Brake pads are the most regularly replaced part of a mountain bike. Sadly, pads tend to be expensive and perform well OR cheap and perform poorly. These pads are different: they perform well at a reasonable price. These brake pads are for brakes which fit Shimano XT/2-Piston brake pads. The equivalent Shimano pad models are G03A, G05A, G03S, G04S, G05S,  J03A, J05A, J04C, G04Ti. A list of brake models these pads are compatible with can be found in the compatibility tab above. We spent months testing a bunch of different brake pads under fifteen accomplished riders to find brake pads which perform well at a great price. Our favourite pads were Frictive pads, a new local brand. Our test riders found the performance of these pads comparable to the big name brands you know and love. We are stoked to finally see a NZ brand offering good pads and trying to address the generally overpriced market for braking products, it’s something we can fully get on-board with. Performance Guarantee: Put simply, these pads perform well. We will refund you if you disagree. Easy as. Just let us know if you’re unsatisfied and we’ll sort the rest. Further details about the Performance Guarantee can be found here.Notes: Descriptions of the performance differences between pad compounds and answers to some frequently asked questions can be found on the tabs above We recommend that you try both pad compounds to get a feel for the differences so you can make an informed choice about your preferred compound. Even at downhill World Cups, different riders use different compounds as it's a personal preference. We’re excited to be able to offer these pads at prices that make personal pad testing possible for more riders! FAQ Do I need Fins?Probably not. Finned pads decrease the chance of fade in really heavy braking situations. Brake fade is the reduction in stopping power that occurs when brakes are very hot. Finned pads increase the convective surface area (the area exposed to air flow) of your braking system. An increased convective surface area increases the rate of heat dissipation, which in turn decreases the temperature that your brakes run at for a given amount of braking. A lower temperature for a given amount of braking means that fins decrease brake fade. Additionally, lower operating temperatures reduce the wear rate of the pads. That is to say that fins can improve hot braking performance and decrease pad wear. But unless you experience brake fade, fins will not improve your braking performance noticeably. Most riders will never experience brake fade and thus will not benefit from finned pads. The slightly decreased wear rate of finned pads does not justify the large cost difference. Even the most experienced riders in our test group felt no need to “upgrade” to finned pads. What compound should I run on an e-bike?E-bikes are like normal bikes except they are roughly 10kg heavier. In terms of braking requirements, there is no difference between riding an e-bike and riding a normal bike after eating 10kg of pies. Contrary to what marketing may tell you, e-bikes don't require any special brake pad materials or rotor type. We suggest you try Resin pads and Metallic pads to get a feel for the differences and then make a decision based on your own experiences. Refer to the “Compound Differences” tab for more information. Compatibility Shimano: Models from: XTR | XT | SLX | Alfine- XTR BR-M9000/ 9020, XTR BR-M985 (ab 2019) /988 /987 /985 - XT BR-M8100/ M8000/ M785, XT BR-M785- SLX BR-M7100/ M7000/ M675/ M666- Deore BR-M6100/ 6000/ 615- Alfine from 2012 (BR-S700/S7000, BR-RS785, BR-R785, BR-CX75, BR-R515, BR-R315)FSA- K-Force DB-XC-9000- FSA Afterburner DB-XC-9151 Compound Differences PowerResin tend to have slightly more bite when cold than Metallic. Metallic perform better at higher temperatures, i.e. very long descentsModulationResin have a progressive feel whereas Metallic are more on/off. It is easier to crawl down steep things without skidding with ResinDurabilityFor a given amount of riding you would use roughly 3 pairs of Resin pads to each pair of MetallicNoiseResin are very quiet, Metallic are always a bit noisier. At high temperatures, or in the wet, Metallic sometimes screech (you know the sound)Wet ridingMetallic tend to outperform Resin in the wetFadeBrake fade is the reduction in stopping power that occurs when brakes are very hot. Resin tend to fade at lower temperature than Metallic. That said, with these Resin pads we haven't been able to get fade in any situation - including the infamous Mt Oxford descent! Rotor Wear RateResin pads cause lower wear to your rotor than Metallic padsTotal Ongoing CostsEven after accounting for the lower rotor wear rate from Resin pads, Metallic pads will cost you about half as much as Resin pads in the long term for total brake maintenance costs Maximizing Performance To maximize the braking force from new pads it is important to bed them in systematically. It is tempting to forgo this step, but this will leave performance on the table. 'Just riding' a new pair of pads results in inferior braking compared to intentionally bedding in those same pads. A good bedding in process transfers an even layer of brake pad material to the rotor. Pad material transferred to the rotor generates more friction with the pad than the rotor material does. Think about the difference between two grippy surfaces touching versus two slick surfaces. Bedding in your pads creates the best possible match between your pad and rotor surfaces. Which in turn maximizes braking force. PROCEDURE1) Clean your rotor with a non-residual cleaner like isopropyl alchohol (you can forgo this step if you don’t have any around)2) Install pads3) Install wheel4) Pedal bike up to speed and apply your brakes with a consistent pressure (gently at first is best).5) Take off brakes before you stop. Stopping fully ends up causing an uneven transfer of pad material6) Repeat steps 4-5 ten to twenty timesIt always surprises us how different the brakes feel after we’ve gone through this process. We do this on a downhill road (ideally at the top of a chairlift ;) ). Stops us having to pedal up to speed a bunch of times, which can make for a serious puff-fest!

