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Submitted by
Rick Hutchison
a Weekend Warrior
from North Van
Date Reviewed: March 20, 2007 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$4.00 | | Purchased At: | John Henry Bikes | | Strengths: | Does what they're supposed to do, stop the bike. | | Weaknesses: | Not as grippy as Shimano stock metallic pads. | | Similar Products Used: | Shimano, EBC. | | Bike Setup: | Santa Cruz Tazmon. | | Bottom Line: | Got these disk brake pads at a sale at my LBS 2 years ago for $5.00 per set CDN. Never used them and as spring is coming decided to give them a try under drier conditions.
Work pretty well but are taking a while to break in. Excellent value for the money but only great for performance. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Darren Ling
a Cross Country Rider
from Fairfield, Ohio
Date Reviewed: August 2, 2006 | | Favoriate Trail: | any | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$24.00 | | Purchased At: | ebay | | Strengths: | This review is for kool stop disc pads, organic compound.
Quiet, didn't have to run in, instant silence and outstanding grip right out of the package | | Weaknesses: | zero | | Similar Products Used: | Magura | | Bike Setup: | singlespeed 29er w/ Magura hydros | | Bottom Line: | I will keep this short. Had new Magura pads, both 5.1 and 5.2 compounds. (performance and endurance) or should I say, squeaky and squeakier? Anyway, I got tired of trying to run in and ride on my magura, and found two pair of kool stop organic disc pads on ebay for 24.00, put them on, and tested. NO NOISE, AND AMAZING POWER FROM THE GET GO. I was blown away, and blown away on my first trail ride with these. They felt better, were quiet, and had amazing power. I love them. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Mick
a Cross Country Rider
from San Fernando, CA
Date Reviewed: May 12, 2004 | | Favoriate Trail: | Hummingbird | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$30.00 | | Purchased At: | Kool stop site | | Strengths: | Good modulation, grips like a dry rubber on prom night | | Weaknesses: | Longevity, wear fast, but soft is good here | | Similar Products Used: | Hayes stock pads | | Bike Setup: | Blur, 5th, XO, X9, DT Swiss, rocket, monkeys, trailbears, eggies | | Bottom Line: | Best item ever purchased hands down. Transformed grindy, noisy brakes(are stock Hayes pads made a wood?)into baby bottom truck stoppers- saved those brakes from the axe. Discs are worthless without these, get em or resurface your rotors, worth every f'in penny. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Kevin
a Cross Country Rider
from Dillsburg, PA
Date Reviewed: February 7, 2004 | | Favoriate Trail: | Singletrack | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$20.00 | | Purchased At: | Price Point | | Strengths: | First off, I am reviewing the MTB pads (salmon and black). The salmon-colored compound increases braking performance in the wet stuff and the black increases breaking performance in the dry. This dual compound design really works wonders as far as keeping your speed in check in all weather conditions! These pads are excellent! They have dramatically increased my stopping power! When I first installed them and took 'em for a test ride, I came back grinning from ear to ear! I haven't used them really hard yet, but they seem to be holding up fine. | | Weaknesses: | Because of the increased stopping power, there is more of a tendency to go over the bars!!! | | Similar Products Used: | Avid stuff | | Bike Setup: | 2003 Trek Fuel 90 with IRC Mythos XC 2.1 kevlar tires and Kool Stop MTB (salmon and black) brake pads. | | Bottom Line: | No matter what weather conditions you ride in, these will get you stopped in a hurry! Best brake pads I ever used!! And for only $10 a pair the only thing they won't "brake" is the bank!! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jonathan
a Cross Country Rider
from Waco, TX Grand Rapids, MI
Date Reviewed: October 25, 2003 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$8.00 | | Purchased At: | Outback Bicycles | | Strengths: | Very grippy, easy on rims, rarely squeal, good surface contact. | | Weaknesses: | A bit hard to adjust due to their length. Adjustment has to be perfect or they rub the tire or rim. Require some break-in. | | Similar Products Used: | Whatever came on my Avids | | Bike Setup: | 2001 Kona Cindercone w/a lot of upgrades | | Bottom Line: | For $8 these are a great pad. Cheesy name and packaging, but very high quality product. I was a bit concerned at first as the pads seemed quite thin, and didn't seem to grip the rim all that well, but after about a week of riding, the pads had broken in a bit and have become extremely grippy which is perfect for my riding style. A few of my friends with discs can't get over the performace of my very well used V setup in comparison to their Avid and Hayes setups.
