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My front brake is crappy - loads of bite not as much hold


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Any specific cutting discs you could recommend?

Yeah. Get the Bosch or Dewalt cutting disks, they last quite a while. The cheap and nasty ones wear away really quickly and tend to break up.

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I've done all the above and the brake is even crappier than it was. Rear works worse than on a dead grind, front is way worse - admittedly on new Blueberry pads which I think would have bedded in by now. This is so f*cking frustrating. I'd just go back to a disc brake if it didn't add 1kg to my bike.

yLLgWpc.jpg

I need at least 3 passes to grind the full width of the rim, using a 125mm 1.4mm diamond disc. Hence you can see 3 "separate" grinds. I'm only doing it in one direction as advised and not going over the same area twice if I can help it.

Any suggestions?

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Looks pretty aggressive that... Go back to the LGMs, try an old knackered fibre-based grinding / cutting disc rather than a diamond one, and constantly think about trying to 'scuff' the surface of the rim rather than remove material. You barely even have to touch the rim, even with weight of the grinder will be too much pressure.

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Someone will correct me if I'm wrong, but I think there's also a bedding in period every time you put a new grind on there. I'm certainly no expert though. Personally I'd just stick the disc back on – is the frustration worth 1kg?

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The rim is a Bonz.

Someone will correct me if I'm wrong, but I think there's also a bedding in period every time you put a new grind on there. I'm certainly no expert though. Personally I'd just stick the disc back on – is the frustration worth 1kg?

Yeah, especially as the bike is already heavier than I'd like it to be.

And it's not gonna be 1kg. :) I went back to front disc for almost the same reasons.

Sadly it is. Heavier spokes, hub, much much heavier forks and a much heavier brake. The difference between just the brake w/o forks is 0.4kg which is fine. The forks are a good 0.4kg heavier and probably not as stiff. So yeah, not 1kg but 0.8. I already have a heavy bike.

Of course if nothing else works I'll be forced to switch back do a disc. Or just get some tar (not a huge fan).

Adam I'll try your suggestion later today and update.

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Sadly it is. Heavier spokes, hub, much much heavier forks and a much heavier brake. The difference between just the brake w/o forks is 0.4kg which is fine. The forks are a good 0.4kg heavier and probably not as stiff. So yeah, not 1kg but 0.8. I already have a heavy bike.

I don't think it's that much but in order to know that one would have to see your bike and its specs...

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Are they heat sink Blues?

I found my brakes were at their best running either LGMs or ADMs. ADMs seemed to work on any surface on any rim. My front brake is also shit, same set up as I ran on my karbons but now with a b1k3 fork and the bite and hold has dissapeared, but my pads (cousts) are buggered.

I found a harder pad worked better up front. I seem to go through front pads way quicker than the rears.

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Current grind, is this better? The bite is mental, not sure about hold because I haven't ridden it yet.

lGpo7I1.jpg

Are they heat sink Blues?

I found my brakes were at their best running either LGMs or ADMs. ADMs seemed to work on any surface on any rim. My front brake is also shit, same set up as I ran on my karbons but now with a b1k3 fork and the bite and hold has dissapeared, but my pads (cousts) are buggered.

I found a harder pad worked better up front. I seem to go through front pads way quicker than the rears.

Yeah, blues. Apparently an amazing compound, never tried it. Back to LGM's currently.

I don't think it's that much but in order to know that one would have to see your bike and its specs...

It is actually, got a calculation somewhere. Trialtech forks and MT5 brake. My current setup is really light, the whole front end (complete wheel with tyre, forks, brake with mounts and pads) weighs under 2kg.

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Rockman and try-all hole rims seems to hold a grind pretty well. I have ran different pads and always ran a very harsh grind with them. (Metal cutting disc)

One method that seems to work and majority of you might laugh but you can't knock it until you try it.....

Violin wax.... It works amazing sometimes better than your average Joe set up.... All you do is apply a light amount and it isn't noticeable on the rim. Jigga and the hull boys introduced it to me I think Andrew Dickey and all the oz lads were the first to try it out.

I've used it on a few occasions when my grind or rear brake has gone pants great temp solution and has never let me down. It was that good I thought the cousts were going to rip out the backings.

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The diamond cutting wheels are no were near as good as a normal cutting wheel.

I find the diamond wheel grind blunts really quickly and gives terrible hold, the brake slips heaps.

For fronts the 1mm thin cutting wheel gives a nice fine grind which is great on the front because you get bit and can still modulate the brakes fairly well.

For rear a 3mm cutting wheel give best results. You can change the how rough the grind is by changing the angle of the cutting wheel.

Using a grinding wheel ends with a really rough grind,similar to using the diamond wheel. Not as sharp but last longer.

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The diamond cutting wheels are no were near as good as a normal cutting wheel.

I find the diamond wheel grind blunts really quickly and gives terrible hold, the brake slips heaps.

For fronts the 1mm thin cutting wheel gives a nice fine grind which is great on the front because you get bit and can still modulate the brakes fairly well.

For rear a 3mm cutting wheel give best results. You can change the how rough the grind is by changing the angle of the cutting wheel.

Using a grinding wheel ends with a really rough grind,similar to using the diamond wheel. Not as sharp but last longer.

I disagree... I'll post up a picture of my rear wheel grind after having ridden for a longer period.

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What part do you disagree with?

The problem with all these combinations and different ways of doing it. No one will ever agree.

I'm just sharing what I have found, I have basically tried every pad, every grind across a wide range of rims.

My problem is I'm a big guy and need to completely trust my brakes for every single move.

What I've found stops my husky build and is quite reliable for full day rides.

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threadstarter might like to give my selfmade pads a go as a last resort.

for me and all mates i gave them to they did the job on several rims and grinds.

on my atomlab rim the get better the flatter the grind goes lol

on my mates echo tr theyre just amazing on a light to sharp grind.

just offering that,no commercial background :)

Edited by FamilyBiker
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threadstarter might like to give my selfmade pads a go as a last resort.

for me and all mates i gave them to they did the job on several rims and grinds.

on my atomlab rim the get better the flatter the grind goes lol

on my mates echo tr theyre just amazing on a light to sharp grind.

just offering that,no commercial background :)

You made pads? That's awesome! Got any pics?

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The part of the diamond disc. Works very well for me.

How long you been using it?

How many grinds?

How much riding have you done with it?

At first I was super impressed, then after using it for many months I started to notice the issues with the durability and consistency of the finish.

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