When you run carbon rims you do not want a brake pad to eat away at your rim each time you hit the brakes either. So unless we're going to see a surface treatment of the braking track and pads that are designed to work with that, better braking on alloy rims equates being able to throw you over the handlebar better squaring your tyres in the process as you now have locked your wheel too..... :mrgreen:

I've been using Campa pads and Corima cork pads for ages on Boras and both work fine for me on the those rims. Funny enough I find the Campa pads to work better on Corima rims than their own cork pads so there you go. All (well most) carbon rims are different (not all alloy rims are alike either) so I'd recommend starting with what the rim manufacturer recommends and take it from there. More often than not you'll be returning to whatever came with the rims though.

One major plus for both the cork pads and Campa's pads is that they're very carbon friendly. Even after years of abuse the brake track is hardly marked on the rim. I've seen woree, much, much worse from even the most reputed brands...

So, as far as Campa pads for Campa CF rims go, the red ones get my vote of confidence. :thumbup:

Ciao, ;)
Being a snob is an expensive hobby.

Vagabond
Posts: 367
Joined: Tue Aug 30, 2011 2:08 am
Location: Washington State and the Colorado Front Range.

by Vagabond

Gents, are the red pads you're referring to manufactured by Kool Stop or Campagnolo or someone else entirely?
Colnago e Campagnolo

User avatar
tommasini
Posts: 1460
Joined: Sun Nov 02, 2003 6:48 am
Location: Central USA
Contact:

by tommasini

The red pads refered to are the latest from Campagnolo - they come with their latest carbon wheelsets. I've found that the after market availability of them (beyond getting them with a new wheelset) to be rather limited. My hunch is that some retailers/mail order are simply trying to sell what remaining greyish pads they have before ordering in the reds. The greys aren't bad at all. But if you have a choice I'd pick the reds.

Here is an example from Parker http://www.parker-international.co.uk/1 ... -Pads.html

LionelB
Posts: 1595
Joined: Sun Oct 05, 2008 8:09 pm
Location: Aix en Provence

by LionelB

These are the ones indeed. I have no idea if campy makes them or someone else makes them for campy.

by Weenie


Visit starbike.com Online Retailer for HighEnd cycling components
Great Prices ✓    Broad Selection ✓    Worldwide Delivery ✓

www.starbike.com



Post Reply