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New favorite pads ? Yeah, i think so ..

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SB Trails

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Discussion starter · #1 ·
Been on a bit of a quest for the grail of brakes.. xt/mt5/a4/shigura/trp_dhr_evo.... Tried all of those and ended up liking the trp the best..

Then started in on pads... resin/sintered/semi matalic/ceramic with all of them.. Really liked the ceramic brakes..

Tried OEM pads then mtx then a company i used in the past.. Hard headed ram pads..


After trying out all the pads -- i ended up liking the HHR gold and blues the best... I dont get it.. They are reasonably priced but work great.. MTX's were better then oem for sure.. But i found the HHR's to be even better (or at least as good) then the MTX's.. Bedded in fast-- last a really long time and just have a ton of bite and feel..

I have ZERO/NOTHING/NADA/ZILCH to do with this company.. Im just passing on my experience to fellow mtbr crew..

Hope this helps those looking for better pads.. Btw... HHR has a sale going on right now. I recently picked up a 2 set pack (for front and back) for $32.. stoked..
 
#2 ·
👍👍Thanks for sharing! On a whim I purchased a set of Jaguar “Pro E-bike” pads this year because they were $24. I put them in the front Zee on my hardtail and so far they’ve outperformed MTX, EBC, and even finned metallic Shimanos, at durability too. And they’re silent…
 
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#3 ·
SB Trails said:
Been on a bit of a quest for the grail of brakes.. xt/mt5/a4/shigura/trp_dhr_evo.... Tried all of those and ended up liking the trp the best..

Then started in on pads... resin/sintered/semi matalic/ceramic with all of them.. Really liked the ceramic brakes..

Tried OEM pads then mtx then a company i used in the past.. Hard headed ram pads..


After trying out all the pads -- i ended up liking the HHR gold and blues the best... I dont get it.. They are reasonably priced but work great.. MTX's were better then oem for sure.. But i found the HHR's to be even better (or at least as good) then the MTX's.. Bedded in fast-- last a really long time and just have a ton of bite and feel..

I have ZERO/NOTHING/NADA/ZILCH to do with this company.. Im just passing on my experience to fellow mtbr crew..

Hope this helps those looking for better pads.. Btw... HHR has a sale going on right now. I recently picked up a 2 set pack (for front and back) for $32.. stoked..
Click to expand...
Any chance you could expand on the Blue vs Gold in regards to preformance?
 
#6 ·
Macharza said:
I have used Galfer standard pads, can get those 9,99€ from Europe. Good enough and not worth ordering Pro pads.
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I may have to try the galfers. My other bikes that all are dual piston XT/xtr pads I use disco pads - the ceramic ones are amazing and cheap.

Newest bike has Shimano 8120 and disco doesn't appear to make pads for those so I am on the lookout for options.
 
#8 ·
Are the pads in question actually made in a different factory than some other given brand?

I suspect many brands are using white label pads from the same small selection of manufacturers and slapping their own branding on what are likely the same units.

Also likely that the factory has significant variation across different runs, so a week 5 pad may be quite different than a week 40 pad, despite the claimed specifications being equal. All it takes is one of their upstream suppliers making a small materials substitution or reformulation.
 
#9 ·
jimPacNW said:
I've used Disco semi metallics quite a bit, I've never tried ceramic, have you compared the ceramics to other Disco products?
Click to expand...
I have only used the ceramic disco after running into supply issues with the Shimano metal pads I used to use.

Compared to the Shimano metal I did not notice a decrease in performance (bite was similar, did not experience fade on long steeps even though the ahimanos were finned and disco not) the biggest thing I noticed was the disco pads are way quieter - especially in wet conditions.
 
#10 ·
beartraps said:
Are the pads in question actually made in a different factory than some other given brand?

I suspect many brands are using white label pads from the same small selection of manufacturers and slapping their own branding on what are likely the same units.

