Good street brake pads?

485 Views 17 Replies 9 Participants Last post by LeanAngle, Dec 31, 2003

LeanAngle

Discussion Starter · Dec 30, 2003

So what are some of the better street oriented pads? i.e. don't need to get a lot of heat in them for good bite.

I need to replace the stockers, and I'm also thinking about getting in on the great deal TT has going on the galfer lines. I'm considering getting the Galfer Street pads to go with them, but wanted some opinions.

How do people using the glafer street pads like them?

I know that the EBC HH pads are the most popular pad upgrade, but how do they work when cold?

1 - 18 of 18 Posts

karl_996

· #2 · Dec 30, 2003

i have SBS HH pads and they work great. I never tried them in the cold, but there never was an issue when they were not warmed up.

BMW-K

· #3 · Dec 30, 2003

EBC HH works just fine here on my ZX11, steel braid lines.

LeanAngle

Discussion Starter · #4 · Dec 30, 2003

karl_1052 said:
i have SBS HH pads and they work great. I never tried them in the cold, but there never was an issue when they were not warmed up.

Not really concerned about them in the cold, just how they work "when they're cold"

I do a lot of commuting and sport touring stuff, so I don't want any pads that need a lot of heat in them to work well.

karl_996

· #5 · Dec 30, 2003

in that case you will have no probs.

heat in pads was a thing of the 80s-early 90s.
I remember in my rabbit with race pads, I would cruise right through the first stop sign every morning(but after that, eyes would pop out). Nowadays they use better materials, that give almost 100% stopping right off the bat.

LeanAngle

Discussion Starter · #6 · Dec 30, 2003

karl_1052 said:
in that case you will have no probs.

heat in pads was a thing of the 80s-early 90s.
I remember in my rabbit with race pads, I would cruise right through the first stop sign every morning(but after that, eyes would pop out). Nowadays they use better materials, that give almost 100% stopping right off the bat.

huh....that's interesting....I thought that some of the "race" pads still didn't work very well until they get some heat in them.

karl_996

· #7 · Dec 30, 2003

LeanAngle said:
huh....that's interesting....I thought that some of the "race" pads still didn't work very well until they get some heat in them.

AKAIK the HH pads are a compromise of all out race pads and street pads, offering the best of both worlds.

LeanAngle

Discussion Starter · #8 · Dec 30, 2003

karl_1052 said:
AKAIK the HH pads are a compromise of all out race pads and street pads, offering the best of both worlds.

They may be just what I'm looking for then

artnshel

· #9 · Dec 30, 2003

My EBC HH pads are fine when they're cold.

Clay

· #10 · Dec 30, 2003

Carbone Lorraine, best in the business

EBC's are "ok", but they have a problem with the back plate warping and causing rotor drag. Not a HUGE deal, but big enough to me anyways

I use the race pads (and damn...they're good), but the street pads are still good. Give 'em a try, I'll bet money they'll put a smile on your face

ONE THING THOUGH, you'll be changing compounds so you'll want to clean the rotors really well first. I use some steel wool. Some folks take them to a shop and have them sand blasted. If you don't clean them then you won't get the best braking. Just a word of advice

If you don't wanna get Carbone Lorraine, then Vesrah sintered are the next inline.

LeanAngle

Discussion Starter · #11 · Dec 30, 2003

Clay said:
Carbone Lorraine, best in the business EBC's are "ok", but they have a problem with the back plate warping and causing rotor drag. Not a HUGE deal, but big enough to me anyways I use the race pads (and damn...they're good), but the street pads are still good. Give 'em a try, I'll bet money they'll put a smile on your face

ONE THING THOUGH, you'll be changing compounds so you'll want to clean the rotors really well first. I use some steel wool. Some folks take them to a shop and have them sand blasted. If you don't clean them then you won't get the best braking. Just a word of advice

If you don't wanna get Carbone Lorraine, then Vesrah sintered are the next inline.

I actually knew about cleaning the rotors. Didn't know how exactly to go about it, but I knew I had to clean them...I was leaning towards honda polish...glad you told me about the steel wool

:laughing

Anyway, where the heck do you get these Carbone Lorraine pads anyway. I've never heard of them before.

Clay

· #12 · Dec 30, 2003

http://www.spieglerusa.com/cfm/pads.cfm

I know I've seen ads for them lately in Sportrider and Road Racer X.

And...I hope you were joking about the Honda polish! "I just put new pads on....but the brakes don't work at all...what's wrong?" :laughing

So yes, just take them off and scrub them down with some steel wool. It'd be even better if you could have them sandblasted, but all I use is some scotch brite pads. Make sure you wash them off really well too, to get all the bits of steel off from inside the holes.

After you do all of this, the brakes will barely work. You'll have to get some of the pad material on the rotors. Might I suggest finding a back road...take it to a 100 a couple of times, then brake like mad. Don't over heat them though, let 'em cool off each time you brake. By the time you're done, you'll notice that the bike has stopping power again

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cesj

· #13 · Dec 30, 2003

From my experience, the EBC HH work good but I loved the feel of the SBS.

risc

· #14 · Dec 31, 2003

Don't use steel wool, use scotch brite pads if you are going to do it by hand. If you are going to pay to have them done go for glass bead blasting as it imparts less heat than sandblasting.

geremy

· #15 · Dec 31, 2003

Scotchbrite works fine.

I recommend pads with low initial bite, hence performance friction is my answer.

Hawker

· #16 · Dec 31, 2003

I like ~400grid wet/dry. crosshatch pattern, both sides

I'll second versra. I have found the HH pads to be fairly progressive when combines with stock brake lines. If you have SS lines, they tend to be a bit more agressive.

geremy

· #17 · Dec 31, 2003

Oh, just a little note: the pads I have in now, PF95s...Troy Bayliss won the 2001 World Superbike Championship and John Reynolds won the British Superbike Championship with the same pads.

They work pretty damn well when cold, but they definately get better immediately following the first couple of stops. You don't want you breakpads to work all that well cold, because if the brakepads are cold the tires are cold too

. Remember that even if you don't use your brakes for a while (superslabbing it, sport touring like) that your pads don't really get cold because they have been skimming the surface of the brake disc.

The only thing is that if your riding in the rain a lot than PFs are not a smart choice. That first wet stop you have to squeeze pretty hard, but after that they are OK. Not as good as they are in the dry, but then again your tires are wet too, so maybe it's a good thing!

I think the Carbone Lorraine pads are similar (the race pads at least). These are not sintered pads but carbon-metallic. They are easier on brake discs than other pads.

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LeanAngle

Discussion Starter · #18 · Dec 31, 2003

Clay said:
And...I hope you were joking about ...lot of work I want to get done before spring.

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