Looking for brake pad opinions...

[hikermikem]

In particular, are there any "do's or don'ts" about replacing disc pads??

I'm looking at one on e-bay, non-OEM brand "SOK". Any experience with these?

They are advertised as:

Our KEVLAR brake pads are made of copper, alloy, iron, graphite, and other metallic elements which are far superior to the standard metal powder mixed into organic pads. KEVLAR brake pads provide exceptional stopping power, longer life, and superior operation under all conditions. Excellent pads at an affordable price!

Seems like a decent price for two sets of pads for the front ($30). Will these be OK, or should I stick with OEM??

Thanks,

[BentRod]

with out having used these pads, I do have a word of caution.

first off, the advertisment sounds like a load of the heavy stuff.
listing 'alloy' as one of the metals is just dumb.

What really raises some alarms with me however, is the emphesis on the presents of Kavlar and an abundance of metals. These will all wear on your brake disc. Most brake pads do contain small pieces of brass, or some other soft metal for the purpose of removing any oxides from the disc rotor.

It is most likely cheaper to replace the brake pads a little more often, than it would be to replace the brake rotor... unless you drive a VW, in which case the rotors are about 12$ each.. for the good ones..

[the_journeyman]

I agree with Bentrod, those sound like those 'lifetime' brakepads that were available for cars. Yes, they last forever, but the eat the rotors ~

JM

[Dink]

Just use Vesrah pads.

Dink

[Big T]

Just use Vesrah pads.

Dink

Gotta agree. It's your brakes. Spend a little more and stop better. I've used Vesrah and EBC and I like both.

Just search Bikebandit or Dennis Kirk and order some up.

The price of cheap brakes is too high for me. I'd rather not rear end someone or miss a corner because I don't have the best brakes available.

[Dink]

I also use both Vesrah & EBC, Vesrah in the front where I want stopping power & EBC is the rear to deaden the brakes and take the power out.
Makes my brake set-up nicely balanced for me.

Dink

[bwringer]

I'd agree -- use a well-known, established brand of brake pads.

I'd also agree that they all seem about the same, except that Vesrah pads are a definite, very noticeable improvement over the other name brands. I highly recommend them, and they don't seem to hurt the rotors or wear out more quickly.

[salty_monk]

I've just put in EBC FA51's (square type not round) from Z1 enterprises. $40 ish.

I'll have to look out for Vesrah's for next time. The EBC is definitely different to what was in there before (some other aftermarket) but they feel very similar in performance.

Dan

[Grandpa]

In particular, are there any "do's or don'ts" about replacing disc pads??

I'm looking at one on e-bay, non-OEM brand "SOK". Any experience with these?

They are advertised as:

Our KEVLAR brake pads are made of copper, alloy, iron, graphite, and other metallic elements which are far superior to the standard metal powder mixed into organic pads. KEVLAR brake pads provide exceptional stopping power, longer life, and superior operation under all conditions. Excellent pads at an affordable price!

Seems like a decent price for two sets of pads for the front ($30). Will these be OK, or should I stick with OEM??

Thanks,

I've used these SOK pads on my GK with no problems of any kind. I have them on both front calipers at this moment. Get them!

21 years on GS850's and a GK tell me that there's no difference at all in braking power or longevity among any of the brands of brake pads. Shop price. I do.

I get mine on eBay. At this point I have two sets of front pads (EBC) hanging on a nail in my garage, waiting for me to install them at my convenience. Also, a set of Vesrah rear pads. I replace them at tire changes only (not necessarily every tire change).

Why did I get Vesrah rear pads? Because they were at the time a good deal on eBay, and not because they work better or last longer.

[hikermikem]

Thanks Grandpa,

How are your rotors wearing? Have you had to replace them pre-maturely?

Mike

[Grandpa]

Thanks Grandpa,

How are your rotors wearing? Have you had to replace them pre-maturely?

Mike

Mike, don't pay attention to those who put down the no-name pads. Chances are they've never tried them; on the other hand, I have tried them and am using a set of SOK front pads right now, as I mentioned before.

As for the rotors, they're holding up just fine. It helps that I have three front wheels with rotors on them, and two rear wheels with rotors on them, so rotor wear is spread out.

