I’m after some disc pads for my Shimano Saints and was amazed by the cost of them at Chain Reaction: Any recommendations of different makes and places to buy them?

I am going to Whistler next month and want one set for xc riding and one set for use in the bike park.

Cheers folks.

*cough*superstar*cough*

very happy with mine.

Hmmm heard mixed reports about them and don’t really want to take any chances on long, technical Canadian descents.

they had some where the resin came away from the backing a while ago, but sorted it out. no probs with mine. otherwise http://www.discobrakes.com

I use A2Z pads from http://www.woollyhatshop.com. Work pretty well for me.

If you won’t trust Superstar why trust anyone else other than Shimano?

Superstar sintered are great – very durable, no different in performance, a quarter of the price.

I’ve also used Discopads without problems.

If you won’t trust Superstar why trust anyone else other than Shimano?

Mainly down to the poor things I have heard about them. Plus they seem too cheap, lol.

Might try EBC ones: Any experiences?

Might have a look at those A2Z jobbies as well.

I just got 4 sets from Disco Brakes, bedded in nicely now and seem ok
Discobrakes

I’m happy with my superstar pads too.

Before you place your order with Discobrakes I’d advise checking they have the item you want in stock and that they aren’t going to get it posted from the US and keep you waiting for two weeks – during which time you’re unable to ride your new bike for the want of one tiny component.

Well, that’s the situation I’m in now anyway, so I’ve ordered the extra brake pads for my Alps holiday from Superstar instead – and hope they’ll arrive tomorrow like last time.

“Too cheap!” Just send them some extra money then. Or send it to me.

They work just as well as XTR, and are just as durable. What more do you want?

“Too cheap!” Just send them some extra money then. Or send it to me.

They work just as well as XTR, and are just as durable. What more do you want?

No need to be aggresive about it. There has to be a reason why they are a third of the price of Shimano, and it would be handy to know what that reason is, although I am sure alot of it is to do with branding, and excuse about the economic climate.

Wasn’t being aggressive.

The reasons for the price are obvious – if you remove the importer/distributor and also the retailer from the chain (or make them all the same person) you take out masses of mark-up. Add-in the premium you pay for the well-known brand with all the marketing and advertising that goes with it and guess what? Much cheaper.

Don’t really know why I’m wasting my typing on the subject though – go ahead and spend if you want to. I’m just trying to help out and say that in my experience the SS ones are a good product and its what I use on my bike which I ride for work and which I do need to rely on.

I use EBC Gold, they last well and are the closest to the original Avid pads they replaced on fit, plus Peaty rides them -what more do you need?

Been running disco brakes black ceramic pads (in M965 XTR) in the pyrenees lately.

They have been pretty good – no squeal when dry (some squek staraight after a splash though), and especially no pump or fade, but they do wear pretty quickly, as Disco themselves say.

As for SSC pads….I’ll get the lube, you warm up the octopus….

There has to be a reason why they are a third of the price of Shimano

Surely you mean “There has to be a reason why Shimano are 3 times the price”
??

I can get brake pads for my Ducati for not much more than the price of Shimano!!

Superstar sintered pads are, IMO, better than Shimano OEM pads.

Don’t really know why I’m wasting my typing on the subject though – go ahead and spend if you want to. I’m just trying to help out and say that in my experience the SS ones are a good product and its what I use on my bike which I ride for work and which I do need to rely on.

Lol, now who’s being aggresive. You are also assuming that the pads are exactly the same as the more expensive ones: No chance they could be made using inferior materials? PLEASE NOTE: THIS IS A QUESTION AND NOT A STATEMENT.

I think you’re just reading the aggression into it! I’m just not the smiley type. 😀 Is that better?

I don’t believe they are inferior. I also believe the reason for the bargain price is rather obvious.

I’ll carry on using them. If they were no good I would not use them – I take out groups of riders virtually every time I ride who do not expect me to have a bike that fails.

I can recommend Ashima SOS pads, No noise, less heat build up, good power etc. Just as they claim. Been using them in the front of my Shimano brakes on both my bikes for a couple of months now, very impressed.

