Mountain bike brake pads Black Friday: deals

Which pads for your mountain bike brake?

The same brake brand uses several types of pads. Just for Hope, this page offers distinct pads for the C2, Tech, four-piston, and Mono 6 calipers. So, the brand name alone isn’t enough: note the exact model engraved on the caliper, then read the list of compatible brakes listed in each offer’s description. With Shimano, the pad reference, J04C or N04C for example, is also on the original packaging and in the brake manual.

A mountain bike a few years old? The pads are still available

Brakes that are no longer in the catalog are still serviced by replacement pad manufacturers. The operation includes references for Magura Louise and Clara calipers, Hayes HFX-9 and Stroker, Giant MPH, Promax, or Tektro IO, alongside current brakes from Shimano, Sram, and Magura. This is a chance to restore the braking of an old mountain bike without replacing the whole brake, as long as the discs and pistons are still in good condition.

Friction material: choose according to your rides, compare the discounts

• Organic or resin: strong bite and gentle braking on dry terrain and short rides.
• Semi-metallic: a compromise for those who ride in all weather.
• Sintered: the material for wet and muddy rides, long descents, and electric mountain bikes, which heat up the brakes more.

Many shapes come in several materials: therefore, a discount is judged at the same material level, then at the same quantity, by comparing the crossed-out price of a workshop box to that of a pair. Also check the contents, whether spring and pin are included or not, and the backing, solid or with cooling fins.

Discs, levers, and related pages

The page mountain bike brake pads explains the change of pads and their bedding throughout the year. If the disc surface is marked with grooves, replace the disc at the same time, among the mountain bike brake discs in Black Friday. A lever that remains spongy needs to be bled, along with the hoses of cables and housings, or a new lever. The mountain bike braking gathers all these families, and road brake pads have their page road. An old reference can also go through clearance; the new arrivals follow recent brakes.

The mountain bike pad brands involved

CL Brakes, based in Gennevilliers, assigns a pad number to each mountain bike brake, followed by the letters VX or VRX which denote its two sintered compounds.

Elvedes packages its pads for the workshop, in sets of ten pairs, and offers up to three materials for the same Magura MT brake: organic, metallic, metal, and carbon.

Shimano is available with the original pads for its calipers: resin for the M05-RX, metal for the G04Ti-MX, and metal on a backing with fins for the J04C-MF and N04C-MF.

Fibrax, a British manufacturer from Wrexham, Wales, supplies its semi-metallic pads with a wipe to clean the disc.

Sixpack Racing, a German mountain bike component brand based in Vogt, offers its pads for Formula and Hayes brakes in organic or semi-metallic.

Swissstop sorts its pads by compound: Disc RS, Disc E, aimed for endurance and easy modulation, and EXOTherm2, aimed for longevity and resistance to power loss, here on a steel backing with fins.

Frequently asked questions

How to tell if a pad offer is good value?

Compare with the same shape, material, and quantity: a pair of original pads and a box of ten replacement pairs aren’t comparable directly. Then check if spring and pin are included if yours are worn out.

Can I fit metallic pads on any disc?

No, some discs only accept resin, and the disc usually indicates this. If in doubt, stick with an organic material or change the disc at the same time.

Can I buy pads in advance during Black Friday?

Yes. Black Friday takes place around the Friday after Thanksgiving, and at Vélo-Store, its discounts on mountain bike pads last for the whole month of November: enough to plan for a spare set. It should be kept in its packaging, dry and away from oils and lubricants, because a contaminated pad won’t brake properly; when fitting, bed it in like new pads.

Do I need to change the front and rear pads together?

Not necessarily: the front, which brakes more, often wears out faster. However, always change both pads of the same caliper together.

Will a Sram pad fit an Avid brake?

Sometimes, because Avid was Sram’s brake brand and some shapes have been adopted. Refer to the compatibility list in the specification, which for example lists Level, Avid DB1 and DB3 on the same pad.