Also likely that the factory has significant variation across different runs, so a week 5 pad may be quite different than a week 40 pad, despite the claimed specifications being equal. All it takes is one of their upstream suppliers making a small materials substitution or reformulation.
Click to expand...
For this exact reason, I've just ordered a wide selection of pads from AliExpress, as I suspect that most of them are the same pads being used by the big companies. Even if they're not, I got 8 full sets (front and rear) for under ÂŁ20. Seeing as the usual pads I buy are ÂŁ17 for one pair, it'll make for an interesting comparison
 
#11 ·
tootalltim said:
For this exact reason, I've just ordered a wide selection of pads from AliExpress, as I suspect that most of them are the same pads being used by the big companies. Even if they're not, I got 8 full sets (front and rear) for under ÂŁ20. Seeing as the usual pads I buy are ÂŁ17 for one pair, it'll make for an interesting comparison
Click to expand...
I love the Cooma gold sintered pads from Aliexpress. They have a big sale on 11/11 and I picked up a lifetime supply for around twenty bucks.
 
#12 · (Edited)
Tried out the hardheaded ram blue "DH" pads...pretty disappointed. SRAM organic are better. MTX red way better. Worth a shot I guess.

Edit: see follow-up. These needed a lot more bedding runs before they were ready to ride. They seem to be delivering a lot of power now.
 
Discussion starter · #13 ·
Organ— reach out to hhr. He offers a money back guarantee. Or try out the golds. I’m finding I like them best. I had no luck with mtb reds. What brakes are you using? I have some mtb mt5 pads if you want them.
 
#15 ·
Organ said:
Tried out the hardheaded ram blue "DH" pads...pretty disappointed. SRAM organic are better. MTX red way better. Worth a shot I guess.
Click to expand...
Funny,
I recently bought HHR blue DH pads with Saints. They are plenty powerful but don't modulate well and are nosier than expected. I can't say I prefer them to OEM sintered

I prefer MTX red which aren't quite as powerful as HHR blue (but strong enough), but are dead silent and modulate quite nicely.

i have MTX gold on the way to compare. I may eventually try mixing a MTX gold interior, MTX red exterior
 
#16 ·
Hmmm. Any special bedding? I did my normal sandpaper crosshatch, IPA, few passes on a short hill, ride routine. SRAM codes that had trickstuff power pads before that.
I might retry bedding them one more time. I've got an extra set as well .
 
#17 ·
Organ said:
Hmmm. Any special bedding? I did my normal sandpaper crosshatch, IPA, few passes on a short hill, ride routine. SRAM codes that had trickstuff power pads before that.
I might retry bedding them one more time. I've got an extra set as well .
Click to expand...

I'm always intrigued by these threads, I've hardly wavered from OEM metal pads to be honest. As for bedding them in, I virtually don't bother, pistons back, new pads in, a few hard stops and that's it. I've even put pads on before a day in the bike park, first run took it easy with plenty of hard stops and my ancient Saints are like new.
PS I have a good mate that we used to call Big M 🤣
 
#18 ·
Mudguard said:
I'm always intrigued by these threads, I've hardly wavered from OEM metal pads to be honest. As for bedding them in, I virtually don't bother, pistons back, new pads in, a few hard stops and that's it. I've even put pads on before a day in the bike park, first run took it easy with plenty of hard stops and my ancient Saints are like new.
PS I have a good mate that we used to call Big M 🤣
Click to expand...
I don't bother to bed in replacement pads. The rotors already have been bedded in.
 
#19 ·
Smokee300 said:
Any chance you could expand on the Blue vs Gold in regards to preformance?
Click to expand...
tootalltim said:
For this exact reason, I've just ordered a wide selection of pads from AliExpress, as I suspect that most of them are the same pads being used by the big companies. Even if they're not, I got 8 full sets (front and rear) for under ÂŁ20. Seeing as the usual pads I buy are ÂŁ17 for one pair, it'll make for an interesting comparison
Click to expand...
Taiwan export 90% of all bikes and parts, not China. Alibaba.com are Chinese parts, totally different quality.
 
#20 ·
Organ said:
Hmmm. Any special bedding? I did my normal sandpaper crosshatch, IPA, few passes on a short hill, ride routine. SRAM codes that had trickstuff power pads before that.
I might retry bedding them one more time. I've got an extra set as well .
Click to expand...
I guess i should follow-up on my experience. I cleaned and re-installed, and took 3 rounds of bedding before I hit the trail. Each one noticeably better. After the first ride they have good power, probably more than MTX reds but less modulation. I haven't done water crossings or really wet rides but they are quiet so far.
 
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