All that said its a little hard to align the pads since they are rather long, so alingment has to be really precise. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Alex
a Weekend Warrior
from Canada
Date Reviewed: August 9, 2002 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$10.00 | | Purchased At: | lbs | | Strengths: | GREAT stopping power. | | Weaknesses: | throw you off you bike even if youre doing 5 mph, up a 45 degree hill! I thought it would wear fast, but i havnt seen anything so far. | | Similar Products Used: | stock pads, forgot name. | | Bottom Line: | Great stopping power, no matter how good your brakes are. they squelled a bit in the begginning, but a quick toe in adjustment, and from then on they worked great. only bought some for the front, but i might get some for the rear in the near future. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
nArKeD
a
from Bellevue,WA
Date Reviewed: July 21, 2002 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$12.00 | | Purchased At: | REI | | Strengths: | Excellent Stopping Power
Last Forever
Looks Pretty Cool | | Weaknesses: | You must clean your rims of ALL black stuff before using these unless you enjoy major squeal. Took me 2 cleanings w/ Wheel Cleaner and Scotchbrite brush to eliminate squealings. | | Similar Products Used: | Shimano Pads
Generics | | Bike Setup: | Trek | | Bottom Line: | These are very nice brake pads, but nothing ground breaking. They do what they are supposed to, which is a nice change from most brake pads I've tried. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
steve
a Weekend Warrior
from pottstown
Date Reviewed: October 24, 2001 | | Favoriate Trail: | anything with dirt | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$10.00 | | Purchased At: | bikeline | | Strengths: | great stopping power
good in mud, water, lava, and tornados
goes from 60 to 0 in one endo
cheap, and worth it | | Weaknesses: | um, it aint really a weekness to me, but they wear fast, heck for $10, i'd rather know i can stop when i pull the brakes | | Similar Products Used: | xt's xtr's and other stuff | | Bike Setup: | sweet cannondale fully customized to my liking. | | Bottom Line: | very good brakes. buy them if you are in need of stopping power with V-brakes. work great! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Steve
a Weekend Warrior
from Mountain View CA
Date Reviewed: June 11, 2001 | | Favoriate Trail: | Henry Coe | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$7.00 | | Purchased At: | Bicycle Outfitter | | Strengths: | Cheap
Easy on the Rims | | Weaknesses: | None so far | | Similar Products Used: | Ritchey
Avid | | Bike Setup: | Santa Cruz Superlight | | Bottom Line: | The Avid pads made by Kool-stop that came on my Avid 25 brakes were just awful when they were wet. I finally tried some newer Kool-stop pads and they've been great, both in wet and dry conditions. They have a bit more power than the Ritchey blacks, and they seem quite a bit easier on the rims. I suspect they won't last as long as the Ritcheys, but if they continue to be easy on the rims, that's a good tradeoff. Because they aren't curved to match the rim, they actually make a bit broader contact, which I suspect will also help with rim wear. The angle leading edge seems silly, but it won't take long to wear it off. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
jochen
a Cross Country Rider
from vienna, austria
Date Reviewed: April 12, 2001 | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Strengths: | much nicer breaking power than the others (shimano ...), cheaper than ritchey (which also carry the koolstop sign) | | Weaknesses: | ?? | | Similar Products Used: | shimano, ritchey, aztec | | Bike Setup: | santacruz heckler sl, marzocchi atom 80, xt, raceface, salsa, roox
| | Bottom Line: | take em, and you will like em | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Peter
a Weekend Warrior
from New Jersey
Date Reviewed: April 24, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Strengths: | Salmon compound - Incredible stopping power, wet or dry | | Weaknesses: | Color clashes with bike | | Similar Products Used: | black compound | | Bike Setup: | Mountain bike/commuter | | Bottom Line: | The salmon compound is not to be confused with the red. The salmon is a dull brick orange color. It's actually the compound used by the Scott-Mathauser pads which was bought up by Kool Stop. I found out about these and ordered them from Harris Cyclery, http://www.sheldonbrown.com/harris/brakeshoes.html . They're hard to find at most retail outlets.
