More stupid track day q's from highsider....

[highsider]

I was wondering - for a two day track day, would it be a wise idea to bring an extra set of brake pads? How do I know if I need new ones - they all look too damn thin to me?

[Awesome]

How many miles do you have on yours? It really depends how hard you ride how fast the wear. I think I get around 10K-15K to my fronts. How much meat do you have on them? 1/8th inch or so?

[highsider]

I gotta look, I just bought the bike in the fall, it supposedly only has 5,000 miles on it.

I may just buy a set just to be safe - any recommendations for a good street/track pad?

[Karaya One]

Gold Fren GP Race pads - $30.00 a set.

http://www.goldfren.cz/

[highsider]

Originally posted by Karaya One
Gold Fren GP Race pads - $30.00 a set.

http://www.goldfren.cz/

Can you get me a set of those? Would they be ok for street use as well, or do they need to be pretty warm to work properly?

[Karaya One]

The GP3's need to be kept hot to work properly.

Try a set of S3's. They can do both very well. It's my most popular pad for fast guys.

Oh - and you too! ZING!!!!

Call me at 800-628-4040

[highsider]

Originally posted by Karaya One
Gold Fren GP Race pads - $30.00 a set.

http://www.goldfren.cz/

Now that I've spent the long buck....

Whats the best way to "seat" these pads in? I used to stick the pads for the race car in the oven....is this necessary for bike brake pads?

[Paul_E_D]

Whao! Street miles and tracktime are worlds apart. I don't think I would EVER need new pads on my streetbike ( Lol! )

I can go through a set of pads on a single trackday. Having an extra set is a great idea for everyone.

When the pad material starts to get thin, it seems to go away really quickly. You DON'T want to have the material delaminate on you. Brake failures have the nastiest consequences.

Best to use a little over half the material and then swap them out. You life literally depends on it.

No need to do anything special to bed them in. Just go easy on them in your first riding session, heating them fully through repeated stops. Progressively increasing power applied to brake. Let them cool, and they are ready for hard use.

[Karaya One]

Paul is correct!

Slow, repeated use to bed them in. Gradually increase speed and pressure.

If you get them too hot too fast they could glaze over and then they will not work.

They should bed in within a session.

And thanks for the order - your pads are pulled and ready to ship.

[OreoGaborio]

another tip i've heard is to not brake hard & come to a complete stop in the first few times out or so... supposedly coming to a complete stop after hard braking can create spots on your rotors where pad residue is deposited onto the rotor....

not sure how true this is, but i know i've seen crap from pads deposited on car rotors, my own car included

[TTD]

I've "bedded in" about 20 sets of brake pads during my "career"... here was my method.

1 - Put new pads in.

2 - Drive at parking lot speeds (less than 30mph) for about 10 minutes. During this time, drag the brakes for 30 seconds or so, then let go and ride for a minute or two to cool them off. Keep repeating this procedure for the full 10 minutes.

By "dragging" the brakes, I mean applying light brake pressure while still giving throttle. You should be able to hear your brakes scraping against the rotors while dragging them.

(This procedure will start getting the pads/rotors seated together.)

3 - Let the rotors fully cool with the bike parked.

4 - I would then do about 3 laps using only moderate braking pressure, and then 3 full on laps.

5 - Let the pads/rotors fully cool.

6 - GO FOR IT!!!

[Paul_E_D]

Tony, while I know your method works, I don't recommend it. Certain pads come in VERY quickly. If you are draggin you brakes and the pads come in... WHAM! you're down.

I've seen many racers crash in the pits doing this. I left a 10 foot long black line with my front tire one day while doing this. It can REALLY sneak up on you.

The method I outlined is safe and does the job perfectly.

[TTD]

We must have different definitions of DRAGGING your brake.




There is no way to crash doing what I do... I am not applying a lot of pressure while in the pits.

Those that crash in the pits are riding and then stopping... riding and then stopping.

That is NOT what I do. I generate heat by staying on the throttle and dragging the brakes. (which slowly increases the contact surfaces)

[benVFR]

Hey are race brake pads different than street pads in bedding-in requirements?

Obviously most of us street riders never do anything like that with our brake pads...

I've only had to replace the brake pads on my bike once and it was just the rear brake... I'm pretty sure I got the stock pads again and I never noticed anything weird.

[Paul_E_D]

No, I'm telling you, I wasn't stopping.

I was draggin with easy one finger pressure exactly as you said. (in fact, you taught me the method!) I wasn't expecting it, but the pads suddenly came in and with no change in pressure to the lever and locked my cold front tire. I didn't even realize it until the bike almost folded under me after a 10 foot skid.

