Disc brake pads - commuting
- find_bruce
- Moderator
- Posts: 10615
- Joined: Mon May 09, 2011 8:42 pm
- Location: Sydney
Disc brake pads - commuting
Postby find_bruce » Thu Sep 27, 2012 8:57 pm
I just noticed that mine need replacing after about 3,500 km. I thought that was a bit soon, but maybe I a missing something
- ozdavo
- Posts: 997
- Joined: Mon Jul 25, 2011 12:03 pm
- Location: Gold Coast (nth)
Re: Disc brake pads - commuting
Postby ozdavo » Thu Sep 27, 2012 9:20 pm
Many variables will contribute to pad wear, and in reality actual mileage has no bearing on it.
- Kenzo
- Posts: 1680
- Joined: Sat Aug 14, 2010 8:13 am
- Location: Daisy Hill / Brisbane, Southside FTW
- Contact:
Re: Disc brake pads - commuting
Postby Kenzo » Thu Sep 27, 2012 9:42 pm
- find_bruce
- Moderator
- Posts: 10615
- Joined: Mon May 09, 2011 8:42 pm
- Location: Sydney
Re: Disc brake pads - commuting
Postby find_bruce » Thu Sep 27, 2012 10:35 pm
Yes I ride in all weather - the main reason I went to discs was improved braking in the wet.
As for how much I brake, it is impossible to be precise, but I thought I was pretty easy on the brakes - I tend to ease up rather than braking hard for lights etc & would get 7 or 8 k out of a set if v pads on the same commute.
I am not too concerned about it, just was surprised it was as quick
- Kenzo
- Posts: 1680
- Joined: Sat Aug 14, 2010 8:13 am
- Location: Daisy Hill / Brisbane, Southside FTW
- Contact:
Re: Disc brake pads - commuting
Postby Kenzo » Thu Sep 27, 2012 11:23 pm
Disco brakes dot com
-
- Moderator
- Posts: 1265
- Joined: Wed Sep 16, 2009 9:07 am
- Location: Toongabbie NSW
- Contact:
Re: Disc brake pads - commuting
Postby thomashouseman » Fri Sep 28, 2012 11:54 am
- find_bruce
- Moderator
- Posts: 10615
- Joined: Mon May 09, 2011 8:42 pm
- Location: Sydney
Re: Disc brake pads - commuting
Postby find_bruce » Fri Sep 28, 2012 12:19 pm
In my case the rear went from being silent to draging with a metallic sound because I had left it too long before changing & it had worn through the braking surface to the backing plate. I am fortunate that I do not appear to have scoured the rotor. My brakes though are hydraulic which means that they are self adjusting.thomashouseman wrote:How do you know when they need replacing? Do they grate/squeal/jam etc? Just asking as I've done over 4000km's on my BB7's and only turned the dial a notch or two once.
The biggest problem for me is that from the top, the pad looked like it still had plenty of meat left, but it was worn in a taper patter, so the bottom edge was what was dragging - I will take some pics on the weekend.
The take home lesson for me is that I need to pop the pads out and inspect them every 4-6 months on my usage patterns, until it's time to replace the rotors, in which case I will take Oxford's advice & go sintered.
- find_bruce
- Moderator
- Posts: 10615
- Joined: Mon May 09, 2011 8:42 pm
- Location: Sydney
Re: Disc brake pads - commuting
Postby find_bruce » Fri Sep 28, 2012 2:00 pm
In those situations, it's usally me doing the squealing - nice to have the brakes to blame insteadOxford wrote:people will say sintered squeal etc etc, I wouldn't worry, I used the squeal when it did occur (only in wet conditions) as a defacto warning device.find_bruce wrote:... in which case I will take Oxford's advice & go sintered.
