R1Concepts vs Silverstone brake package

[byron84]

Hey guys, need your input before i have this brake set ordered.
On ebay I was able to find the R1Concepts drilled zinc plated discs + premium ceramic pads for $175 shipped (shipping from US to Canada), whereas I can get a set of gold-cadmium (or something like that) plated drilled discs + ceramic pads made in Canada by some company called Silverstone which are $100 shipped

I have been able to find a lot of good reviews on R1 and no bad ones
Could not find any confirmed actual good reviews on silverstone, some ppl saying they're bad but nothing really concrete.

My current brakes were basically the cheapest I could find anywhere and as expected, the discs got eaten up without much abuse at all and it is now scary to brake at over 70-80kph.

i dont mind spending a bit more for a sure bet, and at 175 i think its a pretty damn reasonable price if the quality is good with R1. however, $100 is a steal of the silverstone are also good. stay away just based on you get what you pay for, or .. .does anyone have any actual first hand experience with silverstone?

[daug1502]

I've never heard of silverstone, I know R1 is all over the market for brakes.

[exodus0784]

Not sure if those with ABS came with ceramics, but stay away from them. They feel like pudding until they get up to temp, and then they start to fade fast.

In daily driving, I can't even get the pads up to temp usually.

[daug1502]

Exodus is that the R1 or silverstone?

[petrified.rabbit]

find out what actual brands the parts are, as in the core parts. these are just factory replacements, so they are going to be bought and then drilled by both companies. From that aspect, they are probably the same, make sure holes a chamfered, the edges of the slots are rounded, etc. Its just machine work. The better quality of the starting product is the one i would buy. Keep in mind 90% of the slots and drilled are for looks, while they do function they just keep the rotor cool, not increase braking, they increase the amount of time before brake fade.

disc pads i agree with nemasys, ceramic is good, but the range for them is not great for everyday use. i personally still use semi metallic, biggest "difference" is i wear out the rotors faster. but i tend to feel better braking and longevity of the brakes with semi metallic pads.

[exodus0784]

I got mine from brakeperformance.com. Slotted/dimpled rotors, and the "Premium" ceramic pads. It was a good deal, but again, I'm really not liking the pads.

In daily use, they never get up to operating temp, in RX I have trouble keeping them at temp. We're only running for around 2 minutes, with 5-10minutes between runs, so they never stay hot. I'm thinking about replacing them with some hawk HPS pads and seeing if that helps. When I can get them to temp and keep them there, they do brake well.

I also seem to have a vacuum issue. I start with pudding pedal... lots of LFBing... then rock hard pedal, like I have no vacuum assist. I let the throttle close completely, and I have vacuum assist again, until I work the pedal hard again. The vacuum issue probably has more to do with my crappy brakes than the pads. Don't want to hijack this thread with brake booster talk, though.

[byron84]

I had some kind of ceramic pad once before when I had my Lancer, and I really liked them. Only had slotted discs at the time though, so drilled is new for me.

Not to worry exodus, any brake talk is welcome in here. I've been wondering how I can make improve the brake pedal feel actually, I like a stiffer brake pedal and mine definitely isn't.

[Shibbs]

Ceramic pads will get HOT. Just a warning. If you plan on racing the car, (auto-x or anything) plan on boiling your brake fluid in your calipers.

[petrified.rabbit]

speaking of brake fluid.. thats the one way to improve pedal feel, better brake fluid.. if not enough add metal braided flex lines..