Shimano XT and SLX brake pads

The brakes on all our bikes now use the same styles of Shimano pads. The G-series, G03A, G03S, G04S or the J-series J04C, J03A etc.

I've been trying to work out the most appropriate pads to buy. My problems started when I was trying to find out what the difference was between G03A pads and G03S pads!

Shimano have a brake pad selector page, that is intended to guide you through to get the most appropriate pads:
https://bikecheck.shimano.com/global/en/parts-selectors
That goes so far but often throws out multiple choices with no explanation of the differences.

Working the other way round. It is fairly easy to get generic information on resin, sintered or semi-metal but translating that in to which Shimano part number that relates to, can be confusing and is often contradictory.

As far as I can work out, in summary:
Metal = Better for muddy, wet, gritty conditions. Last a lot longer. Take a lot more bedding in.
Resin = Better for dry or rainy days. Quick to bed and more control.

In addition, some disc rotors are not compatible with some brake pad compounds. Most, if not all, discs are compatible with resin pads but not all are compatible with the metal compound pads. Many rotors have 'Resin Pads Only' engraved on them. Some of our disc rotors have that engraved on them.

Shimano simply state the following for the use of each type:
Resin: silence and controllability
Metal: durability and braking power

The symbols on the packaging provides some details to expand on that but that is not easy to search for on the internet. I have interpreted the information I have found, as best I can, and presented it here for my own use in the future. There is no reason for you, the reader, to trust my list any more than any of the hundreds of others out there on the internet.

Shimano Markings:
First letter = Shape. Both the G and J fit the XT and SLX brake calipers.
J has cooling fins
G does not have cooling fins

Middle numbers = brake pad compound.
01, 02 and 03 appear to be updates of the resin formula. 03 being the most recent.
04 are always metal pads

Last letter = backing material:
A = aluminium (heat transfers to the caliper and hydraulic fluid, risk of the brakes locking on)
S = steel (heat transfers to the rotor, risk of brake fade)
Ti = titanium (heat transfers to the rotor, risk of brake fade)
C = combination, stainless steel with aluminium fins
The heat sink fins, fitted to some pads, are obviously intended to mitigate the disadvantages of each of the above materials.

J03A, J02A	Resin pad with anti-fade heat sink
J04C	Metal pad with anti-fade heat-sink
G03A, G02A	Resin pad with aluminium back plate
G03S, G02S	Resin pad with steel back plate
G04S	Metal pad with a steel back plate
G04Ti	Metal pad with a titanium back plate

I can't find enough reliable information on other makes of brake pad. I'm sure there must be good alternative pads but I have no way of knowing, so for the time being, I'm sticking with the genuine Shimano pads.

Conclusion

I still don't know if I should buy steel or aluminium backed.
Metal pads are probably longer lasting for the muddy riding I do in the winter but I am less likely to be comfortable with the feel. On top of that, my disc rotors are not compatible with metal!

The following look like the best choices, which are compatible with both SLX and XT brakes:
J03A resin pads with heat sink
Alternatively, J02A, G03A or G03S would be perfectly adequate.

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Reference

The source, the Shimano web site:
https://bike.shimano.com/en-EU/components/mtb/category/brake.html

Brake Calipers
We have XT and SLX brakes in use. These are or are similar to the current M8000 and the M7000 brake calipers:
https://bike.shimano.com/en-EU/product/component/deorext-m8000/BR-M8000.html
https://bike.shimano.com/en-EU/product/component/slx-m7000/BR-M7000.html


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Fitting a 12 speed group set

I had a chance to see a 12 speed group set being fitted to a Giant Trance bicycle, which helped me when updating Shelley's Merida to 1x12 from 3x10. In both cases the set being fitted was from the SRAM eagle range. Both with an NX derailleur and GX shifter. One with an NX cassette and the other with a sunrace cassette.

As usual, SRAM have a very good video for fitting and adjusting the gears, however we had to fettle to get a better end result.

Shimano style driver

Both the SRAM NX and the Sunrace cassettes fit on the common Shimano style driver. The SRAM GX, and above, cassettes fit on a SRAM specific driver.

Hanger

The SRAM derailleur fits in a different position to where a Shimano would usually fit.
The SRAM does not use an extension and, more importantly, it must not be offset away from the hub.

Shimano, offset and set back

SRAM, no offset and almost straight down

Chain

To get the length of chain. Wrap it round the largest sprocket and the chain ring. Add two links, one outer and one inner. Both ends of the chain should be an inner link.

The master link fits with the curved surface outwards and the arrow facing the direction of travel of the chain.

