Brake blocks

[BianchiVirgin]

I've fitted Ultegra 6800 calipers to my Bianchi but I think the Shimano brake blocks are sh1t and miles worse than my Campy Chorus blocks from several years back. I'd hate to think how bad they are in the wet! Anyway, I'm using Fulcrum 7 wheels so what's the consensus on blocks and what's the best about? I descend fast and need confidence in my stoppers. Is it Swiss Stop and what colour? Wheels are alu in case anyone doesn't know.

 

[DCLane]

Swissstop black. They'll work. Well.

 

[bpsmith]

I am using Swissstop Blue on my Campy Eurus Wheels. Had the Green before those and have the Black Prince on my carbon rims.

Very good pads. Last well, brake very well in wet and dry and have the added bonus of being cleaner than Shimano when wet. That black gunk is long gone.

 

[Moodyman]

Or Koolstop. Same attributes to Swissstop.

 

[DaveT]

Discobrakes for me

 

[Globalti]

I've got the soft blue blocks on my Bianchi and the braking is amazing but the alloy rims have that special black treatment and I only ever ride it in dry weather. In wet gritty conditions or on plain alloy rims I reckon those blocks would be worn out in one ride.

 

[bpsmith]

Are those the same Swissstop BXP pads or are they something different for the Exalith type rim finish?

The Swissstop BXP have increased braking power over the standard Black, but longevity and modulation is rated the same.

 

[Globalti]

The blue Mavic Exalith pads look different to the Swisstop blues. I wonder if the compound is the same?

 

[mjr]

If you need something today, find an lbs that stocks BBB Tech Stop (blue and white pads). They're pretty good. Otherwise the above is all good.

 

[bpsmith]

The blue Mavic Exalith pads look different to the Swisstop blues. I wonder if the compound is the same?

I would think not tbh as I read that you should only use those pads on the Mavic rims and nothing else.

Out of interest, without going too much off topic, how has the braking surface weathered? Has the black finish work at all? Used in wet or just dry weather?

Nearly bought some of the Campag wheels with similar coating, but the shop put me off them.

 

[Globalti]

My Fulcrum Racing Zero wheels have the plasma-sprayed black finish and there are concentric grooves like on a vinyl record, not radial as on some Mavic wheels. I think the grooves are actually a spiral, meaning brake debris gets slowly wiped towards the centre of the wheel but I've never bothered investigating and proving it to myself!

Anyway these have now covered 2100 hilly miles with some fast and steep descents and so far I've only replaced the pads once and they were still about 1mm off the wear limits. The braking surface is still absolutely pristine and the amazing performance undiminished, they really are incredibly good for a rim brake and they are silent too. I maintain them very carefully, cleaning the rims almost every ride and wiping the dust off the pads with a damp cloth and they have never been used in wet conditions - this is my fair weather only bike.

However I recently read about somebody who got caught out in rain and whose brakes wore clean through the coating in just a few miles.

 

[alecstilleyedye]

Or Koolstop. Same attributes to Swissstop.

and at a fraction of the price…

 

[BianchiVirgin]

Thanks all. I've ordered a set of SS Flash Pro BXP. Will see how they are next week some time.

 

[HLaB]

Or Koolstop. Same attributes to Swissstop.

and at a fraction of the price…

I found the Swisstop too soft and wore out too fast. Great for rims but not for my wallet so I switched back to Koolstops ;-)

 

[Blue Hills]

Discobrakes for me

seemed OK to me.

They recently put their prices up by a significant percentage.

When I queried this, they claimed that due to some mistake (lasting a few years?) they had been accidentally mispricing them.

I now have a different supplier which I am loathe to mention - discobrakes got a lot of plaudits on here and maybe that, and other things in other places, changed their policy/marketing.

Personally I cannot help but be a bit doubtful about some expensive pads supposedly vastly superior performance.

I check/clean my pads and rims pretty regularly.

Everything stops well enough for me.

Bye the by, I also suspect that with some brands, despite online theorising about the different performance of different colours, with some at least they are pretty much the same. But different colours.

I tend to favour black.