Vent: A batch of cheap brake pads nearly cost me a customer

Last month, I installed a set of those no-name carbon pads from a bulk order on a regular's high end road bike. They squealed like crazy after the first rain ride, and he came back really upset, saying he almost crashed on a steep hill in Portland. I had to eat the cost for a full set of Shimano pads and an hour of labor to make it right. Has anyone else had a bad run with off brand pads that just don't hold up when they get wet?

3 comments

3 Comments

williamt447d ago

My local shop in Seattle uses those carbon pads on rental bikes and they seem fine, even in the wet. Could it have been a bad install or maybe the rotor was contaminated?

the_reese23d ago

Ugh, cheap pads are the worst... had the same thing happen with some generic resin pads on a commuter bike. They turned into total grease in a light drizzle, zero stopping power. Never again.

jade_miller6223d agoMost Upvoted

Wait, they turned to grease in just a drizzle? That's actually scary, @the_reese. I've had cheap pads get noisy or wear fast, but turning into a total slip-fest from a little rain is a whole new level of bad. That's not just a bad buy, that's a real safety problem. Makes you wonder what they even make those things out of.