Front Brake Pads Recommendations

[uai]

2 hours ago, quant said:

I've really enjoyed the Pagid RSH (H for historic, the light blue pads) on my 1965 Alfa Giulia, and am considering to use them again for the front calipers; perhaps combined with Ferodo rear shoes.

 

Anybody experience with these?  How do they compare vs. the Porterfields R4S in terms of braking performance, cold braking, heat resistance, noise (squealing), dust ?

Go for Pagid.
I've just been there. I have had the pagid RSH42 in my car and was very satisfied with them. Then I had a set of Porterfields and am really disappointed when comparing them to the pagid. I dumped the porterfields after one Trackday and went back to RSH42.
Pedal feel, bite and temperature is much better with Pagid. The Porterfields got extremely hot - burned my dust boots - a problem I never had with the Pagid. One thing to consider is however - the RSH42 is not street legal in Germany and sometimes squeals a bit.

Edited June 6, 2022 by uai

[quant]

Thanks for sharing your experience.
 

That was my experience with my Giulia as well. Such a great set of pads, those RSH42. 
 

Even worked well when cold. Was driving with Ferodo DS2500 before, and the Pagid pads were such an improvement. 

[JohnS]

How do the Pagid vs Porterfield's compare for us mere mortals who just drive on the street and don't do any track days?  I'm just interested in that kind of daily driving pads for the old guy who doesn't really push things too much anymore.  Would appreciate recommendations for the old guy.  I still Skateboard at 60 yo (that's why my back is tweaked) and I've heard the skater kids refer to me as "That Gray Guy" ?

Edited June 7, 2022 by JohnS

[quant]

I can’t judge how the Porterfield’s feel, but another thing one might find relevant is that the Pagid’s are twice the price of the Porterfield’s. 
 

I think that if one uses their car primairily for relaxed driving, that low dust and no noise are the primairy buying criteria. 
 

the Pagid can squeal slightly under soft braking w/o heat in them. Less so than full-on racing pads, but still they are not ‘noise free’.

 

So I if you are not planning on ‘seriously heating’ them every now and then, there are more ‘fit for purpose alternatives’ (perhaps the Porterfield’s)

Edited June 7, 2022 by quant

[JohnS]

17 minutes ago, quant said:

I can’t judge how the Porterfield’s feel, but another thing one might find relevant is that the Pagid’s are twice the price of the Porterfield’s. 
 

I think that if one uses their car primairily for relaxed driving, that low dust and no noise are the primairy buying criteria. 
 

the Pagid can squeal slightly under soft braking w/o heat in them. Less so than full-on racing pads, but still they are not ‘noise free’, so I if you are not planning on ‘seriously heating’ them every now and then, there are more ‘fit for purpose alternatives’ (perhaps the Porterfield’s)

 

Thank you very much for that information quant.  I have the Hawk high performance street pads on my 73tii and I find that even the Hawk HPS pads squeal a little too much for my driving taste/style.  So this is good to know.

 

Edited June 7, 2022 by JohnS

[uai]

To be honest I'd probably rather drive standard ATE/ Textar/ Brembo Stuff instead of Porterfields - but that's also because porterfields are not common in Europe. I just got a set for cheap and thought why not give it a try as the early 911 guys in the US like them. Brakedust is about the last of my concerns. 
For me pedal feel is very important but my brakes are far from standard as I am running Porsche 2-Piston Calipers in front with ventilated e21 Discs and have no brake booster so my pedal feel is totally different anyway.

 

Edited June 7, 2022 by uai

[Einspritz]

22 hours ago, JohnS said:

How do the Pagid vs Porterfield's compare for us mere mortals who just drive on the street and don't do any track days?  I'm just interested in that kind of daily driving pads for the old guy who doesn't really push things too much anymore.  Would appreciate recommendations for the old guy.  I still Skateboard at 60 yo (that's why my back is tweaked) and I've heard the skater kids refer to me as "That Gray Guy" ?

 

 

Go to the Porterfield and pagid websites and find the Mu curves.

 

Look at Mu vs. temperature.

 

I think for your case you want the highest Mu at the lowest temperature.

 

That's why I recommended the Hawk HP+ if they make them for the 2002....IDK.

 

I use these on my M3, E46 and 325iC since they have a very high Mu at 100 deg. F.......great for traffic, and also in slowing from "above the speed limit" in passing lanes without any fade, in a linear fashion.

 

They have never squeezed, dust not any more than OE BMW pads, whatever they are.

[Einspritz]

I will add that the only company I know who publishes the Mu for drum shoes is Porterfield. And as such, you KNOW what you're getting.

 

Skip the superlatives from the manufacturers as they mean nothing and stock Jurid et.al. don't have a very high Mu.

 

I have done the calculations on brake effectiveness and balance (even if you have a late model with a pressure limiter) and can say that  this is about as good as it gets.

 

If you have changed the MC or installed non OE calipers, or larger drums, then this will change.

 

Just remember that BMW calculated all this given 4persons in the car and "junk in the trunk" and most drivers are not in that situation.

[M3M3]

On 6/6/2022 at 4:12 AM, uai said:

Go for Pagid.
I've just been there. I have had the pagid RSH42 in my car and was very satisfied with them. Then I had a set of Porterfields and am really disappointed when comparing them to the pagid. I dumped the porterfields after one Trackday and went back to RSH42.
Pedal feel, bite and temperature is much better with Pagid. The Porterfields got extremely hot - burned my dust boots - a problem I never had with the Pagid. One thing to consider is however - the RSH42 is not street legal in Germany and sometimes squeals a bit.

We have been recommending the porterfield R4S pads on this thread.  Is that the pad you dumped due to track performance?  If so, well, it is NOT a track pad.   The R4 (no S) is a track pad.  The pagid rsh42 you liked on track is a track pad.  You appear to be comparing apples and oranges.

 

Thread is about pads for street use.   Track pads are a whole different discussion....

 

For street, auto-x, and first timers on track you can't beat the R4S.

[M3M3]

On 6/6/2022 at 4:02 AM, quant said:

I've really enjoyed the Pagid RSH (H for historic, the light blue pads) on my Alfa Giulia, and am considering to use them again for the front calipers; perhaps combined with Ferodo rear shoes.

 

Anybody experience with these?  How do they compare vs. the Porterfields R4S in terms of braking performance, cold braking, heat resistance, noise (squealing), dust ?

RSH is a track pad.  R4S is not.  I would not use track pads on street car.