Hello everyone following this thread. I see from reading the posts that there seems to be some misunderstanding with respect to a number of issues pertaining to the correct functioning of disc brakes and use of aftermarket products.
Cycles Africa has represented Magura in South Africa since 1997, in that same year Magura released their first Disc Brake, the Gustav M DH brake. Magura have been making hydraulic brakes for bicycles since 1987.
It is important to note from the outset that your brakes are a safety critical item on your bike. In other words they are parts that should not fail!
I?d like to start by clearing up the topic of heat transfer during brake use. The information below is directly from Bernd, the service Manager for Magura in Germany
START QUOTE "In a brake system in fact of the friction you will always generate heat during the braking period.
With the organic brake pads we can keep this heat a little bit out of the system, but we will ALWAYS have temperature in the system.
On the braking stand in the test lab we will have a temperature about 200?Celsius in normal cases.
If we will use not organic pads the heat will increase and the complete system will overheat, in the worst case it will also be possible that the seal in the master will be damaged.
So it is NOT true that we will have NO heat in the braking system and that we will cool down the brake only with the rotor.
This is also the reason, that sometimes in very critical cases if you will have a 100% carbon fibre frame or fork, the brake system will OVERHEAT immediately because carbon fibre is also a very good isolator and so the heat will stay 100% in the brake system and will NOT transported away.
If our test rider will go out in the Austrian alps for testing brakes in very steep real life conditions, they will have so a high temperature in the frame, that even in disastrous rainy conditions, the complete rear stay of the frame will keep dry.
So you see that the heat will still go at every place in the system and NOT only in the rotor. " END QUOTE
I can attest to this, from my experience at Sani2C this year. I was stuck behind a slower rider going down nicks pass. At the bottom I waited for my partner and felt my brakes, the caliper was hot, the frame was warm and the rotor was hot. I did not have any brake fade at all.
Secondly, with respect to the use of after market brake pads in Magura brakes.
There are a number of reasons why this is not a good idea.
Firstly, Magura test all their brake pads performance in combination with the Magura rotors in a test lab to ensure that they are safe and function correctly as a pair. Magura know the working tolerances for all their parts and they also fully understand the correct combination of pad friction surfaces and rotor material.
Magura do not know what the performance or braking characteristics of other pads may be when fitted to a Magura brake and used in conjunction with a Magura Rotor. This is a safety concern.
The second and probably biggest problem is that of liability.
Magura manufacture a product with a given specification and they know the tolerances and that the parts will function correctly in combination.
Now if someone fits a brake pad, rotor, uses alternative oils or any other part which is not original they become what is known as a " re-manufacturer" and the product liability shifts from original manufacturer (Magura) to the re-manufacturer.
This is because the working parameters of the brake system have now been changed.
Essentially it boils to down to the personal safety of the user!
There are other areas where an aftermarket disc brake pad may not work as well as the original.
These include:
Thermal conductivity
Judder
Brake noise
Uneven and/or rapid pad wear
Sensitivity to pressure and speed
Braking performance and modulation
Potential damage to the rotor
The bottom line is that in order for a disc brake system to run safely at its maximum and best performance you should keep it running with all original parts!
I trust this clears up any confusion in these areas.
Should any of you wish to discuss this further please feel free to give me a call.
011 888 3700
Robert Cunnington
Owner
Cycles Africa
www.cyclesafrica.co.za
