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As above really. After I've left the dh bike for a few weeks my saint brakes seem to turn utter rubbish and it takes a few runs to get them back to normal. My xt brakes in my trail bike don't do this and both bikes have the same cleaning regime. What's going on?
It's a Shimano brake thing.
I have multiple bikes with the same problem.
Any bike that doesn't get ridden for a few weeks seems to suffer from it.
See my solution on the brake pads with brake fluid on them thread.
Ride more often...I found if I ride at least weekly then my Shimano brakes (XTs and SLX - although I only have the SLX now) stay properly sharp...any less frequently and they need a good reintroduction to the principle of stopping.
what pad material?
EDIT: sorry, i should expand on that, ive no idea if it makes a difference but interested
I ride often as I can! But I probably ride my dh bike 1 weekend a month. Just interested in the cause and if there's any preventative measures? Not sure on the pad material, they are the original pads. Also not read stus post yet
Clean discs..
Sand and clean pads to take the glaze off..
Bake the pads on the hob until they stop smoking..Clean again..
Because they have "DH" pad material, ie really rather hard, with a high metal content. This is ace when they are hot, but has a low friction co-efficient when cold!
(and because they conduct heat away so well, they take a while to warm up, whereas other smaller, softer pads will heat faster and "burn off" contaminants faster etc)