Shoutout to the guy who warned me about cheap disc brake pads

Picked up a set of no-name disc brake pads off eBay for $8 last month. Figured brakes are brakes, right? First ride in wet weather they were squealing like a pig and had zero bite. Grabbed a set of Shimano pads for $25 at my local shop and now my stopping power is back to normal. Anyone else learn this lesson the hard way or am I the only dummy who tried to save a few bucks?

2 comments

2 Comments

nora108d ago

Hit up the auto parts store for generic wiper blades once. They worked okay for a week, then they left streaks and made this awful rubbery scrape sound. Same with cheap garbage bags that split open the second you put something heavy inside. It is like the universe keeps reminding me that saving $5 upfront means paying with headaches later.

sage_perry8d ago

Are you sure it was the brand or just the specific compound? I run cheap pads on my commuter bike and they stop fine in the rain as long as I bed them in right and keep the rotors clean. The real issue with cheap pads is sometimes the backing plate gets loose or they wear down unevenly, but plenty of them work decent for casual riding. Not everyone needs top shelf stopping power for cruising around town.