I'm running TPX Spyre mechanical brakes and find that my pads will grind away pretty quickly during wet gravel grinds. Is there a way to protect the pads during wet rides?
Mine did the same thing. It was like they dissolved. I saw that some others simple switched over the matching Shimano pads and I haven't had a problem since, less squealing too.
The stock pads on Spyres are pretty bad. A higher quality Shimano will be a nice upgrade. I usually use resin ones on my Spyres, but that bike doesn't see that much gravel
GCCyclist wrote:Is there a way to protect the pads during wet rides?
To directly answer your question - not really. Not braking would be the only way to 'protect' them.
You want metallic (also called sintered) brake pads. Wet gravel is a great way to have a fantastically abrasive material chewing up your brake pad compound. It's like rubbing sandpaper on your brake pads every time you brake. A metallic pad won't get eaten away as quickly because it's not as soft.
The suggestion above to buy resin pads for wet gravel is crazy. 'Shimano' pads doesn't mean anything because they come in both resin and metallic. Buy metallic brake pads that fit your brakes.
You have one of the most common size brake pads made, so it shouldn't be hard to find what you need. I bought a handful of TruckerCo metallic brake pads a few years ago and have had zero problems with them for cyclocross racing and gravel riding. Here's the ones that would fit your brakes - https://www.truckerco.com/product-page/shimano-deore-tektro-metallic-sintered-1.
Be aware that if you use metallic pads that the rotors you have are rated for them. Shimano has a lot of lower end rotors that are only supposed to be used with resin pads. Resin is fine for most applications. Metallic is good for extreme wet and long downhills. I use resin riding mountain bikes on the North Shore and at the bike park and they're fine.
I've heard speculation that OEM road resin pads are especially soft to avoid squealing. I've seen people go through a set of road pads on a wet descent that MTB resin pads would have survived multiple times.
I can't say I have read either way if there is a different resin/organic compound for road vs. mtb pads. Interesting thought. Shimano used the same pads and calipers between road and mt bike when road hydro disc was new, so I doubt that was true ~4-5 years ago. Maybe it's changed with dedicated road hydro disc available from most component makers.
Resin/organic pads are definitely quieter when it comes to squealing. I don't think SRAM even makes a metallic/sintered or semi-metallic brake pad for their road disc calipers anymore. That disappoints some of the cyclocross people.
About the time disk brakes became popular, there was an infamous CX event held in the mud and there literally was a shortage of brake pads. One or two laps around the course would wear out the pads and teams ran out of replacement pads. Local shops sold out of replacement pads.
In addition to brake pad compound, another factor was rotor design. The slotted rotors tended to hold mud which behaves like a polishing compound that wears the pads even when the brake isn't being applied.
I love the advantages of disk brakes but the key advantage of rim brakes is the pads last and last... Then again that might be due in part to the fact that for a rim brake the mud seems to be a lubricant?
That would probably be the Nationals in Verona right outside of Madison. A big issue there was that, before the pads wore out, one would have to dismount and adjust the brakes. Pretty much everyone with discs had mechanicals, which do not like hydros automatically adjust for pad wear. People would often be breakless with pad surface left. Stop, adjust, go, stop, adjust, go, until the pads were gone. Rim pads did not last much longer, but did not require one to stop for them to stay functional.
Same thing has happened at wet 24hr mtb races, where people where replacing brake pads every other lap(often ~4mi/lap). The solution is sintered brake pads. Remember to use a new root and bed it in, or sand it down a bed it in.
Brake pads are made by many companies, besides the brake brand. Here are a few to check out:
Two things: EBC Gold pads. Long wear, wet or dry. Good power especially for mechanical discs.
Rotors with as few holes or slots as possible. Openings in the rotor trap grit then use it to grind away the pads in wet conditions. IME the “solid” rotors also brake better in the wet. The best I have used were the original Galfer Wave rotors. They kept the pads clear of gunk without trapping much. Sorry they left the bicycle market many years ago.
FInally swapped my calipers out and went to HY/RD Trps and TruckerPro pads. Have been running the same pads since January through a mix of weather and road conditions. Pretty satisfied with this setup.
I just swapped my mechanical discs for hydro (Shimano 105/RS-505). I was never dissatisfied with my mechanical brakes but the difference between the two is very noticeable. Hydro is worth the money.