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This Cassette Removal Tool is made to help you remove your cassette. It must be with a spanner or vice as it does not have a handle. It can also be used with a 1/2" drive ratchet/wrench. This tool is small which makes it great for the travelling tool kit. This will remove Shimano HG style cassettes - so pretty much anything that is not Campy standard. Yes, that includes SRAM cassettes. This tool can also be used to remove internally splined Shimano Centerlock caps. This can also be used to remove Rockshox air fork top caps too 😊

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A key factor in setting your wheels up tubeless is having a good quality rim tape. We have always been bothered by the price of rim tape so we decided to import some ourselves. We approached a number of manufacturers and tested their products. After lots of taped wheels, a few beers and plenty of discussion, we decided on this model. We are very happy with it. Tape features: Sticks and seals well Conforms well to the rim Not too little stretch, not too much - The goldilocks amount Hard to tear 10m long - will tape up to 4 x 29" wheels (with 19cm overlap). Please note, if you use more than 19cm overlap your last wheel may not have enough tape 😅 What about sealant?We offer a good quality, and rather cost-effective, tubeless tyre sealant in a number of sizes here. What width to use?To get a great seal it's best to use rim tape which is slightly wider than your rim. Applying good tension to the tape as you apply it will allow the extra width of tape to get inside the rim without any hassle. For narrow rims (around 20mm internal width), using a rim tape which is 2-4mm wider than your rim is ideal. For wide rims (40mm+ internal width) using a tape that is 3-6mm wider than your rim is ideal.  Our GuaranteeWe think this tape works rather well. If you purchase it and disagree, we will refund you. Just let us know and we can arrange a return of the product and a refund. Pro TipOne of the most common causes of tubeless air leaks is due to poor tape cutting when inserting tubeless valves. Instead of cutting the tape, try heating the top of your tubeless valve with a lighter and then push it through. A note on adhesionMany of us would like rim tape to stick to the rim from the adhesive alone. It feels great if it does this (often it doesn't, rims are rather slippery) but be careful to make sure you have applied strong tension to the tape. It's the tension that creates the seal, not the adhesion. 

