Brake pads

[Celtic32]

Doing a bit of reading into brake pads and thought the following links may be useful to others:

This offers a bit of a brief introduction and comparison of the three main compound types.
https://www.merlincycles.com/blog/buyers-guide-to-disc-brake-pads/

This is EBC's recommendations for different bikes and riding conditions and styles.
http://ebcbrakes.com/technical_ebc_brakes_blog/how-to-choose-best-brake-pads-for-motorcycles/

I seem to recall reading that most seem to go for the H-H Sintered pads all round, but others find that a little harsh and go for a different pad on the back? Is that right? That kind of goes against what is said in the first article (Which sort should you buy?). I appreciate that there is always an element of personal preference here to riding styles etc., but as a starting point would the H-H all round be the way to go for 'normal' road riding?

[Ktmjunkie]

the first article is refering to cycles not motorcycles, im not sure it is relevent. i use the HH type but to be honest i have used lots of different types I dont ride like Rossi so dont realy feel much difference. however I have never felt that the rear brake on my 1400 is much good compared to my other bikes, not sure why this is but it just does not seam up for the job.

[Mrg]

To Be fair my back brake is the same I use it but it never feels like it's stopping me as much as I'd like it to

[gsxbarmy]

HH Sintered in the front are fine, personally I always preferred the SBS Excel pads as they gave excellent stopping be it wet or dry. EBC were my second choice, althoihj in all honesty there was not a lot between the two.

I didi put HH in the rear, but found them to be just too harsh for braking / trailing the rear brake into the corner - locked the wheel up when I didn't want it to - others I've spoken with have found this as well. I swapped mine out for OEM EBC pads which worked really well, and gave good stopping power without locking the rear wheel. I did try SBS GG rear pads which worked just as well as the EBC's but on the rear I preferred the EBC to the SBS GG's.

So for me my preferred combination was SBS Excel HH pads in the fronts and OEM EBC in the rear which gave a nice balanced braking solution

[Kiwifruit]

Yesterday fitted EBC FA series organic pads to the rear. Will see how I like them once they bed in.
Think it will be HH type for the fronts when the time comes.             

[KiwiCol]

I brought EBC HH front & rear.   Rears have gone in & the stopping power is much improved (IMO) over whatever was in there previous, think they may have been organic.
The brake dust that accumulates on the back wheel is also way less. 


I agree with Barmy too, yes they can lock up the back when you're not being careful or just forget they grab much harder than before, which in my mind is a good thing.
I don't really have any problem using HH in the rear, I've got used to what they're like.  Would I fit them again? Yeah, probably, but could see myself having a crack at the GG Dave mentioned just as a comparison.


Fronts don't need to go in yet, but they're there ready. Will do a bit of a spruce up on the calipers when I do them too.    Subaru Gold I hear / read is a good colour match.

[seth]

i use EBC  fa pads all round
not had a problem.
i have seen folk using more agressive pads and wearing discs out quicker

but that saud if you find a set up you like stick with it.


seth

[Celtic32]

I've noticed the same with my rear brake not feeling like it does a great deal. I think I'll go for the EBC HH or SBS Excels front and try the EBC HH this time round on the rear to see how I get on with that. If I find its locking a lot I'll try the SBS GGs. Thanks a lot for all the input.

[seth]

top tip for rear brake is to check and lubricre the brake lever pivot as they become quiet sticky/corroded  and are easily over looked when doing general maintenance and after washing the bike.

[Kiwifruit]

A group of us did a riding course a while back and were given some braking tuition that I found to be very beneficial. One thing we proved was that we stopped just as quickly without using the rear brake. (in emergency stops) Even when using and pumping the rear brake, it did bugger all.
In emergency stops they taught us to keep your head up, arms straight and sink the forks before really applying a lot of front brake pressure, their reasoning being that this steadied the bike, transferred the weight forward and increased the contact patch on the front tyre. This also took most of the weight and therefore braking efficiency from the rear wheel.
I use both brakes for normal riding but sometimes find myself using just the rear with a small throttle opening to keep tight around round-a-bouts, sharp turns or U-turns.
So for me that's why I don't want a super aggressive rear brake.
The instructor also told us that in most serious accidents involving motorcycles they found the rear tyre to have been flat spotted.
Suggesting that more stopping could have been achieved by greater use of the front brake. He also encouraged us to try and practice locking the front wheel (in a straight line) and releasing so as to get used to how much stopping power a bike really has.
Anyway, I had new tyres on and could not get my front to lock.......it did stop real quick though. So next front pad change will be for some HH pads. Just my two bobs worth.

[Celtic32]

Kiwifruit, you put forward a strong case there for the less aggressive rear brake. So much so I think I will go for the Barmy approved SBS GG on the back this time round.

[Kiwifruit]

Used the bike today.......to go to tennis 
EBC FA Series rear brake pads bedded in nicely. Good feel and enough bite. Very pleased !
Think I will put some HH front pads in sooner rather than later.


That's a great tip Seth about lubing the rear brake lever pivot.  Did mine when I put the new pads in, along with the clutch and front brake levers and gear change pivots. All pivots are lubed.....you can feel the difference. 

[ARH]

Good tips here!  I have a new set of Ebc hh for the front waiting to go in during spring... gg's already on the back.

[froudy]

I use EBC HH all round and haven't had any problems.
Very good tip from Seth about lubricating the rear brake lever..It gets "Graunchy" if you don't and you can definitly feel the difference when you lube it.

Seller on Ebay that I use does a full set, front AND rear EBC HH for £58.99 delivered, which I think is a good price
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/181308819552?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

This is a good deal at the moment as well if you're just after a set for the front.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/EBC-HH-Sintered-Full-Front-Brake-Pad-s-Set-For-Suzuki-GSX1400-2001-2007/141800247493?_trksid=p2047675.c100005.m1851&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D2%26asc%3D20140122125356%26meid%3D73d223ee1d5743cda701b073a2cfffbf%26pid%3D100005%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D6%26mehot%3Dag%26sd%3D181308819552

[Celtic32]

Thanks for the links, will order the HH front set. Just had a look on their main site and they have some semi-sintered v-pads. Has anyone used these before?

http://www.demon-tweeks.co.uk/motorcycle/brake-pads/bike/suzuki/2006/gsx1400-k6/ebc-brakes-brake-pads-v-pads-semi-sintered-road-rear

Or is it best to just stick with the standard organic ones, which seems to be the consensus if not going for the HH?
http://www.demon-tweeks.co.uk/motorcycle/brake-pads/bike/suzuki/2006/gsx1400-k6/ebc-brakes-brake-pads-organic-kevlar-road-rear

Thanks in advance.