End stops

The end stop for the smallest sprocket can be done before attaching the cable.
On a SRAM, the limit screws are furthest away from the end they adjust.
Align the outer edge of the smallest sprocket with the inner edge of the guide cog.

To adjust the lowest gear end stop, attach the cable.
First turn the barrel adjuster on the shifter, full clockwise, then turn it back two full turns anti-clockwise. This is so there is enough scope for later adjustment.
Click the down shifter and pull the cable to ensure it is fully extended, then attach the cable to the derailleur.
Once attached firmly, click the other lever to pull the derailleur to the other end and adjust the end stop.
Turn the screw so the centre of the guide cog, on the derailleur, aligns with the centre of the largest sprocket.

B-Tension

This adjusts the gap between the guide pulley and the largest sprocket on the cassette.
It is the closest the tops of the teeth get to each other.
In the past it used to be fairly common to set this to 5 to 6mm. As cassettes have got more sprockets, this gap has increased.

For SRAM 12 speed they recommend a gap of 15mm. They supply a tool to help set that gap.
This was too wide for both the Giant Stance and the Giant Trance. Both of those worked better with a gap closer to about 10mm.
The Merida ONE-TWENTY would work at 15mm but was more reliable at about 11mm.

If the B gap is wrong it will affect how quickly or slowly the gears change and it might miss a gear. Except in extreme cases, the gear change will still work, even if the gap is not ideal.

Giant Stance

The mechanics who setup my Giant Stance must have ignored the SRAM tool. I would guess that they had some prior experience of the smaller gap required because it came from the shop working efficiently, with the smaller 10mm gap. It was measuring that, against the setting on the guide tool, that helped setup the Giant Trance to work.

Gear Change Adjustment

To get the gears to change up and down quickly and smoothly, it is necessary to adjust the cable tension. Typically there is a barrel adjuster at either the derailleur or the shifter end of the gear cable.
SRAM have the adjuster on the shifter.

When changing gear:

• if it is slow moving from Large to Small sprockets turn the barrel adjuster clockwise.
• if it is slow moving from Small to Large sprockets turn the barrel adjuster anti-clockwise.

If it won't adjust to give good up and down shifting, consider adjusting the B gap.

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Links

All the adjustments to get gear changing to work properly.
https://www.parktool.com/blog/repair-help/rear-derailleur-adjustment

More about the B-tension adjustment.
https://bikerumor.com/2017/09/29/aasq-14-what-does-the-b-tension-screw-on-a-derailleur-do/



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Danbury Common

This is the first time I had been to Danbury Common to ride. Roy and Dean went with me to show me the ropes.

The video is of my second run down the main track. As can be seen in the video, I have a few problems negotiating some berms.

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Bike steerer tube bung

This was requested by Dean to stop the grub and water filling up the steerer tube while cleaning the bike. He's used various things in the past but with the power of a 3D printer and some design work using Fusion 360, I came up with something that fits tightly.

This is not intended to stay in place while riding. In fact I would think that keeping it in place would trap moisture and encourage corrosion. If you are looking for something to keep the mud out while riding, I would suggest some air filter foam stuffed up the tube. That will keep the mud out and allow any moisture to evaporate.

The bung is designed to be pushed in to a tapered fork stem. It just pushes up, just inside the steerer tube, and holds in place while the bike is being cleaned. Best to clean out the tube with a rag before inserting the bung.

Despite taking lots of measurements from three bikes, the end result needed trial and error to get the bung to sit just inside the tube. If it goes too far in, it leaves too much tube to fill up with water and it is difficult to reach to pull back out.

They need a loop of strong string to help get it back out.

The differences in the diameter between an SR Suntour, Fox and Rockshox forks were only about a millimetre in total between the three. I still had to make them to fit specific forks. Only 0.5mm diameter difference between each!

Of the forks I have tried, the smaller fits the Suntour, the medium fits the Rockshox and the larger fits the Fox. I modelled them with a dot in a different location on the handle, to help identify which is which.

They all use two metric rubber o-rings. An o-ring with an inside diameter (ID) of 25mm and cross sectional diameter of 3.5mm fits all of them. I would guess that imperial o-rings with ID 1" and cross section of 1/8" would work just as well.

They 3D print as two halves with two alignment keys. I printed it all without any supports and just a skirt. It needed no cleaning up and can be pushed together. It's a tight fit. I also used a dab of superglued (CA) but that is not essential.


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Download 3D models:
Steerer bungs, Fusion 360, STEP and STL (Zip)
Licence attribution - small business exception

My designs in the Fusion 360 Gallery.
My models in the GrabCAD library.
My designs on YouMagine.com

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Derailleur front mount cover

On bikes that ship without the front derailleur but with the welded on mount, they usually have a blanking cover on the bracket.