Gordymac

inferior materials? it’s ceramic and copper waste.

they are made of low grade rubbish, literally.

and yes i can understand that there could be an lower grade of low grade rubbish.

superstar ones are pretty good ime – and i did have some of the dodgy batch – but they really are better now – they have changed the design and I haven’t had a failure (8 pairs down)

8 pairs down???!!!!

I only use a pair of pads every few thousand miles. anything that lasted less than that would be faulty in my book

glenp: fair enough and thanks for your input, it’s just the way it came across to me.

just bought some superstar sintered for my xt brakes and i am impressed, havent had them for long mind but dont let price mask value. But feel free to spend more

Nothing will last a few thousand miles of wet sandy singletracking.

Glen p – yes they will if everything is correct and set up properly. Not just my experience but others as well from information collected on here over the years. any area that some folk state “eats pads” there is another person who gets thousands of miles of life.

Its a multifactorial thing tho

ohgod let’s just not.
baulked at the prices for hayes OEM pads, wouldn’t for the life of me give money to dr. octopron, and a2z pads don’t come with springs, so bought discobrakes. ordered monday, turned up tuesday. can’t comment on performance yet, obviously.

TJ – Not sure what set up can make my pads last 10 times longer in super wet conditions! When it is properly p!ssing down and there is plentiful sandy mud as a grinding agent I haven’t found any pad that will last “thousands” of miles. In the dry, yea.

I suppose if I kept out of the woods all winter they might last quite a bit longer.

glenp – you need the ‘half a traffic cone instead of a crud catcher’ aerobrake that TJ runs to get that sort of pad life.

Glen – I ride all year round albeit mainly on peat doing several thousand miles per year. There have been many discussions on here about conditions and areas that eat pads – Afan, Peaks and Quantocks all being suggested as areas that eat pads. each of these areas at least one person posted that they got long pad life despite the conditions. for example some folk said that the quantocks soil type eats pads. I rode there for a wet weekend with no pad wear measurable with verniers. Others ride there without pad wear as well. Same for the peaks and afan.

I remain convinced that short pad life ( under a thousand miles) is excessive wear and due to a combination of factors.

It is a multifactorial thing with riding style, disc size, pad type, conditions all playing a part.

SSC sintered here to and IMO they work brilliantly. Agree they are low cost but hey I’ll not complain.

Hmm – well that sounds like a whole can of non-provable worms, so I’ll just leave it at that – hmm.

Glen – fair do! I have been interested in this and have collected as much info as I can from here and from manufacturers. While I can see trends in the info I cannot find anything to account for the hundredfold difference in wear rates that different people get in the same conditions. Saying its multifactorial while being a bit of a cop out is also true.

All I would suggest to those getting the short pad life is make sure they are well bedded in and go to the smallest discs you can to ensure disc / pad temperatures are kept high to keep the pads in adherent friction.

Jesus is TJ really as anal as he sounds? Measuring your pads after every ride with vernier calipers. All i can see is he has a “thing” agianst octopron and he will make up any billy bullsh*e to discredit him?

My SS pads wore out in edale so i sent them back and said they wore out, and they sent me some free sintered pads which are much better in grinding paste surprisingly!

The measuring the pads was to see as folk said the Qs were bad for pad wear so I really wanted to see what the wear was. Its the only time I have measured them. I wanted objective data

I am fascinated by the premature wear thing as its not one make that appears to suffer and I find it a insoluble puzzle which is irritating

I have not slagged SS on this thread. Nor have I made owt up

If TJ wants to spend time looking into this then good on him i say.

Oh and the superstar thing – TJ is absolutely right to pursue it in my opinion.

EBC Gold. Great Pads, and come with a sticker for your toolbox.

Brilliant.

I like superstar sintered ones. They are ace. and cheap. whats not to like?

My two penneth.

p.s. Service and speed of delivery from superstar has always been top notch. Nice little business, I wish Neil all the best. I’ sometimes wonder if he actually posts these ‘which brake pads’ threads as it keeps superstar in the front of peoples minds. if it is, then you’ve succeeded!

Never had a problem with superstar on hope and avid brakes.
Cheap because brake pads are cheap to make and they are not ripping you off?
My car pads at a set of 4 are cheaper than any other of the shelf number mentioned above. I would say Superstar are fairly priced the others a rip off.
PS i would hazard a guess they are all made in the same factory abroad.

How do folks rate Fibrax?