Brake pad mess all over my bike..advice please

[Accy cyclist]

I bought this bike http://www.bikes2udirect.com/B3288.html two months ago, not from the website shown i hasten to add. It's been fine apart from the grey sludgy water that covers the front wheel, forks and downtube every time i go out in damp/wet conditions. The other day i left the bike to stand after a wet ride, i later noticed a charcoal coloured mini pool on the floor under the front wheel. Obviously all the crud is coming from the brake pads wearing down, but i've only done about three hundred miles on the bike. Will the pads be cheap ones, and if so can anyone recommend some decent ones that don't make such a mess?

 

[musa]

What calipers you got? Have you pad that require brake shoes?

Go to www.discobrakes.com very cheap and decent

 

[Aperitif]

Search for Koolstop Salmon brake pads. Here is one example - it is possible to buy just the inserts, obviously.

The dual-compound is the best of both worlds, but salmon, particularly at Chrismas, is agreeable.

 

[Deleted member 1258]

+1 for the koolstops, I get mine from here
http://www.simpsoncycles.co.uk/product.php/954/kool_stop_continental

 

[sidevalve]

I find a big dob of grease on the pads cures the problem completely. It's also very good for constipation.

 

[ianrauk]

Get a bike with disc brakes... none of that grey sludgy brake dust gloop.

 

[Boris Bajic]

Either grease them, like sidevalve, or be a man like me and don't use them. Brakes are for losers and wimps.

I agree that it can be infuriating when a bicycle gets dirty on a wet ride. Best not use it when the roads are wet. I never do.

I find mine gets dirty in the dry, too. I never use it when it's wet or dry.

At all other times, you can't keep me off it.

 

[Brandane]

Search for Koolstop Salmon brake pads. Here is one example - it is possible to buy just the inserts, obviously.

The dual-compound is the best of both worlds, but salmon, particularly at Chrismas, is agreeable.

I use the dual compound variety. I find it improves the braking performance greatly and reduces rim wear, but as for the OPs' problem of brake sludge? It maybe cuts it down a bit; but there is still a good deal of the stuff after any ride in the wet. My preferred solution is to avoid cycling in the rain, or even on wet roads.

 

[oldroadman]

A quick wash down after being out cures this problem. I would rather have muck than no brakes. Koolstop are OK pads though, and a good rim brake does the job well enough. Discs are not really needed on road bikes, in my view. Tried a bike with them fitted and didn't like it one bit, lack of feel and a bit sharp. But then, what do I know?

 

[ianrauk]

A quick wash down after being out cures this problem. I would rather have muck than no brakes. Koolstop are OK pads though, and a good rim brake does the job well enough. Discs are not really needed on road bikes, in my view. Tried a bike with them fitted and didn't like it one bit, lack of feel and a bit sharp. But then, what do I know?

Not much.
They were obviously not set up properly or hadn't had time to bed in.

 

[jdtate101]

Either koolstops or swissstop green pads have better stopping power and reduced crud/paste when wet.

 

[Accy cyclist]

So i want some Kool Stop Continental by the looks of it. Should i buy the whole block and holder thingies, or just the blocks themselves? Bearing in mind that i'm not one who finds fitting things into things that easy!

 

[Accy cyclist]

These http://www.winstanleysbikes.co.uk/product/22979/Tektro_Alloy_Rim_P422_Road_Cartridge_Brake_Pads are the pads that i have on the bike now by the way.

 

[Rob3rt]

A quick wash down after being out cures this problem. I would rather have muck than no brakes. Koolstop are OK pads though, and a good rim brake does the job well enough. Discs are not really needed on road bikes, in my view. Tried a bike with them fitted and didn't like it one bit, lack of feel and a bit sharp. But then, what do I know?

Agree, winter riding demands that the rims be cleaned after every long rid and the brake pads cleaning and checking for debris stuck in the slots. May as well wipe the forks and seat stays down while you are at it.

 

[snailracer]

There are probably some riders with hub brakes reading this thread, feeling very smug.