Heat Resistant brake pads - Shimano

[Storm Boy]

Hi all,

Recently I managed to cook my Ultegra brake pads (aluminium rims) slowing down a fast steep descent from near 80km/h The rear brakes now shudder when only moderately warm. The front brakes are not as bad, but still hit a point where they shudder when they warm up a little. I'll try sanding the pads back a little but I do ride that particular descent from time to time and the heat seems to build up regardless of the speed one travels at.

Does anyone have suggestions about brake pads that would be more heat resistant? I am doing a lot of hill climbing/descending at present and while the Ultegra pads are generally pretty good I would love to have a set that can handle the heat better.

Thanks,

SB

[danny the boy]

Unlikely to be the pads, sounds like they need to be toed in. Shimano pads aren't that good anyway, would recommend Swisstop BXP's, easily the best I've used, don't be put off by the price because its for a set of 4, most other brands are priced for a pair only.

[trailgumby]

Koolstop Salmons. Been very happy with them, came highly recommended by the members of this forum.

[Storm Boy]

Thanks for the suggestions. I'm pretty certain it's the heat that's affected the brakes as they definitely deteriorated permanently after the initial descent. As a matter of fact I have a couple of pairs of the Koolstop Salmons in my Wiggle cart at the moment. Not sure if they also do Swissstop but I'll check.

Cheers!

SB

[AUbicycles]

Also keep an eye on your braking technique. I have been happy with my Ultegra brakes but rarely have high speed to zero braking, rather tapering off speed. For fast / steep decents where a lot of braking is necessary and the rims get too hot to touch by the end, I aim to brake on, brake off, brake on, brake off to avoid riding the brakes for the entire descent which continues the heat build up and doesn't provide as much chance to release stored heat/energy.

I am sure a few engineers will jump in and guessing that it will be about heat dispersion rather than heat resistence.

[Storm Boy]

Thanks for that.

The hill is only a few hundred metres long but gradient ranges from around 10-13%. Unfortunately this means that one cannot give the brakes a rest for more than a few seconds or speed builds up too quickly. After a descent the front wheel is too hot to touch (aluminium, 35mm deep), so I think you are correct about heat dissipation being the issue. I've been keeping the speed low now (under around 45km/h) and braking alternately front and rear which seems to be working OK. The brakes pads have improved as they wear a little more, so I'm guessing I just found the limits of my combination. I suspect that rider education/experience has now given the answer.

I'm still going to splash out on some new brake pads though, if only to test out something different

Thanks again for the help and suggestions.

SB

[Storm Boy]

Does anyone have any idea what the Koolstop Salmons are like in extreme heat? I'm thinking 40-43 degrees, as well as the fast descent outlined above.
I have ordered two pairs of the KS Salmons and two pairs of the KS blacks, but was wondering if the Salmons would cut it in the extreme heat. Just thought I'd ask before I found out the hard way

Cheers!

SB

[kb]

Unlikely to be the pads, sounds like they need to be toed in. Shimano pads aren't that good anyway, would recommend Swisstop BXP's, easily the best I've used, don't be put off by the price because its for a set of 4, most other brands are priced for a pair only.

Just saw this. I agree - the BXPs are awesome.

[Storm Boy]

The Koolstop Salmons went into the holders today.
Initial thoughts are that they have a softer initial feel than the Ultegras, but that they still have all the stopping power needed. Slowing from 70km/h to 20km/h down a fairly steep gradient was smooooth, no fade whatever, and very progressive and controllable. Time will tell how the Koolstops go, but initial impressions are positive.

Regards,

SB

[Storm Boy]

A brief update.

I have had the Koolstop Salmons in for a week or so and covered around 250km on the flats and in the hills. The brakes work fine, but are softer in feel than the Ultegras. I noticed also when descending fast (braking hard, front brake only, lots of heat) the brakes can tend to squeal a bit, but their braking performance is still good. I have not managed to melt them at this stage.
I changed over to the Koolstop Blacks for a bit of a comparison, descending seems OK but have not had the opportunity to really heat them up yet. Initial bite is better than the Salmons, and overall they seem to grab a little better.
The Blacks are marketed more as a dry weather block, and the Salmons as a wet weather block, so winter will show any differences in the wet.
The Ultegras are good brake blocks, but at this stage for hills riding I would prefer first the Koolstop Black, then the Koolstop Salmon, and then the Ultegras. On the flats, in the dry, the Ultegras and the Blacks are both good, with the Salmon feeling a little softer but still effective. I haven’t really tried a comparison in the wet yet, but I’m tipping that this is where the Salmons will come into their own.

Time will tell…

Regards,

SB