I've tried Ferodo, SBS, Dunlopad, EBC, Vesrah, SOK, and other name and no-name brands. No difference in performance, or in pad and rotor wear.

It's your money. Save it.

Cheap Grandpa, with a contrarian opinion, as usual...

[Grandpa]

More important than brand of pad, for braking efficiency, are the following:

1. Clean, fresh braking fluid. I flush both front and rear once a year. Predictably, I use cheap, generic DoT-3 fluid. I ride about 12K miles a year.

2. Clean calipers -- brake dust accumulates. I clean the calipers with brake cleaner at every tire change.

3. Braided steel lines, all three of them up front, and also the rear.

Proper maintenance, as usual, rules the day. My brakes work as well as a 23-year-old system can be expected to work.

[49er]

I've used these SOK pads on my GK with no problems of any kind. I have them on both front calipers at this moment. Get them!

21 years on GS850's and a GK tell me that there's no difference at all in braking power or longevity among any of the brands of brake pads. Shop price. I do.

I get mine on eBay. At this point I have two sets of front pads (EBC) hanging on a nail in my garage, waiting for me to install them at my convenience. Also, a set of Vesrah rear pads. I replace them at tire changes only (not necessarily every tire change).

Why did I get Vesrah rear pads? Because they were at the time a good deal on eBay, and not because they work better or last longer.

Grandpa, you is being contraversial once again.
If there is no difference in performance and wear between the multitude of pads available, why the hell have racing teams spent zillions of dollars and time experimenting with new compounds over the last 30 years or so. Has this money been spent, all in vain?
I conceed that some of this expendature has ben bought about by the need to remove asbestos from the pad material, but that is only part of the research effort.
There is a diference, be it in cold, general or hot performance and definately some differnce in wear rates.
As for the cost, the average rider can probably settle for the cheaper brands if they moderate their driving styles and expectations of performance. IMO, safety should dictate what you ultimately decide to use.

[tkent02]

The original brakes were probably enough with 1978 tire technology. Some pads have perhaps almost twice the braking at a given finger pressure? Don't know about exactly how much in percentage increase but an easily noticeable difference. I couldn't care less about disc wear, I'm pretty easy on brakes and never keep bikes very long anyway. It's nice to be able to make modern tires stop as well as they can. The old brakes with stock pads just don't get there. Maybe with all four fingers and a regripped lever, but I'd rather just pull a little harder with my normal grip and stop HARD. Still nowhere near what a modern bike does but it's better.

[Grandpa]

Grandpa, you is being contraversial once again.
If there is no difference in performance and wear between the multitude of pads available, why the hell have racing teams spent zillions of dollars and time experimenting with new compounds over the last 30 years or so. Has this money been spent, all in vain?
I conceed that some of this expendature has ben bought about by the need to remove asbestos from the pad material, but that is only part of the research effort.
There is a diference, be it in cold, general or hot performance and definately some differnce in wear rates.
As for the cost, the average rider can probably settle for the cheaper brands if they moderate their driving styles and expectations of performance. IMO, safety should dictate what you ultimately decide to use.

I am controversial? I didn't know that. Oh, pardon me...I'm controversial.

49er, I report on my experience in riding 4 consecutive GS850's and now my GK. 21 years and over 400K miles. My present GK has 123K miles, of which 98K are mine.

I report only on what my vast experience has been after all that time and all those miles.

I frankly don't give a damn what racing teams have found or not found. On our antiquated brakes, I can truthfully report, out of my experience, that brand does not matter! Safety is not an issue here; all of the brands work the same, and I ride rather aggressively, as anyone who knows me can verify.
The issue is value for the money, which is why I own a 23-year-old GK with 123K miles.

The original post calls for input from the board participants as to whether an ROK brand set of pads will work on his GS bike. I told him that ROK works great, and so does every other type I've tried in my 21 years of riding GS bikes, all of which share the same caliper/disc/pad combination.

Yes, I'm controversial, simply because I know what the hell I'm talking about. My strongly held, "controversial" (note the correct spelling) opinion on this matter should carry more weight than most people's, simply because of my long-time, real-life experience with pads.

Being called "controversial" is a compliment, so thank you so much!

Arrogant Grandpa