I have been having trouble with my rear brakes for about a year. I tried all the normal remedies- cleaning the rim with acetone, deglazing my pads, lubing the cables, checking the adjustment. None of this did much good. When I substituted the salmon Eagle 2 pads for the black pads of the same type, the difference was incredible. Perfect braking, wet or dry. I can easily lock up the rear wheel immediately after going through a puddle. I'm very impressed. I'm also told that these pads don't leave streaks on the rim or build up messy black dust near the brakes.
If you already have good braking, these might be too much for your bike.
| | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Dustin
a Cross-Country Rider
from Canada
Date Reviewed: September 1, 1999 | | Duration Product Used: |
2 Years | | Strengths: |
stops quicker and with no noise and less effort then any other product I've tried | | Weaknesses: |
none that I've seen | | Similar Products Used: |
shimano | | Bike Setup: |
Gary fisher rangitoto with a duotrack front fork, and shimano acera X brakes and shimano XTR derailors | | Bottom Line: | if you don't have v-brakes these are the pads to have!! | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Tony
a Weekend Warrior
from Singapore
Date Reviewed: May 20, 1999 | | Duration Product Used: |
less than 1 month | | Strengths: |
Enough to lift the rear wheel even with all my weight on my butt!!! | | Weaknesses: |
non so far, but maybe wears fast. | | Similar Products Used: |
shimano | | Bottom Line: | Why didn't I get it earlier & why do anyone needs V-brakes? | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Nepoker
a cross-country rider
from Nepok Kingdom
Date Reviewed: December 4, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
This pad has very very good performance no matter in dry or wet or muddy condition. It makes no noise when breaking and is have great power so it is worth giving it a try since the price is prety low. So I would rate it five stars. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Ossi
a cross-country rider
from Finland
Date Reviewed: September 28, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I've used the pads for a year now. The are still in perfect condition.
The braking power is magnificent. The only problem I've noticed is that when there is mud between the pads and the rim the braking power dropps more than with any other pads I've tried. But overall they are indeed good pads. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jim
a racer
from West Bloomfield, MI
Date Reviewed: September 7, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
My wife, Linda, and I just returned from an eight-day mountain bike tour of Switzerland. Each day entailed three-to-four thousand vertical feet of climbing and psycho, brake pad frying, 40 mph switchback descents through mountain passes. My stock XTR v-brake pads melted away over the tour, while Linda's Kool Stops (red compound) wore half as much and did not experience nearly as much heat-induced fade as the XTRs. And no squealing whatsoever! A great product. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jodie Gaston
a cross-country rider
from Newberry, SC
Date Reviewed: August 6, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I really love these pads. They wear less than any pads I have tried and the stopping power is amazing. Great pads for the price. The only problem that I have with the pads is that they get caught on my brake hanger when I take the front wheel off to put my bike on the rack. I have been able to overlook this problem for the performance though | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Patrick Do Trong
a weekend warrior
from St-Laurent,quebec,canada
Date Reviewed: July 24, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
Ijust bought a pair of cool stop brake pads thinline and it costed me only 17 dollars (canadian funds).They work amazingly great ,the braking power was immediatly improve when i compare them to the stock ones included on the tektro .rpb.Also,the pads has a angled tip that acts as a wiper removing any mud, water,or even rocks from the rim before they can grind your rim.LOT' S OF POWER,COOL COLORS,FAIRLY INEXPENSIVE,LOT'S OF ADJUDSTEMENT.GREAT REPLACEMENT FOR XT OR XTR AND AVID PADS. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Paul
a weekend warrior
from Massachusetts
Date Reviewed: July 20, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I currently ride 50 miles a week on the road and once every 2 months I will go off road. I ride a '98 trek 930 which is outfitted with V type brakes. After 600 miles I changed my brake pads from Shamano olivio pads to the Koolstop thinline pads. I installed the koolstop thinline pads with various amounts of toe in, and i have found that toe in just made by brakes feel mushy. I finally installed the koolstop thinline pads with no toe in and they stop great and are not mushy at all. I also setup the brakes pad surface parallel with the rim surface in the radial direction, which has elliminated all the squealing. In conclusion I have found the koolstop thin line brake pads to stop quicker while requiring less applied force to the brake levers than that of the shimano alivio brake pads. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Thomas
a cross-country rider
from Germany
Date Reviewed: July 10, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
These pads just rip. I only got LX-Cantilever brakes on my bike together with Mavic 217 CD and the yellow Kool Stops and these pads really helped improve my braking ability. They are one for about a year now and I really did some serious riding in winter and they are not down to the wear line yet. Real nice.
| | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Scott Randles
a cross-country rider
from Maryland
Date Reviewed: July 9, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I have been riding cross country for about six weeks now. I am entering my first race this weekend. I have been using the site for research before purchases and have found the ratings and reviews to be right on target. I now feel compelled to give some of my impressions of my bike and parts I have purchased beginning with Kool Stop brake pads. I was having all kinds of problems with my rear brake. Most annoying was the squeal and mess my stock pads on my LX V-brakes was causing. After three weeks of riding (all XC, around 15-20 miles 3-4 times per week) the pads were well beyond the wear line, had made a mess of my Mavic rims and the noise was unbearable. After reading the reviews on the Kool Stops, I purchased a pair and am totally satisfied with their performance. No noise, good wear and they even cleaned up my rims a little. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
ALacritas
a
from cross-country rider
Date Reviewed: July 8, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I got the thinline V-pads in yellow, and they rule the school. They're almost as good as WTBs, and they're cheap. They're tremendously better than Shimano and Dia-compe pads. My only prob is that the the threads on one were deformed right out of the package; so when I tried to thread the nut past that part, it cross-threaded and ruined the end of the post. But the price is light compared to the WTBs, so I still have a high opinion of these stoppers. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
rob
a weekend warrior
from rock city
Date Reviewed: July 5, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I recently replaced the stock lx pads(crap) with the grey compound thinlines, initial impressions are good; no squeel, wear better than shimano, and stop a hell of a lot faster. There is a bit of mushiness, but hey thats the way I like it. Only time will tell if they outlast the 15 rides I got out of my lx's but then again how hard is that? A deduction of one chili for the angled plow.
4 flamin' cayannes for these vulcanized speed reducers! | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
monkey boy
a cross-country rider
from redfield, sd
Date Reviewed: July 4, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I just go some kool stop brake pads with some tektro v-brakes(I would of written a reveiw on it but I got the quartz series)and I though they were great. MY brother has some kool stops on his avid brakes and the rock. Even with the beggining glaze that you get on brand new brake pads, these things still rock. I give these things five flaming banana's! | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Kurt B
a cross-country rider
from Vancouver BC
Date Reviewed: July 3, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I just put on a set of V-brake (grey) pads last night. Pluses: the don't squeal (like Shimano). Minuses: they have a very mushy feel, and the stopping distance is much longer than the Shimano pads they replaced. When they wear-out (which I hope is soon), I'll replace them with WTB dual-compound pads (like I have on the front). | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
hau
a cross-country rider
from New Zealand
Date Reviewed: July 3, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
ahh, here hear. these babies work hard for your hard-earned dollar. well worth my time to type this review.
smart consumers read this: try to get some sort of 'try before u buy' deal with your lbs, the common Shimano offerings are simply shit.