Think about it. As the pad comes in, it goes from limited drag, to it's maximum potential. THey will never be stronger than at that moment. On my bike with an aggressive pad, light pressure on the lever is all that's needed to stand it on it's nose. I know some 600s have ultra strong brakes these days too.

Gradually increasing brake pressure and speed is just safer. The tire will get warm and the results are much more predictable.

Actual stopping while bedding pads is not smart, I agree.

[TTD]

I believe what you said happened, but I can't see why that would happen.

All you're doing when dragging the pad is slowly wearing away the high spots to match the rotor grooves. Even when it fully matches, it doesn't make sense to "grab" the rotor.

I've never had so much as a chirp in the tire doing this.

[Paul_E_D]

Whoops, You got in between us Ben. Most street pads are organic material, which generally requires no bedding in.

Although you likely went easy on your brakes for the first few weeks of riding and effectively did the same thing.

Replacement pads are often scintered (a nice upgrade in power and feel) and should be bed in properly.

[TTD]

Originally posted by benVFR
Hey are race brake pads different than street pads in bedding-in requirements?

Obviously most of us street riders never do anything like that with our brake pads...

I've only had to replace the brake pads on my bike once and it was just the rear brake... I'm pretty sure I got the stock pads again and I never noticed anything weird.

With all pads you should go through an easy period where you slowly match the grooves in the rotor. (otherwise, just the high spots of the rotor are touching the pad)

Race pads generally just have more bite. In fact, I don't like fresh pads for racing so I always put them in and get at least a few practice sessions in first. (otherwise, they are just too sticky... makes it hard to trail brake effectively when the brakes are more like ON OFF switches)

[Paul_E_D]

Originally posted by 35racer
I believe what you said happened, but I can't see why that would happen.

All you're doing when dragging the pad is slowly wearing away the high spots to match the rotor grooves. Even when it fully matches, it doesn't make sense to "grab" the rotor.

I've never had so much as a chirp in the tire doing this.

Ever try HH++ pads? They have phenomenal initial BITE!

[gmdboston]

EBC HH Kit pads are best if broken in by 30-40 hard stops from 15-20 mph. I just about get the clutch out and then pull it in and grab a big PRORESSIVE hand full. 30-40 of these then let them cool completely and your good to go.

[Honclfibr]

Whew, you've all got me spooked about the pads I just put on my zx6r now. I bought a set of "Carbon Lorraine SBK3 HH" pads, on the merit of them being really cheap at the time (closeout) and me figuring that the pads should be replaced when I replaced my warped rotor.

I don't know anything about these pads, are they some sort of fancy race compound that need to be bedded in carefully, or can I just go to town and not worry about big black skid marks and tire lockups? With the weather it doesn't look like I'll be able to get out on the bike much so they're going to hit VIR pretty fresh. If it matters the pads are on stock rotors with a new set of stainless lines running to them, I installed the rotors, lines, and pads and bled the system but they have otherwise been untouched thus far.

[gmdboston]

Originally posted by Honclfibr
Whew, you've all got me spooked about the pads I just put on my zx6r now. I bought a set of "Carbon Lorraine SBK3 HH" pads, on the merit of them being really cheap at the time (closeout) and me figuring that the pads should be replaced when I replaced my warped rotor.

I don't know anything about these pads, are they some sort of fancy race compound that need to be bedded in carefully, or can I just go to town and not worry about big black skid marks and tire lockups? With the weather it doesn't look like I'll be able to get out on the bike much so they're going to hit VIR pretty fresh. If it matters the pads are on stock rotors with a new set of stainless lines running to them, I installed the rotors, lines, and pads and bled the system but they have otherwise been untouched thus far.

I have to break mine in at VIR, I'll do your's for you if you want.

[TTD]

EBC HH's are the only pads I used when racing.

I guess this is one of those cases of their being many ways to do something.

My method worked for me and never had any scary moments and always had plenty of braking power.

At the upcoming VIR date, I'll be breaking in a new set of stock Honda pads ... we'll see how they respond to my "method".

[Honclfibr]

Originally posted by gmdboston
I have to break mine in at VIR, I'll do your's for you if you want.

Thanks, so if I do get out it looks like I should do a series of quick stops to bed in the brakes so they don't give me any surprises?

I hope to get the 6r on the street at least once before VIR, given that it's got a new pipe, air filter, jetting, chain, sprockets, brake lines, rotors, and rearset adapters. I really wasn't counting on all this snow, if I can't at least spin it around the block I think I'm going to be bringing a lot of tools to VA

[TTD]

I think the "series of quick stops" method is what gets people in trouble sometimes (as in locking up the front tire).

So be careful... especially if you're trying to do it on cold New England roads.