- Mulger bill
- Super Mod
- Posts: 29060
- Joined: Sun Sep 24, 2006 2:41 pm
- Location: Sunbury Vic
Re: Disc brake pads - commuting
Postby Mulger bill » Fri Sep 28, 2012 11:28 pm
Agree, got reminded how well the squeal works when a ped stepped out on the way to work today. (They leapt back)Oxford wrote:people will say sintered squeal etc etc, I wouldn't worry, I used the squeal when it did occur (only in wet conditions) as a defacto warning device.find_bruce wrote:... in which case I will take Oxford's advice & go sintered.
London Boy 29/12/2011
- queequeg
- Posts: 6485
- Joined: Thu Dec 17, 2009 10:09 am
Re: Disc brake pads - commuting
Postby queequeg » Sat Sep 29, 2012 10:55 am
The final stats were:-
Clarks BB7 Disc Brake Pads - Sintered (Rear) - 4,843.4km
Avid BB7 Disc Brake Pads - Organic (Front) - 3,300.0km
Officially, the leaflet that came with the pads says to replace when the thickness of the pads (including the backing plate) is 3mm or less. I don't have any calipers to measure with, so I just eyeball it. I meant to replace the pads during my last service, but I ran out of time. so, for my daily commutes the distances above are probably at the extreme of what to expect. As you can see, the front pad got a lot more wear than the front ones, which is not surprising.
I have not noticed any significant difference in performance between Sintered vs Organic or Clarks (Cheap) vs Avid (Expensive). Based on that, I will try some other eBay branded pads to find the best price/performance point.
I do about 12,000km of commuting a year, so based on the stats above I can expect to replace my disc pads 4 times per year for the front, and three times a year for the year.
pad life will of course vary depending on what terrain you ride on. My commute is all up and down, 52km a day. In other words, the brakes get a lot of use! In contrast, my road bike (with standard calipers brakes) has not had the original pads replaced yet, and they have done 7250km each! That is because I don't regularly commute on my road bike, so my rides are mostly long with minimal stopping.
- queequeg
- Posts: 6485
- Joined: Thu Dec 17, 2009 10:09 am
Re: Disc brake pads - commuting
Postby queequeg » Sat Sep 29, 2012 11:09 am
The final stats were:-
Clarks BB7 Disc Brake Pads - Sintered (Rear) - 4,843.4km
Avid BB7 Disc Brake Pads - Organic (Front) - 3,300.0km
Officially, the leaflet that came with the pads says to replace when the thickness of the pads (including the backing plate) is 3mm or less. I don't have any calipers to measure with, so I just eyeball it. I meant to replace the pads during my last service, but I ran out of time. so, for my daily commutes the distances above are probably at the extreme of what to expect. As you can see, the front pad got a lot more wear than the front ones, which is not surprising.
I have not noticed any significant difference in performance between Sintered vs Organic or Clarks (Cheap) vs Avid (Expensive). Based on that, I will try some other eBay branded pads to find the best price/performance point.
I do about 12,000km of commuting a year, so based on the stats above I can expect to replace my disc pads 4 times per year for the front, and three times a year for the year.
pad life will of course vary depending on what terrain you ride on. My commute is all up and down, 52km a day. In other words, the brakes get a lot of use! In contrast, my road bike (with standard calipers brakes) has not had the original pads replaced yet, and they have done 7250km each! That is because I don't regularly commute on my road bike, so my rides are mostly long with minimal stopping.
- rheicel
- Posts: 2303
- Joined: Sat Jul 14, 2012 5:01 pm
- Location: Sydney
- Contact:
Re: Disc brake pads - commuting
Postby rheicel » Tue Nov 12, 2013 9:23 am
The Lyras from my current commuter will probably last for 2000 km or so.
-
- Posts: 2631
- Joined: Tue Oct 20, 2009 10:36 pm
Re: Disc brake pads - commuting
Postby eeksll » Tue Nov 12, 2013 10:45 am
although the v-brake pads havent worn out, the rear rim is looking noticably worn.