50 49 48 47 46 45 44 43 42 41 40 39 38 37 36 35 34 33 32 31 30 | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
tmark
a cross-country rider
from Western Massachusetts
Date Reviewed: July 1, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I've used only Kool Stop for years: cantis and, now V's. They don't squeal, they stop good, and they last a long time. Enough said?Well, I tried to submit just the above, but they told me I had to say more. Sorry, folks. My new Jamis Dragon came with XTR V pads. Horrible - they squealed constantly and wore out after just a few of this spring's wet, goopy rides. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Paul Mavrovic
a cross-country rider
from New York, NY
Date Reviewed: June 28, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I just purchased a set of Kool Stop Eagle Claw II pads. They are a little different than the ones shown here in the picture, but they work much better than the original Shimano LX pads that come STD with the LX V-brakes.
The only catch is mounting the Kool Stops... Since the whole pad is made of some kind of hard rubbery compound, I got some flex when I cranked down the mounting bolts. As a result the pad squealed terribly when I rode it the next day. It took a little tinkering, but the result is a better stopping pad with no rim scraping that the Shimano pads were culprit of.
I will test these pads in wet conditions to see how they work..So far soo good..
-Paul | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
David Parkinson
a cross-country rider
from Preston UK
Date Reviewed: June 9, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
This review is for the canti version and not the 'V' brake version. Whenever I replace my pads I usually notice a noticable increce in performance, (like with tires) When I put these things on they were no exeption. The performance in the dry is very good and not too bad in the wet although in the wet they chew up at an alarming rate. A good months winter riding in the north of england will wear these things right down to the wear line. They are easier to set up than most canti pads but you will find that you are realigning the pads every week in wet conditions so I'm not sure they are worth the small price premium over some simpler pads. To sum up Great and easy to use in the dry, Worse than useless in the wet. | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Chaz
a racer
from Toronto, Ontario
Date Reviewed: June 8, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
Got these a while ago at Silent Sports and these things rock! FAR FAR FAR better than the LX V-brake pads that I used to have, which would hiss after about 5 seconds of going down a hill. They look trick (I have them in yellow) and they only squeal sometimes. But they never hiss or fade so that's a good thing! Later. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Stefan Eckardt
a cross-country rider
from Indiana
Date Reviewed: May 21, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
Started using the Kool Stop Eagle Claw's three years ago and I'll never change. These pads are easy to work with and install. They do an excellent job of braking in any condition (I've used both the grey and yellow) and each set I've owned has lasted the entire season. Then I put them on my back-up bike for another season. This one's a no-brainer, gotta give em' a 5 rating. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Cranky
a racer
from
Date Reviewed: May 14, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I recently had to replace a set of Koolstop pads that came stock on my '97 Avid SD2.0's. I was very happy w/the feel and wear of the stock pads, but for some stupid reason, I thought I'd try something different, so I go a couple sets of the red Koolstops...not a good idea. Not only do they wear faster, but they're too soft and leave the feel at the lever too mushy. Currently, I'm just waiting for the damn things to wear out so I can go back to the original black pads. I'm giving the black pads a 5 and the red pads a 1; I guess the average will have to do. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Endo Man
a cross-country rider
from North Carolina
Date Reviewed: May 12, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
Best Darn Pads I ever did buy. Replaced my Shimano LX pads and I will never go back. First of all these pads don't leave s@$t all over your rim as they wear off. NO more of that nasty black crap. Second they have tremendous stopping power. Maybe not as great as V's but until you make the upgrade these pads will shorten the difference. And I don't know about those people who complain that these suckers sqeak 'cause they don't. Ever. YOu toe them in correctly and they will never make a peep. Buy 'em. They're cheap and really good. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jones
a cross-country rider
from Finland
Date Reviewed: May 6, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I've had all of the most expensive pads from Shimano but the Koolstop V-Brake pads I bought four months ago... They are just indrecible. The most amazing thing is that when it's raining and there are mud and water on the pads and rims --> The pads just keep working and they do not squeal... I won't give the five chilis because the Koolstop pads don't last as long as Shimano's. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Rob King
a weekend warrior
from Alberta, Canada
Date Reviewed: May 5, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I put a set of the II's on my bike after the shimano ones wore out. These pads are much better. I'm over 200 lbs and they have no problem stopping me. This maybe due to the V's. I recommend these pads to everyone. I guess I need more words to make it 50 so I think I have enough now. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