Typically a plastic tile or even an aluminium shaped billet. Easy enough to buy but also very easy to model and 3D print.

I've created some custom ones.

3D printed.

I filled the letters with Milliput and sprayed with clear lacquer.


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25.4mm wide, 26.5mm tall, 4.6mm thick, 2mm radius corners. 5mm wide x 2.2mm deep keyway on the back. Fit using an M6x10mm or M6x12mm countersunk screw.

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Fitting dropper posts

This weekend I fitted two dropper posts.  One was the old Rockshox Reverb that Roy and I had serviced a couple of months ago, fitted to Roy's Whyte. The other was a new Rockshox Reverb Stealth (B1) fitted to my Giant Stance.

Internal Hose Routing

There are plenty of videos showing how to fit dropper posts, so I'm not going to repeat those excellent tutorials, however, what many of them assume is that you are replacing an existing dropper.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1__XVOjkvo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Ei6GlmPlAo

I was threading a hose through the frame of a bike that had not had a dropper before. That makes getting the hose in place a whole lot more difficult. The reason I chose the Rockshox over other makes was because, apparently, the hydraulic solution is more tolerant of tight bends. I'm glad I did.

I thought I might be able to use the cable threading fishing tape and rods, that I already have, to get the hose in without removing the bottom bracket from the frame. I was wrong, the local bike shop was right! I had to remove the bottom bracket.

The bottom bracket is a SRAM DUB pressfit and I found a couple of videos showing how to remove and install similar.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yOJAKBQOU9U
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0CDaxwbd5c

Luckily, one of the many articles I looked at mentioned to watch out for the spacer (4.5mm) on the right hand, chain-ring, side. It would have been very easy to miss that. It just pulls off or drops off while you are not looking and rolls under the work bench!

I was glad I had bought a drifting tool designed to remove push fit bottom brackets. Without that I don't think there was any chance I would have got the job done. I only bought a budget tool from Amazon. It needed the splines bent out a fraction but worked fine. I needed to use a lot more force than I was comfortable with but the job needed to be done.

I'm pretty sure that drifting out the bearing housing from the frame is very likely to have misshapen the bearings. They still run, just, but if I was doing it again, I would have bought a new bottom bracket, rather than re-use the one I took out. A new bottom bracket is on order.

Tips: The right hand end of the inner sleeve of the SRAM dub pressfit bracket is fixed to the bearing cup. The left hand cup slides along the tube with a fine washer to seal the gap. That allows the same component to be used for both 89.5mm and 92mm shell widths. (SRAM part number 00.6418.016.000) With the SRAM dub pressfit, it is only necessary to remove the RIGHT hand, chain ring, bearing, along with the inner sleeve, to be able to thread the dropper hose.

I wasted a fair bit of time trying to fish through the frame. Once I had the bottom bracket out, I could see that was never going to work.

There are flanges, lips, where the tubes join. It was hard enough getting past the flanges when I could fish in there from both ends.

With the hose routed, the rest of the jobs were relatively easy. The bearing press I had ordered had not arrived, so I used a long M14 bolt with some big washers, which I had to hand.

It needed some care to ensure it was pushing in straight but the nuts, bolt and washers, worked perfectly as a bearing press.

Everything else was as per the SRAM video.

Sanding the inside of the top tube, using friction paste, torquing up the saddle stem, adjusting the length of the hose for the handlebar remote and fitting the remote.

Not forgetting to slide on the grommet before attaching the remote.

Finally fitting the saddle. By which time it was late and very dark, so I test rode it the following day.

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External Hose

That next day, I fitted the externally routed hose on my brother's bike. That was much easier.

I 3D printed some hose guides so that it did not touch the tyre or anything else when in the dropped position. It needed two guides but they worked well.

As an extra job I tried to adjust the front derailleur because initially it would not move up or down a gear. Again I followed an excellent video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZNG7g83lI-s&t=51s

Although I have managed to get it working, it is not very positive. I'm fairly confident that too many of the components, including the chain-rings are just too worn.

As a side note, I found a way to stop the rubber ends falling off my work stand clamp. As simple as a couple of cable ties!

Roy's Whyte is now in a rideable condition and my Giant has a nice new dropper post, ready for those steep hills.

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Download 3D models:
Dropper Tube Guide, STEP, Fusion 360 and STL files (Zip)
Licence attribution - small business exception

My designs in the Fusion 360 Gallery.
My models in the GrabCAD library.
My designs on YouMagine.com

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