-
- Posts: 1065
- Joined: Mon Jul 01, 2013 11:30 pm
- Location: Bundoora, Melbourne
Re: Disc brake pads - commuting
Postby nezumi » Tue Nov 12, 2013 12:03 pm
I had my pads changed before the Melbourne Gravel Grind #9 because I managed to have a brain fail and got WD-40 on my rotors trying to get it clean. I went on the ride and had a few steep descents where I relied heavily on the brakes.
After that my brakes have been squeaking ever since. I had some luck taking the pads out, wiping them with alcohol wipes and then hitting them with a blowtorch. This seemed to give an improvement for two days or so, but nothing after that.
2015 Merida Scultura 5000
-
- Moderator
- Posts: 1265
- Joined: Wed Sep 16, 2009 9:07 am
- Location: Toongabbie NSW
- Contact:
Re: Disc brake pads - commuting
Postby thomashouseman » Tue Nov 12, 2013 1:54 pm
-
- Posts: 1065
- Joined: Mon Jul 01, 2013 11:30 pm
- Location: Bundoora, Melbourne
Re: Disc brake pads - commuting
Postby nezumi » Tue Nov 12, 2013 5:14 pm
I did get WD-40 on the rotors, but after that I took the bike to the workshop to get my stuff-up fixed.thomashouseman wrote:Are you sure you didn't get WD-40 on your rotors? Some people try washing up liquid and a scouring pad and others denatured alcohol to cvlean them.
They gave the rotors a good going over with disc brake cleaner, as well as replacing the pads on the front (I didn't kill the back pads so much).
It might be worth giving the rotors another going over to ensure they are properly clean.
2015 Merida Scultura 5000
- Duck!
- Expert
- Posts: 9877
- Joined: Tue May 21, 2013 8:21 pm
- Location: On The Tools
Re: Disc brake pads - commuting
Postby Duck! » Tue Nov 12, 2013 7:25 pm
No! Thorough cleaning will have removed the bedded-in layer of brake pad material from the rotor surface. Pull a few good hard almost-stoppies (down to walking pace) to warm the brakes up & get some pad material back into the rotors & they'll soon shut up.nezumi wrote:....I took the bike to the workshop to get my stuff-up fixed.
They gave the rotors a good going over with disc brake cleaner, as well as replacing the pads on the front (I didn't kill the back pads so much).
It might be worth giving the rotors another going over to ensure they are properly clean.
- General Australian Cycling Topics
- Info / announcements
- Buying a bike / parts
- General Cycling Discussion
- The Bike Shed
- Cycling Health
- Cycling Safety and Advocacy
- Women's Cycling
- Bike & Gear Reviews
- Cycling Trade
- Stolen Bikes
- Bicycle FAQs
- The Market Place
- Member to Member Bike and Gear Sales
- Want to Buy, Group Buy, Swap
- My Bikes or Gear Elsewhere
- Serious Biking
- Audax / Randonneuring
- Retro biking
- Commuting
- MTB
- Recumbents
- Fixed Gear/ Single Speed
- Track
- Electric Bicycles
- Cyclocross and Gravel Grinding
- Dragsters / Lowriders / Cruisers
- Children's Bikes
- Cargo Bikes and Utility Cycling
- Road Racing
- Road Biking
- Training
- Time Trial
- Triathlon
- International and National Tours and Events
- Cycle Touring
- Touring Australia
- Touring Overseas
- Touring Bikes and Equipment
- Australia
- Western Australia
- New South Wales
- Queensland
- South Australia
- Victoria
- ACT
- Tasmania
- Northern Territory
- Country & Regional
Who is online
Users browsing this forum: No registered users
- All times are UTC+10:00
- Top
- Delete cookies
About the Australian Cycling Forums
The Australian Cycling Forums is a welcoming community where you can ask questions and talk about the type of bikes and cycling topics you like.
Bicycles Network Australia
Forum Information
Connect with BNA
This website uses affiliate links to retail platforms including ebay, amazon, proviz and ribble.