ken
a cross-country rider
from los gatos, ca
Date Reviewed: April 29, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
The Cool stop V brake pads suck. I put a set on my XT V brakes and they squealed like crazy. I even shimed the brake to get rid of the play. I adjusted and readjusted them but nothing worked. They squealed no matter what I did. I finaly replaced them with Shimano pads and no noise. Cool stops suck. I would give these zero chiles but, one is as low as it goes. | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jonas
a weekend warrior
from S.A. Texas
Date Reviewed: April 23, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
stop great and never a squeak....great pads....lala lal al a la lal ala llaall50 words alala lal ala la la la la la la la la l al al al al ala la al ala la al ala la al ala la laa a lal ala lal ala la la la lal al al al a la l a l ala | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
jumpman
a cross-country rider
from jersey
Date Reviewed: April 21, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
These pads r good...i used these to replace my shims. These pads r way!!!! better. They don't get tons of that black crap all over yur rim, they work better in the mud, and they have overall better stopping power. The thing i dont like is that they squeak like hell!!! No matter what i do squeak squeak squeak!!! But they do stop like hell even tho they squeak. I have my breaks set up real nice i can stop great in all conditions. They aren't as great as v's but they'll have to do 4 rite now... | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
k-nac
a weekend warrior
from
Date Reviewed: April 21, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
The crappies pads I have ever had!!! I decided to switch to kool stops because they are a bit thicker than the shimano xt brake pads. I t was the biggest mistake ever the pads squeak, and leave a build uyp of black sludge on my rims. Save yourself and get *XT* | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
zac
a racer
from Perth WA, Australia
Date Reviewed: April 18, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I Only got the pads a day ago, But from the start the koolstop were about 100% better than the shimano Lx ones. Instead of being on and off like the old ones these pads had modulation. I could do endo and stoppers with no worry as more or less I pulled the lever there was only a slight ajustment in the braking
power not
likes shimano were a little less or more lever pull made a huge difference in braking power. They squealed the first three times I braked but from then on they been perfect
(.S. I havent riden in rain yet) | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Pantse
a cross-country rider
from Finland, the land of SEXY MTB:s
Date Reviewed: April 15, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
Seems like some people compare these real pads with some Shimano pads, and that is a bit strange, as the Shimano pads by my experience are more designed to keep_the_rims_clean and last_forever, but Kool Stop pads are more designed to slow your speed down, when that is needed...I really like them, especially with my Avid brakes. In wet conditions they could however be better.Used them both winter and summer. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Arnold Rimmer
a weekend warrior
from ? Somewhere out there
Date Reviewed: March 25, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
One word for these pads. Shit! Good idea but they so spongy its using a mars bar insead of pads, so I through them away and got some Shimano pads which are ok! Don't even think about trying to line these up flush with the rim as it will take ages! I say burn them all. Aanyway why are we all farting around with old canties when we have V-brakes which are 2x as power full and they look pretty good to! | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
John B.
a weekend warrior
from Urbana, Il
Date Reviewed: March 22, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I bought the v-brake replacement pads from my local bike shop. They were the only ones he carried, no Shimano, he claimed that they worked just as well. At first when I rode them I felt they did'nt work very well. After a few rides their performance improved greatly. I have'nt noticed any deterioration in performance when they get wet. They are, so far, as good as Shimano. I used my Shimano pads for a year. Now I need to see how long the Kool Stops last to see if the are a good value. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
bubba
a weekend warrior
from Chicago
Date Reviewed: March 22, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I bought these because I needed new pads and the Shimanos were way expensive. The guy at the bike shop said, buy these, their cheaper and work better. So , I did. I noticed they were shaped funny and had arrows on the sides. The dealer said the arrows should face towards the front. I did this and the front brakes worked great , but the back ones sucked. I turned the pads around, so that the arrows faced forward in front and backwards in back, This centered the shoes better in my brakes (Alivio canti's). They work great now, and much cheaper than springing for V-brakes. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
ryan
a cross-country rider
from mars
Date Reviewed: March 18, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
bought the pads for 12 dollars canadian.They work great in sand dirt etc.
