CL Brakes 4064 RDX Shimano Caliper Brake Pads

These CL Brakes 4064 RDX Disc Brake Pads are very good, giving a performance that's noticeably better than the original equipment pads that they replaced, and while they aren't the cheapest, they're similar in price to others we've rated highly.

The brake pads are manufactured in CL Brakes' factory in Paris, whose range of cycling products are now available in the UK.

These RDX sintered pads are designed for road and gravel bikes, and as the name suggests are designed for Shimano's callipers. This 4064 version fits the J-Type callipers, which includes 105, Ultegra, Dura-Ace and GRX.

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Like most brands, CL Brakes keeps its exact metal powder sintered ingredients to itself, although it does say each compound uses at least 10 different components. I can tell you what isn't in them though, and that's lead, asbestos and nickel.

The overall quality looks and feels to be high, both in the finish of the backing plate and the pad shape itself, being an exact replica of the standard pads they are replacing.

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The test period has been around four months, taking in a mixture of road and gravel riding, and the weather has changed dramatically too. It started off warm and relatively dry, but then we entered storm season and all of the rain that brings.

Right from the outset the RDX pads gave a firm initial grip on the rotors regardless of the ambient temperature or conditions, and then they maintained the progressive braking feel of my Shimano callipers easily.

I wouldn't say they were massively better than the standard Shimano models they replaced (which were only a few months old), but there was a noticeable improvement overall.

I'm a bit of a late braker, and the last couple of miles of my local gravel loop contain a very steep, twisty singletrack lane. On a couple of occasions I had to grab the brakes hard when meeting oncoming traffic while doing close to 45mph – with no signs of glazing the pads.

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The RDX pads are also very quiet, even when brand new. In the wet or dry there was no squealing or sound of roughness.

It's still early days in terms of wear, but they have seen plenty of really rubbish weather and the conditions that brings and still look pretty much brand new – I can't see any reasons why they won't last for the rest of the year and throughout the next winter.

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The RDX pads are priced at £29.95 a pair, about three quid more than the SwissStop Disc 34 RS pads that Liam reviewed at the beginning of 2020.

Aztec's equivalent sintered brake pads are £17.99 a pair, although I haven't used them so I can't comment on their performance.

Overall, though the CL Brakes pads are a bit pricier than some of the competition, I'd say they're worth it for the performance and longevity.

Verdict

A bit of an investment but worth it in for the performance and wear rates