Road Cycling - Brake pads from Shimano

Are the pads that come with Dura ace and Ultegra brakes the same? I have Dura Ace brakes on one bike and Ultegra on another and the Dura Ace definately slow the bike quicker, all things being equal(clean rims,same pressure,etc.) Are the DA calipers stronger or are the compounds different between the two pads. I need to change out the Ultegra pads and will pick up DA pads if the are better/softer.

When it came time to replace my Dura-Ace brake pads on my bike, I disregarded Shimano pads and went straight for the Kool-Stops. I noticed that Kool-Stop markets special cartridge pad designs as "Dura-Type" intended to be mounted in Dura-Ace holders. Do you intend to replace the holder as well as the cartridge? Kool-Stop also makes their pads available with holders. It looks like the Kool-Stop holders are also superior to Shimano's in terms of adjustability although I'm running just the Kool-Stop dual-compound (black/salmon) cartridges with Shimano Dura-Ace holders and they work great. You can get the same cartridge pads in other styles in addition to the "Dura-Type" so you should be able to find a replacement that will fit your Ultegra holders if they are different from Dura-Ace.

Okay... I just checked Shimano's website and looked at the instructions for the calipers (http://bike.shimano.com/product_images/BR/si_images/BR-770065005500_SI.pdf) themselves. It looks like the BR-7700 (Dura-Ace) holder is of exactly the same design as the BR-6500 (Ultegra) and even BR-5500 (105) with exception tat the BR-5500 holder uses a set screw with a phillips head instead of an allen head. So yes, I believe anything that fits in a Dura-Ace holder should fit in an Ultegra holder. Pay special attention to the notes in the instruction about the BR-7700 pads though. Apparently they've been increased in thickness over previous designs and may cause some clearance problems with tyre removal. I actually had a similar problem when I switched from Dura-Ace pads to Kool-Stops but a little brake cable adjustment solved that.

Thanx khoun, maybe I will give The Kool Stops a shot. Somehow I doubt that the LBS carries them but never hurts to ask. I want a softer compound becuase of a few gnarly intersections at the bottom of hills that come up real fast and really suck if your rim is wet . Wear is not a concern of mine, stopping power is.

Thanx khoun, maybe I will give The Kool Stops a shot. Somehow I doubt that the LBS carries them but never hurts to ask. I want a softer compound becuase of a few gnarly intersections at the bottom of hills that come up real fast and really suck if your rim is wet . Wear is not a concern of mine, stopping power is.

Then you definately want Kool-Stops. The black compound is for generally dry conditions. The salmon-coloured compound wears faster but stops better in the wet. Use the green compund if you have ceramic rims. I went with the dual-compound (black/salmon) for "all-conditions". Most of the shops I visit stock either the all black or all salmon in "Dura-Type" so I had to get my FBS to order me the dual-compound but it only took a few days to arrive. Most shops do stock the special dual-compound package that includes their own holders, dual-compound cartridges and an extra set of black pads but that package was $20 per set and I only needed cartridges.