they come in good colors and are quite easy to install. they kinda suck in
the muck. they are worth every cent i payed and was wayyyyyyyy better than
my old shimano's!!!i love em and love em and love em some more!!!!
| | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
fergie
a cross-country rider
from norcal
Date Reviewed: March 16, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I've been a bicycle mechanic for many years, and have not come across many
products which work as consistently at a relatively low price like these pads
do. As some others have noticed, koolstop makes the pads for ritchey, as
well as supplying the rubber for WTB pads. The eagle claw II's are as good as
anything out there. With a good set-up (critical, especially with cantilever
brakes) they work as well as anything else, save maybe Maguras. Get rid of those stock shimano M-system pads today, because koolstops rule! Every single customer that I have convinced to change from Shimano pads to Koolstops has been happy. Maybe koolstop should give me a commission... | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Thibault
a
from France
Date Reviewed: March 10, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
The Kool Stop Eagle 2 pads are really very good pads! they are very easy to adjust thanks to the little protuberance at the rear of the pad and very powerful when you want to stop, IN ALL WEATHERS, even when it's wet, always due to this little protuberance that cleans the rim before braking. If some of you have pads that are squeeling, try to spend a little time to adjust them properly. Remenber that there must be a little pinch between the pad and the rim: When the front of the pad is touching the rim, the rear should be at about one millimeter of the rim. This is due to the fact that when your wheel is turning and the pad is touching the rim, the rim drive the pad in its rotation so if the pad is already parallel to the rim, it would not be once it has touch the rim, and it makes noise (have you ever heard pigs?!), whereas, if there is this pinch, while braking the pad would be parallel to the rim, and you have the most powerful braking as possible! Try it, your braking would be more progressive and silent! | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Bill Machock
a weekend warrior
from San Gabriel, Ca
Date Reviewed: February 11, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
These brakes work fairly well in dry conditions; just OK in wet weather. They are a big improvement over the stock pads as far as stopping power. However, I just want to know how to make them shut up?! They squeel like stuck pigs. Any suggestions? I have the cantilever version. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
keenan ivory wayans
a racer
from hell
Date Reviewed: January 27, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
eagle claws ruuuule!!!!! Soooo much they are huge and stop like
as quick as Clinton hits on a hot secretary i luvum sooo much the only
problem is that they make taking wheels out hard because they is
so big i still givvem 5 chillis yee haw yee haw and yee haw!! | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
steve wishart
a cross-country rider
from vancouver, bc canada
Date Reviewed: January 22, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
i have used koolstops for 2 years and about 15000 km now. the performance is questionable only when things get really wet however the braking is consistent and very good especially when it is dry. koolstops are easy to install and wear consistantly throughout the length of the pad and come in a varitey of colours. dollar for dollar there is no better pad. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Rocket
a weekend warrior
from
Date Reviewed: January 16, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
I have used the red Eagle Claw II Koolstops on my canti's for a few months.
Compared to the Shimano M-Condition pads that I used to have, these pads
are a thousand times better, that is until they get wet and I have to squeeze
the levers until I wonder if the inner wire of the cable is going to snap. I mostly
ride in dry conditions with an occasional creek crossing, so the problem is short
lived right after I go through some water and then the brakes dry up pretty quickly. I really like these pads but can't give them five because of their wet
condition performance. | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Alex Josselyn
a cross-country rider
from Corte Madera Ca
Date Reviewed: January 16, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
This product is an O.K. product. These pads give more for your money but they have a tendence to come unlose now matter how hard you tighten the bolts. I would have to give this a two because having to re-tighten the pads gets annoying. They should do bet shimano in how fast they wear down and that is a good thing | | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Bill Snodgrass
a cross-country rider
from San Jose, Ca
Date Reviewed: November 27, 1997 | | Bottom Line: |
Koolstops are better than the pads that came with the bike, shimano, but they are weak in the rain and after a few K miles they glazed and squeeled after a while going down a steep hill. After sanding, they seem OK, but haven't stresed them yet. I read all the Ritchie talk about the red Logics and have them on order. | |
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$ 8.00