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After a couple of years selling a decent sealant, we decided it was time to see if we could deliver something of equivalent (or better) performance at a better price point for you. We searched the world far and wide (blah blah), found some sealant options and tested them. Testing was a fun and horrendously messy exercise. Fortunately, the mess wasn’t for nothing and now we have this wee gem of a product. So what’s different about this sealant? Just the price. Not the performance. Our supplier manufactures some of the best-known sealants in the industry. And even without that knowledge, our testing made it clear that this is a solid big-brand sealant alternative. This sealant happily seals gashes of 6mm and even sealed a 7.5mm gash. You can read more about our testing at the end of this description. Beyond price & performance, what makes us most excited about this product is that the small bottle sizes are freaking rad. The 150mL and 250mL bottles come with a snazzy nozzle that fits over your valve and allows you to directly inject sealant through your valve stem. But not just that, the nozzle also doubles as a valve core removal tool - very useful! Because the small bottles are so darn useful, we suggest always using a small bottle (150mL or 250mL) to top up the tyres. Top it up with a larger bottle. Sizes: We're offering numerous sizes of this product because each size has its own use case. 150mL: For the pack. In case your mates don't have enough sealant. Enough for 1x large mtb tyre or 2x gravel tyres250mL: For the glovebox. Enough for 2x large mtb tyres  500mL & 1L: 3-8 large mtb tyres because you'll change them at some point5L: Because you're a fan of buying things in bulk...? Expiration: Whilst the sealant does have a best-before date (2 years from manufacturing), in our experience with alternative brands, sealant kept in its bottle tends to last much longer unless the lid is open. Keep it closed!  Sealant volume chart: Further notes Ammonia free: So it won’t hurt your tyres and rims. Latex based: If you have an allergy, seriously reconsider it. Liquid sealants: Whilst this is a great sealant, the reality of liquid sealing is that there is a limited size of hole that you can physically seal. If you’ve got a gnarley tyre wound, your best bet would be to use a tyre plug too. That will sort it out. We offer decent tyre plugs here. How we tested it We tested a number of sealants with the following process: From initial online research, we found this bike radar article that said Stans Race sealant was the highest performing sealant on the market and could seal an 8mm hole with 2-3 tyre rotations. Well if that's the best, then that's what we'll test (against)! Here's what we found:  Taking slightly longer to seal a massive gash? We're sold! We're confident that you'll be sold too 😊

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Have you ever pumped your tyre up only to accidentally remove your valve core? How about wished you could remove the valve core to push out the tubeless gunk that's accumulated in your valve? Valve core hi-jinks are a reality of running tubeless tyres.  This alloy valve cap has an inbuilt presta valve remover so you can always remove your valve core. Slap it on your valve and you can tighten or loosen valve cores wherever you are. We end up using these most weeks we're riding, it would have been great to have these five years ago!  How to use: Remove valve stem cap Align the hole of the tool with your valve core Push the tool down onto your valve core until it sits snugly around the core Rotate the tool anti-clockwise to remove your valve core

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Smoove is our favourite chain lubricant. It is low friction, doesn't attract dust and lasts for ages. Smoove is self-cleansing, 100% biodegradable and solvent free. Smoove is a wax based lube and so the cleaner your chain is, the better is performs. If applied correctly, it lasts a long time. Other users quote getting up to 1000km on one application for road riding and 500km while mountain biking. This is certainly our own experience if we take care to apply it properly in the first place. Application procedure: The following procedure may seem a bit overkill but you only need to be so thorough once. The main factor which determines performance is how well you manage to remove oils on your chain. If you apply Smoove to a chain with normal lubes/oils/grease on it then you'll get average results. 1) Clean your chain rigorously. Use the strongest degreaser you can find - we put our chain in a glass jar full of petrol and shake it about for a while. Afterwards wash it off with hot water with detergent in it - especially if you use petrol, it leaves a film which needs to be removed. 2) Allow the chain the dry fully. Go for a quick pedal to get the initial moisture off and leave it outside for a while. 3) Apply Smoove to the inside of the chain while turning the pedals to ensure that the lube gets worked into the chain. Keep applying as a constant dribble until you see lube spanning/webbing the pins between every other link. This will likely feel like quite a bit of lube.4) Keep pedalling the chain backwards at least 30 times to ensure it's totally worked in. The goal here is to work the wax into the pin which is responsible for the majority of friction and wear in your chain. 5) Leave to dry for at least an hour. The best results are achieved when Smoove is applied the night before.6) Do not wipe your chain after application. Let it dry!  Next time you ride your drive-train should be quiet and feel fantastic. FAQ When should I re-apply Smoove?Don't reapply lube until your drive-train starts sounding 'dry'. When it sounds dry, apply lube over top again - and let it dry.  Do I have to clean my drive-train every time I apply Smoove?Nope. Only clean your drive-train when you think it needs a clean. Smoove doesn't attract dust so we get away with cleaning our chain very little over summer. We tend to clean our drive train after roughly 5 applications in dry riding conditions. Winter is a bit of a different story, but it is with every other lube too! Is there anything else I should keep in mind?Sometimes Smoove will accumulate on your chain ring, or jockey wheels, which can cause some chain suck. If you ever notice this use a flat headed screwdriver to remove the excess accumulated. My bottle jammed, what should I do?A downside of the great applicator of Smoove is that it can clog fairly easily. Easily fixed by inserting a paper-clip into the applicator :) 

