Want to stock up on some pads before we head south.
Anyone had experience with TBS own brand pads? Prince for sintered or ceramic is good.
Otherwise the Galfer performance pads for £10.99 seems like a good price.
Uberbike are pretty good value
I've been buying sets of 4-10 semi-metallic pads from Aliexpress for years and can't tell they're any worse than the pads on rental bikes i've ridden with brand new branded pads.
I carry a spare set on me just in case, but i'm not sure i've ever needed them.
I like the Galfer pads
Another fan of galfers black pads. They lasted 2 weeks in the alps which is a record in itself
I've been buying sets of 4-10 semi-metallic pads from Aliexpress for years and can't tell they're any worse than the pads on rental bikes i've ridden with brand new branded pads.
I bought some of the orange backed ones on Aliexpress based of chinertown forum reviews. They were awful. they were cheap, yes, but they were inconsistent at best.
then I got all paranoid about asbestos and put them in the shed of doom.
I used Uberbike E-Matrix in the Alps last summer. Pretty good - incredible in terms of lack of wear but weren't brilliant in terms of bite. I'll be going Galfer I think this time around.
I've been buying sets of 4-10 semi-metallic pads from Aliexpress for years and can't tell they're any worse than the pads on rental bikes i've ridden with brand new branded pads.
I bought some of the orange backed ones on Aliexpress based of chinertown forum reviews. They were awful. they were cheap, yes, but they were inconsistent at best.
then I got all paranoid about asbestos and put them in the shed of doom.
can’t say I’ve tried any orange ones… but sound like they’re best avoided
Alligator pads are great, been using them for ages
The Uber bike ematrix pads I've used have all been very good with good bite and stopping. I was looking for more 2 weekends ago but they seem to have stopped doing them for the Code brakes, which is a shame.
I'll go back to the white coloured pads...which I think are the Kevlar ones.
can’t say I’ve tried any orange ones… but sound like they’re best avoided
yeah, they were kingstop.
Cooma are supposed to be better.
Disco brake pads have always done me well.
Had some Superstar ones with fins when we went to the alps. Great to use put a pita to get in the calliper and get the bolt through. Cheap though :O)
TBS pads are decent. I usually use them or Gorilla.
I'm an Uberbike fan. The orange version, can't remember what blend that is particularly, but a good balance of performance and life at a decent price. I generally have a small stock of all the different types my brake use rather than buy JIT.
Have tried various EBC pads in Guides. Disappointing. Have stayed with SRAM OEM pads, and feel like that's good VFM. I'm not hooning down the alps or doing big days in the park tho.
False economy IMO - Just buy some Galfer ones, same as Hope pads. My friend ate through TBS pads in days bike packing in a few days so I'd not bother with them.
AliExpress - 20 pairs for £20 ish. Less than pair of branded ones from LBS. I have never worried about it inconsistency or wear. Being adventurous, I have tried black and green flavours. They work fine and I'm not dead yet.
Get this, I buy cheap clone SRAM G3 style rotors too. Silly cheap. They work fine as well, and I'm still not dead.
Ever had that thing where you look at some well worn pads and think "Hmm... I think I might get one more ride out of those pads... Maybe...." Now,.as they cost a quid, I just put in a fresh pair and move on.
Another vote for Uberbike (blue E-matrix). Always buy some when they have 30% off offer.
All the cheaper pads I've tried have been crap. As said above 'false economy'
I've been using Galfer for years. They work well and last ages.
Galfer Purple. Happy medium of price, performance and lifespan. P*ssing around with resetting pistons is to be avoided as far as possible.
Cheers folks.....
Ended up ordering Galfer pads from EBS. Been using them the last couple of years. Majority of riding is hanging my bike on the side of a chairlift and they hold up well.
Just weighed if it was with a punt on something else.
Fanks
35bikes. Used then for a while.
I bought some really, really cheap ones from AliExpress. There was so much material on the pads that the rotor wouldn’t fit in the calliper.
I have some less cheap ones I bought when I got a set of pistons for a Shimano calliper that was leaking. The pistons, seals are pads are ok so far! The pads were branded ZTTO (or similar)
ordinarily I buy oem pads. They are getting a bit expensive, but I like the security.
Uberbike seem to have the ematrix pads back in...I'm assuming when I was last looking they were doing a restock. I do find them the best for wear rate and bite power. (Others may have different experiences)
+1 for aliexpress, I get red Bikeinn, the ceramic ones. (are they actually ceramic? Who knows. The packet says they're for "across country" so I trust the rest of the description just as much. They've soared up in price and are now £1.60 a pair.
They're absolutely bog standard and normal, which works for me as I have good brakes (ancient Formula The Ones) and don't need fancy pads or anything. I was skeptical at first but I've done alps weeks, UK uplift weeks, the Megavalanche, and countless Orrible Scottish Enduro Rides and they've never let me down. Plus being so cheap means I'm not inclined to wring every last penny out of them.
(probably taste plays a part here, if you want a really sticks-in-spokes brake feel then you probably want an aggressive, high performaing compound but I like feel and subtlety and less bite, and power on demand but you have to ask for it, and these suit me perfectly)
I'm not convinced there's that much difference, even if it is luck of the draw. I rode a brand new Norco with Maven's and presumably SRAM pads in Canada and they were extremely strong, it took a while to learn to modulate them. But then my son's got SLX levers and 5+ year old MT7 Pro calipers with dirt cheap Aliexpress pads and they're just as impressive. They've done months of riding including some big descending days (Thredbo, Omeo, Falls Creek) and the pads are fine.
Then we go out on our hardtails in the grit and by the end of a 60km fairly flat but wet and sandy ride and both of us had a sticky piston that had worn one pad out completely! Formula Cura and Shimano XT.