Best Front Pads for R1150GS Adventure m.y. 2005

[JohnnyBoxer]

Yep stop panicking
King Rat is right, the world won't end
I prefer softer pads like the Brembo Carbon Ceramic as they give better feel - I don't use the brakes much anyway as the 1150 has more than enough engine braking

 

[Gab]

Thanks everybody for your responses.

I'm not a race rider so you're right in saying that any pads sold in Europe will be fine. My question was more related to the feeling and also to the reliability (no fading) during long trips 2 up with luggage, which is what I mostly do.

Steptoe, if you think that between the Ferodo you sell on your website and the Brembo there is no difference given the fact the Ferodo are almost half of the price of the Brembo I'll get those. Further thinking, if you think that the DP are as good as the Ferodo/Brembo I'll just get them fitted by ABE when I'll bring them my bike to get the shocks serviced.

You guys are the expert, I'm all ears!

Cheers

 

[King Rat]

Thanks everybody for your responses.

I'm not a race rider so you're right in saying that any pads sold in Europe will be fine. My question was more related to the feeling and also to the reliability (no fading) during long trips 2 up with luggage, which is what I mostly do.

Steptoe, if you think that between the Ferodo you sell on your website and the Brembo there is no difference given the fact the Ferodo are almost half of the price of the Brembo I'll get those. Further thinking, if you think that the DP are as good as the Ferodo/Brembo I'll just get them fitted by ABE when I'll bring them my bike to get the shocks serviced.

You guys are the expert, I'm all ears!

Cheers

Hardly expert, just a realistic rider, but certainly no hero on the road. I leave that to the Young Chargers.

 

[Gab]

Thanks everybody for your responses.

I'm not a race rider so you're right in saying that any pads sold in Europe will be fine. My question was more related to the feeling and also to the reliability (no fading) during long trips 2 up with luggage, which is what I mostly do.

Steptoe, if you think that between the Ferodo you sell on your website and the Brembo there is no difference given the fact the Ferodo are almost half of the price of the Brembo I'll get those. Further thinking, if you think that the DP are as good as the Ferodo/Brembo I'll just get them fitted by ABE when I'll bring them my bike to get the shocks serviced.

You guys are the expert, I'm all ears!

Cheers

So, no further comments?

 

[gog]

as far as i can see it your question has been answered several times by several different members. there is also a whole lot of information freely available on the web. at this point i suspect people are not prepared to keep repeating themselves.

 

[Steptoe]

as far as i can see it your question has been answered several times by several different members. there is also a whole lot of information freely available on the web. at this point i suspect people are not prepared to keep repeating themselves.

He shoots, he scores

 

[King Rat]

I thought he crossed the try line. Just got to get the conversion now.

 

[Rugged Path]

Any form of brake pad will stop you in some length of time when applied at the lever.
I am on my 3rd set and forgotten what I bought this time.

Keeping the braking system in good working order by getting it serviced is better advice than what pads to buy.

 

[stonehenge]

Hi All,

I've tried to look for this topic but couldn't find anything that specific.

I need to replace the front pads to my R1150GS Adventure final edition (m.y. 2005). At the moment the options are:
Brembo
EBC
DPS
Ferodo Platinum

I know that BMW use Brembo as a standard but I've heard that the ones sold after market (red) are different than the ones used by BMW (blue).

I've got to the point where I'm unsure which pads I should purchase so your help would be greatly welcome.

I don't go off-road and I mostly use the bike for travelling/touring, so either one or two up with luggage.

I've been suggested to use sintered pads, which makes sense to me.

If you could advise and in the case none of the above is a good option could you also post the link where to purchase the pads you're suggesting?

I know Braking pads are really good but I haven't managed to find them online.

Thanks in advance for your help.

Cheers,

Gab

Hey Gab,

You think that Front Pads are a minefield; wait until you get onto the Rears - Jeez what a quandry

 

[Gab]

as far as i can see it your question has been answered several times by several different members. there is also a whole lot of information freely available on the web. at this point i suspect people are not prepared to keep repeating themselves.

I actually feel like I've got lots of responses which were not that technical but only based on personal opinions.

For instance, a person like Steptoe, who has got an immense experience (as far as I can see), should probably be ought to tell what is the best option between Ferodo Platinum and Brembo. Same comment related to DP pads. I don't mind spending an extra 20 quid as long as the difference in terms of price/performance is justified.

 

[Slipperyeel]

Not sure if you have servo brakes on yours? If yes, then the brakes can feel a bit snatchy. I fitted the blue Brenbo pads on and it seems to reduce the snatch effect. But that's just my opinion.

I fitted the red Brenbo pads on the rear.

This combination seems to be working for me and I get decent life out of both front and rear.

Organic pads on the rear (ie. BMW oem pads) are total shite on the servo set up. The pads won't last more than 2-3 months.

All just my opinion!

 

[Gab]

Not sure if you have servo brakes on yours? If yes, then the brakes can feel a bit snatchy. I fitted the blue Brenbo pads on and it seems to reduce the snatch effect. But that's just my opinion.

I fitted the red Brembo pads on the rear.

