EBC Formula Oro Disc Brake Pads

Advantages: Stops your bike. Easy to setup.
Disadvantages: Takes a while to bed in. Supplied pads rubbish.

...Oooh... brakes these days. Rim or Disc? Cable or Hydralic? The way things are going, you'd swear that disc brakes were the be all and end all of brakes these days, but you'd be wrong, as Shimano will be eager to prove. Shimano have been doing V-brakes for quite a while now, and the LX really demonstrates that. Whilst I was sorely tempted by a disc brake, I can't really see what all the fuss is about. Yes, if you're into hurtling down hills on your 55lb monster downhill bike then discs are for you, if you're a cross country rider trying to shave a bit off the weight then vees are still you best bet. The brake is the cheapest in the Shimano range to offer the parallelogram design, which keeps the brake pads parallel to the braking surface, resulting in longer pad life and better braking performance. Setting the brakes up is fairly... Read review

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Advantages: Excellent performance in wet/muddy conditions, rim friendly, good wear rates
Disadvantages: Pricier than the competition

...This review is for the dual compound cartridge pads. They are black/salmon in colour. A bit of History The real secret of the Kool Stop's superior braking power is the salmon compound. Originally it was developed by Scott-Mathauser, and was recognised as the finest brake pads available, both for it's superior stopping power and durable compound. Kool Stop was under contract to Scott-Mathauser to manufacture their pads.Kool Stop obtained the rights to manufacture the salmon pads when Scott-Mathauser went out of business. The secret of the pads is that they contain iron oxide (i.e. rust), and work on the same principle as sintering does for disc brake pads. They dramatically improve wet weather braking performance as well as wear. Features of the Kool Stop Pads Along with the salmon compound, the pads also feature Kool... Read review

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Advantages: Good breaking power
Disadvantages: nothing

...I recently bought a set of replacement pads for my AVID Juicy 3 brakes. These came in at £15 for a pair for the front. They seem to vary in price by a few pounds, thi was from a well known online MTB shop in the lakes. Being a disc brake novice I didn't have a clue how to fit them so rather than break them or waste time finding out I got a mate to do it for me. Other than the actual fitting the one thing I did do was to lightly rub down the pads before fitting them. I was told this is a good idea as it reduces the chances of the pads glazing over and gives you better breaking power earlier on, guess this is like I used to do with my standard V-Brake pads. I think that is roughly 1000 miles of use on my old pads. I tend to change them early as I did with V-brakes, not sure that is necessary with discs though (not at this price... Read review

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