Brakes Ebike Brake Pads

[alexlinn]

it's kind of tough to read or find the information looking for so sorry to ask a question that may have been asked a dozen times before.
i have a new ebike with less than 50 miles. the brakes are center and do not squeal when riding but squeal badly when braking. from reading about the subject, i don't beleive it is related to a dirty pad or warped rotor, etc. i think thedisc pad themself are cheap.....since it is an inexpensive ebike.
anyway, i want to relpace the disc brake pad with something that may be better at reducing the squealng, but not sure with what composite type. what is best type of pad to reduce noise/squealing? is there a specific composite type recommened? thank you

 

[Annieolnie]

The type that is called "resin" or "organic" is suppose to be less squeaky. It is a softer composite. If they are still squeaky after the switch, Google, "bb infinite squeaky brakes" there is an article on how to sand your rotors if they have become scored. I would certainly not be as hard core in the way I go about it as they are, but wet sanding them to remove any grooving seems like it could work. Besides, if they are still screeching after the new pads, you are probably thinking of getting rid of your old rotors anyway.

 

[biknut]

Mechanical, or hydraulic?

 

[m@Robertson]

Generally, brake squeal is more about the pads not being up to operating temperature than it is anything else. There are all manner of homebrew fixes for brake squeal, but generally, the real solution that actually sticks and keeps working is to find pads that are better matched to your use so they get hot fast enough to shut the hell up, but don't heat up so fast they wear out really quickly. Bed the brakes and that should be it. But the magic doesn't happen until you match a pad compound with your use.

Also this: If you ride in the rain, it washes off the pad compound that has bedded into your rotors. So if you ride in the rain, right afterwards your brakes can squeal like banshees. Re-bed them and the problem will go away. I live at the top of a hill and I can do a quickee bedding that will solve the problem by the time I get down the hill to my first stop sign.

 

[alexlinn]

It’s mechanical! Thanks everyone for responding. Although I think the rotor is good nor do I think the pad is dirty. I’m hoping they’re just cheap pads. I will sand the rotor anyway as I replace with a resin type pad. The manufacturer also suggested that. Crossing my fingers!

 

[alexlinn]

although I know nothing about bedding the brakes, I’ll google it to see if it can be applied for my purpose. Thank you

 

[m@Robertson]

Sanding the rotor is one of those remedies I would put in the 'fingers crossed' or 'old wives tale' category. Its also something you see in the automotive world and its horse $hit there too Doing automotive rotors just smooths them out so a new set of pads that has not grooved into the existing rotors do not get a little excess wear. But if you don't pay a brake shop to resurface your vehicle's rotors, they resurface themselves in short order via the new pads.

I switched pads all the time while I was running a car on the race track every three weeks or so for about 4 years. You learn a lot about brake wear when you are doing things that can wear a rotor out in literally three days, or a set of pads in a day.

 

[m@Robertson]

although I know nothing about bedding the brakes, I’ll google it to see if it can be applied for my purpose. Thank you

Here... like everything else I wrote an article on it

How Do I Bed My Brakes?

Brake bedding is something almost nobody does and everybody should. Its a requirement on performance cars taken to the race track. Its the same procedure for any type of vehicle.

talesontwowheels.com

Like a lot of things, there are varying methods. Some of them are downright wrong. This one, you can pretty much count on although I will say that getting the rotors smoking hot is indeed a bit of overkill. But it won't hurt anything and it ensures that you absolutely, positively got the job done.

If you live where a hill is the mini-bed procedure is a good one but save that for after, when you know you already have the bedding process down pat and successful.

 

[alexlinn]

Great info! Appreciate you taking the time out to reply.

 

[biknut]

It’s mechanical! Thanks everyone for responding. Although I think the rotor is good nor do I think the pad is dirty. I’m hoping they’re just cheap pads. I will sand the rotor anyway as I replace with a resin type pad. The manufacturer also suggested that. Crossing my fingers!

Ok, mechanical brakes. This is what your problem is. The inboard pad needs to be adjusted closer to the rotor. Adjust it in until it just touches the rotor, and then back the adjustment off just enough to stop touching. Then adjust the outboard pad to your liking. The only problem with mechanical brakes is they require frequent adjustment.

Hydraulic brakes need a whole different type of adjustment. That's why it's necessary to specify what kind of brakes you're dealing with.

 

[alexlinn]

I’ll try that too when I put the new pads in. Thank you for the advice

 

[Smaug]

I had the same issue when I had a cheap eBike. Cleaned the discs and re-aligned everything per manufacturer specs to no avail.

All my other ebikes had no problem here. It's a brake quality thing.