Ceramic Rims

[chthonic]

Can people advise me on ceramic rims? My bike has them - but it's second hand so I didn't exactly choose them. I put new green ceramic blocks on front and rear just before christmas and _in the dry_ the performance is excellent, but this past couple of weeks of snow/slush/rain have been alarming in the extreme. For a while it was like having ye olde steel rims again - absolutely nothing happening at all, then sudden shuddering braking (to the extent I have to ease off as soon as I feel them start to bite). Is this normal? Can I do something to alter the set up? In fact, I realise I don't even know what is "ceramic" about the rims - is it a coating? The previous owner had done some serious touring on the bike and been through some harsh environments which could well have worn any coating off - looking at the rims they are smooth to the touch.

 

[Steve Austin]

Are you sure you are using the right pads? If the braking has gone completely i would try different pads, as the braking with ceramic rims is normally excellent.

Swisstop pads would be my choice. Ceramic ones are blue iirc

 

[yenrod]

Ceramic rims last a long time and are quite tough !

 

[Vigilies]

Almost certainly the pads. I have had the same symptoms as you with my ceramic rims and I have found so far that Shimano ceramic specific pads have done well in varied conditions.

 

[Vigilies]

Almost certainly the pads. I have had the same symptoms as you with my ceramic rims and I have found so far that Shimano ceramic specific pads have done well in varied conditions.

 

[chthonic]

Thanks for the replies. I'd been thinking the pads were dodgy - they were total arses to fit as I had to pare them down to actually go into the cartridges, despite being sold as the specifically for my brakes...

Swissstop blue sounds nice - will go with my paintwork too.

What? You don't consider these things?

 

[chthonic]

Thanks for the replies. I'd been thinking the pads were dodgy - they were total arses to fit as I had to pare them down to actually go into the cartridges, despite being sold as the specifically for my brakes...

Swissstop blue sounds nice - will go with my paintwork too.

What? You don't consider these things?

 

[chthonic]

Thanks for the replies. I'd been thinking the pads were dodgy - they were total arses to fit as I had to pare them down to actually go into the cartridges, despite being sold as the specifically for my brakes...

Swissstop blue sounds nice - will go with my paintwork too.

What? You don't consider these things?

 

[RedBike]

When you ride in bad weather with normal rims you get grey gunk all over them. This gunk is aluminium off your rims. The ceramic coating is a super hard coating that stops your rims being worn away. So you get no more grey gunk and very little rim wear.

The trouble is standard brake pads get deposited on the rim and form this polished rubbery layer. This layer will make braking in the wet somewhat intresting (as in your brakes wont work). It will also cause your brakes to snatch.
This is why you need to use special ceramic pads, to prevent this layer forming.

This highly slippery layer will eventually wear off naturally though use; but until it does it doesn't matter what brake pads you use. Nothings going to work in the wet.

 

[RedBike]

When you ride in bad weather with normal rims you get grey gunk all over them. This gunk is aluminium off your rims. The ceramic coating is a super hard coating that stops your rims being worn away. So you get no more grey gunk and very little rim wear.

The trouble is standard brake pads get deposited on the rim and form this polished rubbery layer. This layer will make braking in the wet somewhat intresting (as in your brakes wont work). It will also cause your brakes to snatch.
This is why you need to use special ceramic pads, to prevent this layer forming.

This highly slippery layer will eventually wear off naturally though use; but until it does it doesn't matter what brake pads you use. Nothings going to work in the wet.

 

[RedBike]

When you ride in bad weather with normal rims you get grey gunk all over them. This gunk is aluminium off your rims. The ceramic coating is a super hard coating that stops your rims being worn away. So you get no more grey gunk and very little rim wear.

The trouble is standard brake pads get deposited on the rim and form this polished rubbery layer. This layer will make braking in the wet somewhat intresting (as in your brakes wont work). It will also cause your brakes to snatch.
This is why you need to use special ceramic pads, to prevent this layer forming.

This highly slippery layer will eventually wear off naturally though use; but until it does it doesn't matter what brake pads you use. Nothings going to work in the wet.

 

[AlanW]

I bought a brand new pair of ceramic Open Pro rims, laced onto Ultegra hubs two years ago.

In the dry great, but in the wet, bloody terrible!

I must have tried every type/make of brake block known to man kind, but it made no difference they were still crap in the wet! I sanded the rims every time I tried a different set of blocks to avoid and contamination, but still no good.

I tried lightly sanding the rims, then I tried heavily sanding the rims, and still no good!!

Toed the blocks in, toed the block out, nope.....no better!

In the end I gave up, and had normal rims laced on instead, binned the ceramic ones.

 

[AlanW]

I bought a brand new pair of ceramic Open Pro rims, laced onto Ultegra hubs two years ago.

In the dry great, but in the wet, bloody terrible!

I must have tried every type/make of brake block known to man kind, but it made no difference they were still crap in the wet! I sanded the rims every time I tried a different set of blocks to avoid and contamination, but still no good.

I tried lightly sanding the rims, then I tried heavily sanding the rims, and still no good!!

Toed the blocks in, toed the block out, nope.....no better!

In the end I gave up, and had normal rims laced on instead, binned the ceramic ones.

 

[AlanW]

I bought a brand new pair of ceramic Open Pro rims, laced onto Ultegra hubs two years ago.

In the dry great, but in the wet, bloody terrible!

I must have tried every type/make of brake block known to man kind, but it made no difference they were still crap in the wet! I sanded the rims every time I tried a different set of blocks to avoid and contamination, but still no good.

I tried lightly sanding the rims, then I tried heavily sanding the rims, and still no good!!

Toed the blocks in, toed the block out, nope.....no better!

In the end I gave up, and had normal rims laced on instead, binned the ceramic ones.

 

[RedBike]

Binned them - shock.
They're not far off £100 a rim!