Brake pads worn out



Owboduz

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Jun 25, 2013
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It looks like, due to some bad service my bike received at the hands of "professionals," one of my rear brake pads has worn out. Therefore, I'm in the market for new brake pads. I've no idea what to look for. I have a Trek FX 7.0, which has Tektro Linear Pull brakes. Can I safely assume that I can fit any threaded brake pad? Or do I need a specific kind of brake pad?
 
Originally Posted by Owboduz
It looks like, due to some bad service my bike received at the hands of "professionals," one of my rear brake pads has worn out. Therefore, I'm in the market for new brake pads. I've no idea what to look for. I have a Trek FX 7.0, which has Tektro Linear Pull brakes. Can I safely assume that I can fit any threaded brake pad? Or do I need a specific kind of brake pad?
You need special compound ones for carbon rims.

On alu rims you got a choice over "aggresive" (fast rim wearing) ones and "normal" ones as well.

Have you checked the "Koolstop" ones? They got lots of compound varieties for rim / weather combinations.
 
Originally Posted by Owboduz
It looks like, due to some bad service my bike received at the hands of "professionals," one of my rear brake pads has worn out. Therefore, I'm in the market for new brake pads. I've no idea what to look for. I have a Trek FX 7.0, which has Tektro Linear Pull brakes. Can I safely assume that I can fit any threaded brake pad? Or do I need a specific kind of brake pad?
FWIW. I do not know the quality of work which you are-or-are-not receiving at your LBS ...

AND, it is certainly not for me to defend their craftsmanship ...

BUT, some end-user responsibility is required after receiving the bike back from a shop because you did not wear down the one pad in a week's time ...

  • a bicycle is not an automobile where most of the mechanicals are shrouded ...
  • YOU need to look at your bike once-in-a-while and ensure that the tires are inflated ...
  • and, the brakes pads are lined up equally on both sides of the wheels ...
  • and, that the brakes close on the rims/rotor when you squeeze the brake lever ...
  • et cetera.

As far as the replacement brake pad(s) ...

you can replace them with whatever fits in either the caliper arms or the pad holders WITH the qualifications which Volnix noted with regard to pad compound ...

however, disc brake pads seem to be limited to the specific disc caliper.
 
While I admit that I didn't check over the service job done by the "professional," the point of taking it to a professional in the first place was not to need to do that. When I got it back, the brakes were so tight that they rubbed, but only on part of the rotation--which brings up that the wheels weren't trued correctly. At that level of tightness, it was impossible to decouple the brakes to release the (quick release) wheels. I had to go and loosen my brakes. It seems that they'd adjusted one brake pad a bit low, which put it at only half-engagement with the rim. That lead to the uneven wear.

So no, I didn't completely inspect my bike after the "tuneup" it received. That said, I won't take it back to the same place again. In future, I'm doing my own maintenance.

Back to the topic at hand, I have aluminium rims, so the more common wet weather MTB pads should work, I expect.
 
Originally Posted by Owboduz
While I admit that I didn't check over the service job done by the "professional," the point of taking it to a professional in the first place was not to need to do that. When I got it back, the brakes were so tight that they rubbed, but only on part of the rotation--which brings up that the wheels weren't trued correctly. At that level of tightness, it was impossible to decouple the brakes to release the (quick release) wheels. I had to go and loosen my brakes. It seems that they'd adjusted one brake pad a bit low, which put it at only half-engagement with the rim. That lead to the uneven wear.

So no, I didn't completely inspect my bike after the "tuneup" it received. That said, I won't take it back to the same place again. In future, I'm doing my own maintenance.

Back to the topic at hand, I have aluminium rims, so the more common wet weather MTB pads should work, I expect.
FWIW. 'I' think that your tune-up should have included truing the wheel ...

So, you apparently received POOR service ...

And, I think that you are correct in your decision to DIY in the future.

Again, you need to choose the brake pad compound based on your needs with the caveat which was mentioned earlier that the more aggressive (sintered) pads will wear down the rim's brake surface more quickly ...

Basically, it is the difference between a pencil eraser & an ink eraser.
 
Originally Posted by Owboduz
While I admit that I didn't check over the service job done by the "professional," the point of taking it to a professional in the first place was not to need to do that. When I got it back, the brakes were so tight that they rubbed, but only on part of the rotation--which brings up that the wheels weren't trued correctly. At that level of tightness, it was impossible to decouple the brakes to release the (quick release) wheels. I had to go and loosen my brakes. It seems that they'd adjusted one brake pad a bit low, which put it at only half-engagement with the rim. That lead to the uneven wear.

So no, I didn't completely inspect my bike after the "tuneup" it received. That said, I won't take it back to the same place again. In future, I'm doing my own maintenance.

Back to the topic at hand, I have aluminium rims, so the more common wet weather MTB pads should work, I expect.
I wouldn't expect a customer to inspect a bike after we tuned it either. After your getting burned once, though, I would recommend a quick check of the work. That would include seeing that the wheels are locked squarely in the dropouts, that there's no sideways wobble in the wheels, that the rim appears straight and round as it passes between the brake pads, and that both pads hit the rime about the same time.

A few times I've had a bike come back for brake adjustment after the customer removed the front wheel to get the bike into his car and then put it back on crooked. I've also seen brakes pull, and subsequently wear, unevenly because a rack or lock was interfering with movement of the caliper. And unevenly pulling brake calipers may eventually pull the rim out of true.

Around here, a basic tuneup gets you hub bearing adjustment, wheel tensioning and truing, and brake adjustment that covers cable tensioning, pad alignment so the pads hit the rim squarely, and centering. For an FX any linear-pull type pad should work fine. We like Avid and Serfas. And periodic washing helps brake performance and boosts life of the rims and pads.
 
Change it immediately with a new one as bike brake pads wear out, they get dirty and they need to be maintained and replaced. If you find that your bike brake pads need to be switched, we have a great selection of replacement bike brake pads for disc brakes, cantilever brakes and V-brakes. When you start noticing a decrease in stopping power or a weird noise, it's probably time to check your brake pads.
 
All you guys suffer from braking to damn much, lay off the brakes and learn to decend with confidence.

To quote Paul Sherwen "If you touch your brakes now, you'll lose 20 places."

He still runs the same pads as he used in 1983 when he won 3 tours de france.
 
Originally Posted by ambal
All you guys suffer from braking to damn much, lay off the brakes and learn to decend with confidence.

To quote Paul Sherwen "If you touch your brakes now, you'll lose 20 places."

He still runs the same pads as he used in 1983 when he won 3 tours de france.
Hi ambal, after 27 years those brake pads would be as hard as a rock and nolonger work? Where does Paul Sherwen now ride his bike ... sounds scary
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He should probably remove his brakes, because those old pads would probably be damaging the rim, with each squeeze of the lever
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thanks KL
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ambal said:
All you guys suffer from braking to damn much, lay off the brakes and learn to decend with confidence. To quote Paul Sherwen "If you touch your brakes now, you'll lose 20 places." He still runs the same pads as he used in 1983 when he won 3 tours de france.
You can't quote Paul Sherwen and maintain credibility. I will say however I remember those 3 TdFs in 1983 that he won. One of those TdFs had an ascent of Mt. Ventoux along a game trail, followed by descent to and finish in Bédoin. Sherwen did the entire descent no-handed and without using his brakes (the bike he road to victory in those three TdFs had a coaster brake). While Sherwen's descent was amazing, what's most remembered about that stage is the uncomfortably long hug he got from Phil Liggett on the podium.