When you fit new pads to existing brakes the done thing is to spend a bit of time and bed them in properly, but who does it on a brand new bike? As in one straight from the LBS or out of the box, where everything it brand new and straight from the factory?

It also has brand new pads and brand new discs in that case, so……

I never bother with brake pad bedding and haven’t had any problems with squealy brakes. Just use them and see how you get on. You can always do it later.

Different folk and different brakes seems to need different actions. Me I am a bedder in – so peddling downhill brake hard release and brake hard again. 3 stops usually does it

You are doing 3 things – conforming the pad to the disc, curing the pad with heat and pressure, depositing a thin layer of pad material on the disc

Others simply find normal riding is enough. To me the hard stop is needed to avoid ” cold glazing” of the pad

So depends is probably the only answer. Cannot do any harm thats for sure.

They still need bedding in. After a few hard stops, braking power will improve noticeably. Obviously, with any new bike or major maintenance, you will want to check everything is ok for the first couple of rides. That includes being careful on descents until the brakes have bedded in.

I like to go on a hill, drag the brakes and then hit them and drag again and hit them again etc until the braking improves.

Bedding in brakes is nothing to do with shaping the pads to the discs and something to do with transfer or molecules from the pad to the rotor. It’s relevant for cars and motorbikes but irrelevant for bikes that get used in wet muddy conditions because the mud abrades away whatever molecular film has been deposited on the rotor.

So just ride it and be glad rim brakes aren’t used any more.

Globalti – so somehow bicycle brakes are different from every other disc brake?

YOu do need to conform the pad to the disc ( on a microscopic level) and it does leave a smear of pad material on the disc. When this layer is being worn away faster than it can be renewed is when you get the rapid pad wear. My pads last thousands of miles used in all weathers ( hope sintered)

YOu need that layer to get the adherent friction. disc brakes get a mix of abrasive and adherent friction. When the transferred layer is removed all you get is abrasive friction and that is when the rapid wear occurs.

yeah you need to bed pads in – for proper wear and performance.

All i know is that my pads last longer & the braking strength is noticeably improved if i bed them in first so I’ll continue to bed in.

I bed in all new pads and discs and there’s a piss easy way that I learnt years ago being part of a world endurance motorcycle racing team.

Take pads out, then put some water on a flat stone/brick/paving slab (I use a chisel sharpening stone) and then just rub the pads against the stone and watch the water go black. Do a couple of times, then dry pads and replace in calliper.

I then use a bit of wet and dry on the discs to take the shine off the braking surface.

Mega bite first time you brake 😉

I tend use a combination of my fatness and poor braking technique. This seems to work.

Bed then in, every time.

I just do several near stops from a good speed, the key is getting them up to temperature to lay down a layer of pad material on the disc as its this which provides the bite.

From brand new to bedded in there’s a massive difference in power.

I’ve seen a rig in a world cup/EWS mechanics area with something that spins the disc off the wheel so they can bed pads and discs in without having to ride the bike.

Bicycle disc brakes are exactly the same as motorbike or car disc brakes just on a much smaller scale.

the done thing is to spend a bit of time and bed them in properly

Meh, just ride and brake heavy on a few descents or while riding off, but for all the variations I’ve done including not bothering at all, I’ve noticed no difference really once I’m properly riding the trails.

If you’re about to start a race though with new pads or discs then sure I can understand you want peak performance from the off. Nothing I do requires peak performance as I pedal out of the car park or house, but will be up and running by the time I hit proper trails or done that a few times (bearing in mind I myself won’t be up and running properly for a few trails anyway).

Noting also I’m just a social rider or pedal hound. In it for the smiles and miles but not Strava times.

I do what that Syndicate mechanic does in the “simple brake bleed” vid that was knocking about a while ago. If it works for dh racers.. 😊
Would do the same on a new bike.

This’un
“https://youtu.be/piWBVDh1pTE”

Did this today, several dragging at speed followed by hard two finger braking. Performance went from ok to will put you over the bars if you pull just the front with one finger.

Take pads out, then put some water on a flat stone/brick/paving slab (I use a chisel sharpening stone) and then just rub the pads against the stone and watch the water go black. Do a couple of times, then dry pads and replace in calliper

Im sorry, but really, what is this meant to achieve? all youve managed to do is to remove some of the pad material. Was it a successful team?

st George – doing that removes glazing which can be an issue with race bikes. It does not bed pads in

well done DT78.

If you think your first ride will need more precision braking or you want more of a bite then yes I’d bed them in first, otherwise, just ride as normal and they’ll sort themselves as out you ride. I didn’t like my Zees (4 pot) on my new bike, felt rubbish during the first 15 minutes of riding (which required quite a bit of braking) but then they warmed up and bedded in, felt totally different after 20 minutes.