This combination seems to be working for me and I get decent life out of both front and rear.

Organic pads on the rear (ie. BMW oem pads) are total shite on the servo set up. The pads won't last more than 2-3 months.

All just my opinion!

Hi!

Thanks for your feedback. How did you manage to find the blue Brembo? I was told they are only sold by BMW.

My bike is fitted with ABS as standard as it is the final edition of the GS Adv (m.y. 2005). I have been suggested not to use the organic pads, which matches with what you're saying.

 

[Bikermike1411]

I asked this last year! Mine (2000) came to me with Ferodo Shatinums in. I thought they were lethal. Other people love them, partly due to them being harder, so extending disc life. I only do 2-3k miles per year tops, so switched them for EBC HH, and transformed the feel and power.


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[Bikermike1411]

I forget who it was, but one GSER pointed out that oem brembos are in fact HH racing compound pads....


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[Steptoe]

I asked this last year! Mine (2000) came to me with Ferodo Shatinums in. I thought they were lethal. Other people love them, partly due to them being harder, so extending disc life.

This above statement is a fine example of Internet experts and misinformation that then gets passed on by other internet experts as fact ...
Harder pads don't extend disc life, harder pads wear out the disc faster as they use the disc surface as a sacrificial surface rather than the pad material. EBC HH pads are notorious for causing disc wear

 

[JohnnyBoxer]

This above statement is a fine example of Internet experts and misinformation that then gets passed on by other internet experts as fact ...
Harder pads don't extend disc life, harder pads wear out the disc faster as they use the disc surface as a sacrificial surface rather than the pad material. EBC HH pads are notorious for causing disc wear

Bingo

 

[Bikermike1411]

A fair point, Steptoe, but I wouldn't consider myself an internet 'expert', no would many people who have any sort of experience! The whole point of a forum is to share experience - individuals can make up their own mind what advice to follow (a bit like when you're about to have children for the first time....)

There are clearly many different factors that will affect pad and disc life and braking performance. In terms of pads and discs, I can only think that the effective life of either comes from the nature of their application and use. I've run EBC's for years and have never replaced a set of discs on any bike - I did 20k miles on my last Fireblade with no problems on EBC pads, with fairly heavy (road) use the discs were fine, nor, in Japanese bike circles, have I come across EBC pads being notorious for chewing up discs (at least not over my last 20 years of motorcycling). It could be that some manufacturers discs are softer than others, and I just haven't come across this yet (my GS is my first non-Jap bike, ever!)

I understand the philosophy that if you have a harder pad then something has to give to be able to get the friction to stop. However, the overwhelming impression I was given was that those who run harder pads see longer life out of their discs. If there was a magic combination of pad material and disc alloy which gave incredible stopping power coupled with massive longevity, i'm sure we'd have come across it by now. As it is, something has to be sacrificed - the pads or discs eventually wear out. As I said, i've used EBC's for years, replaced tens of pairs on umpteen bikes and have never had to replace discs.

I would go with the argument that softer pads create greater friction, which in turn creates more heat and the risk of warping a disc with heavy use, but that's different to wearing them out. Again, i'm not an expert, but it's a theory i'd easily accept.

 

[Tractors are go]

Steptoe, totally correct, also you should NEVER fit HH pads to the rear and non HH on the front.

Why would you think, with all the time/effort/money that both BMW and Brembo spent developing these pads for your bike would you not want to use them ??? Any aftermarket pads will have slightly different parameters, but there won't be a lot in it.

Of more importance is can I stop in time before hitting the obstacle ? Is your life really only worth the twenty quid you saved ?

Many years ago RiDe did a brake pad comparison, and overall Brembo came out tops.

 

[Bikermike1411]

it's a bloody good job I'm flame retardant- it's quite warm in here today!

iIRC the standard oem fitment pads in 2000 were red backed Brembos. I've been told, on this forum, that these were, in fact, very soft race-spec sintered pads developed by Brembo for BMW, but they've since been replaced with the blue backed OEM HH sintered pads (the red/blue may be vice versa, don't hold me to that). I'm using EBC HH and they work very well. I could have installed OEM pads, or SBS, or another brand, but it's my budget, and it's and my experience over the last 20 years that I trust. And most expensive doesn't necessarily mean best...

The question should therefore be if Brembo and BMW recommend HH sintered pads, particularly on the front, why would anyone want to fit organic Ferodo Plats (or similar) to the front? Is there some advantage to using organic over sintered pads? Stopping power? Pad life? Disc wear?

Or a similar 'perpetuating myth' to my point (gleaned over years of conversation and admittedly not through experience of running organic pads, besides four scary weeks last year) that organic pads are easier on discs?

If you asked the forum 'why should I fit organic pads over sintered pads' (or vice versa) what would the voice of experience say?

Over to you chaps.


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[daveg]

Seems to me that it's pretty obvious that hard pads will wear discs faster and probably need more pressure to achieve the same braking effect as softer pads.

I also think that if something which is obviously wrong or misleading is posted then those who 'really know' almost have an obligation to correct the facts so that the duff info isn't perpetuated.

Just my opinion and certainly no offence intended towards anybody as most people mean well and post in good faith