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When working on your bike, having it elevated and held in place is extremely useful. This repair stand is a fantastic investment for being able to fix your bike. The stand is easy to set-up, has an adjustable height, adjustable clamp, rotatable clamp and is quite strong. And on-top of that, it's legs fold down to give a minimum length of 1m, so you can hide it in the corner or take it on trips.   Having your own Bike Repair Stand is a great way to start doing maintenance on your own bikes. We would be lost without ours! You have the option of including a magnetic tool tray with your Repair Stand. Details about this product can be found here. You also have the option of including a handlebar holder with your repair stand. Details about this product can be found here.  The alternatives to this product are: Bench mounted repair stand here Wall mounted repair stands here Both are cheaper and take up less space, but aren't portable. Specifications: Maximum Weight Capacity: 25kg - it can likely hold more but that is at your own risk Adjustable height from 102 - 154cm Clamp opening adjusts from 30 - 80mm. Clamp has soft rubber on the inside which prevents damage being done to your bike when clamping. Notes Don't worry about this product being partially made out of plastic. It is very robust If you want to put your bike on super funky angles you may need to tighten the rotation mechanism. This can easily be done by taking the handle off and tightening a bolt which brings the teeth slightly closer together. As with all other Repair Stands, there are a few ways using them can go wrong. Firstly, clamping your bike too hard can break things - just go easy on tightening it. Secondly, the bike needs to be reasonably central between the feet, otherwise the stand can fall over.   Height Adapters: The height of the tool tray isn't quite right on these stands by default so we've made an adapter so you can adjust the height of your tool tray. This isn't essential, but it does make the stand a bit more ergonomic 😊 We'll get some good photos at some stage...  The height adapter allows you to do this... Comparison to other stands on the NZ market We've been sad to see other shops selling other cheap repair stands that are not fit for purpose. We've tried all of these stands and it was disappointin each time. We'd love to bring a more cost effective repair stand to our customers but we simply aren't willing to sell something that isn't fit for purpose. Below are some things to watch out for with some competing products: Product 1: Generic workstand, approximately $80-$130   The clamping mechanism of this stand isn't robust and is prone to breaking, especially if exposed to sunlight. The clamp also requires herculean strength to be able to mount your bike at an angle. It also has a very small base of support which means it's difficult to work on your bike without it tipping over.  All of the stands in this price bracket which look similar to this stand are all from the same manufacturer and share the same issues. These stands are fairly easily identified by the thin legs, clamping mechanism and the coloured plastic clamps (blue, red, black, yellow etc.)   Product 2: Generic workstand, looks very similar to this product. Approximately $130-$160 This stand looks like the stand we have listed but it is much much flimsier. When you mount a bike in it the whole stand starts to bend and it's rather un-nerving. We used this stand for a bit of servicing and we were saddened with its general build quality. We had high hopes for this one as it's much cheaper to import but we couldn't bring ourselves to do it! This stand can be identified by its rectangular tool tray, its different shaped plastic leg mounts (which fall off!) and sometimes it includes the anti-roll bar (dangling in the second photo). 

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Here's 2m of 1.5mm Stainless Steel Brake Cable made by Jagwire. It is suitable for SRAM and Shimano setups. It's been pre-stretched, so it doesn't stretch as much for you, and it's surface has been smoothed to ensure your shifting is low friction. On top of that, it's stainless steel so it won't corrode. Also included is two cable end caps - just in case. You even get to choose what colour they are! :) We offer two types of brake cables Road and MTB. The difference between the two is the shape of cable head. Below is an image which you can use to decide which type you need. 

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This Basic Chain Whip will hold your Cassette still while you remove your cassette lock-ring. Pretty handy when you want to replace your cassette, service your freehub or run a different set of wheels. The total length of this tool is 28cm and it is compatible with 7-12 speed chains. The differences between the Basic and Premium Chain whips are handle length, tool quality, aesthetics and price. The premium chain whip also has a magnet to stop the chain from slapping around, which is a nice touch. We prefer the extra leverage, and comfortable handle, of the Premium tool but we decided to stock both so that you have the choice.

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