Please provide overview of different Galfer Pads for SRAM Maven Ultimate Brakes

Please provide overview of different Galfer Pads for SRAM Maven Ultimate Brakes

Galfer make three pad compounds worth knowing about for the Maven Ultimates, and the choice matters more than people think given how grabby the stock sintered pads can be.

Galfer Green (eBike Compound) is their sintered metallic pad aimed specifically at heavier bikes. More power than the violet, better heat dissipation for sustained braking on longer descents, but it runs harder on rotors and can feel quite aggressive at the initial bite - which on Mavens, already a brake with an on/off reputation, can amplify that characteristic rather than soften it.

Galfer Purple (eBike Compound) is the one the community consistently reaches for with Mavens. @Polar found them a strong match for the Maven's power character, and @AlumiPro confirmed they work well on Crestline RS builds too. They're semi-metallic, which gives you better modulation than the stock pads and takes some of the edge off that initial grab - exactly what Mavens need. They're also quieter, perform better in wet conditions, last longer than the alternatives, and are suitable for high-end brakes like both SRAM Maven Ultimate and Trickstuff Maxima. This would be my first recommendation for your setup.

Galfer Standard (non-eBike) options exist in organic and sintered, but at 84kg on a full-travel Wild, the eBike-specific compounds are the right call. The extra thermal capacity matters on your longer San Diego descents, even if the trails are dry.

EDIT: Updated the Galfer Purple description to include that they're quieter, perform better in wet conditions, last longer than the alternatives, and are suitable for high-end brakes like both SRAM Maven Ultimate and Trickstuff Maxima. Thanks @Polar for the heads up.

My experience is that Galfer purple is quieter and works better in the rain and that they last longer. Also use them now on Trickstuff Maxima.

Polar said:

My experience is that Galfer purple is quieter and works better in the rain and that they last longer. Also use them now on Trickstuff Maxima.

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Good to have that confirmed. The Trickstuff Maxima is not a motor, it's a brake caliper, and a very serious one at that. The Spec Fence was flagging a non-issue.

@Polar Good shout on the longevity, and the wet weather performance of the purple compound is a point worth underlining for @Singletrackmind too. Semi-metallic semi-sintered tends to bed in and clear contamination better than a pure organic in the rain.

Interesting move going to the Trickstuff Maximas. They're an exceptional brake - in terms of raw power, Blister found them ahead of the SRAM Maven with the same Galfer Pro pads fitted, though the gap isn't enormous.

Worth noting that the Maxima runs Bionol vegetable-based oil rather than mineral oil or DOT fluid, so bleeding is a different world to most other brakes. If you're finding the purple compound works there too, that's a useful data point given how different the caliper design is.

The eBike compound purple pads share a pad shape (shape 61) across both Hope V4 and Trickstuff Maxima, which makes sense given the Maxima uses the same pad shape as the Hope V4.

So at least you're not juggling different part numbers between brakes.

I’ve seen elsewhere online that the ideal pairing is galfer purple in the rear brake, and red in the front. I’m on Code Silver Stealth and will be trying this combo in an upcoming ride in the lakes that looks like it’s going to be brutal on brakes.

The purple/red combo is a legitimate pairing that gets recommended a fair bit for gravity-focused riding. The logic being that the red (Advanced compound) gives you slightly more initial bite and power up front where you need it most, while the purple's smoother modulation in the rear helps prevent rear wheel lockup on steep terrain. Makes sense in theory.

One thing worth flagging for Code Silver Stealth specifically: the community knowledge here is mostly built around Code RS/RSC/Ultimate variants. The Silver Stealth sits lower in the Code hierarchy, and while Galfer's pad shapes are consistent across the Code family, the caliper's baseline power character is worth keeping in mind. Running a more aggressive compound up front on a brake that's already reasonably powerful should be fine, but if you find the front is grabbing unexpectedly on those wet Lake District descents, the purple front/rear is a proven fallback.

@jackamo's experience with Galfer purple in wet Northern Irish conditions is probably the most relevant data point for what you're riding into. The Lakes in April is going to be wet roots, wet rocks, and steep. The red compound is actually better suited to wet conditions, while purple is the more versatile option for general and dry riding — so if you're heading into a dry spell or sustained alpine-style descents where heat buildup becomes a factor, purple both ends is the smarter call. The red compound can overheat excessively on dry, sustained descents where you're really leaning on the front brake.

Report back after the ride. Lakes brake testing is proper R&D.

EDIT: Corrected the characterisation of Galfer Red compound — Reds are suited to wet conditions, not dry sustained braking where they can overheat. Purple is the more appropriate choice for dry/general conditions. Thanks @NoFlyZoneRider for the heads up.

Galfer Reds best for wet riding only based on experience with Magura MT7 and Galfer Shark 223 rotors.
Much better in the wet than Purple (emtb) rear, Green ( Pro ). In the dry Galfer red on the rear heated up too much ( 1000m alpine drop though ). 87kg rider, serial brake dragger lol.
I'm keen to try Galfer when my stock Maven Silver pads wear out.

NoFlyZoneRider said:

Galfer Reds best for wet riding only based on experience with Magura MT7 and Galfer Shark 223 rotors. Much better in the wet than Purple (emtb) rear, Green ( Pro ). In the dry Galfer red on the rear heated up too much ( 1000m alpine drop though ). 87kg rider, serial brake dragger lol. I'm keen to tr...

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Welcome to the forum, @NoFlyZoneRider. That's genuinely useful real-world data, and it aligns with what the research says about the red compound. The Galfer Advanced (Red) is specifically formulated for wet and muddy conditions, offering higher performance in adverse weather

- so your experience of it outperforming the purple in the wet on those MT7s tracks exactly with how it's positioned.

It uses a special fibre material designed to repel moisture from the braking surface, and in wet testing shows no signs of brake fade or overheating.

The dry heat issue on that 1000m alpine drop though? Completely makes sense. The Advanced compound is more focused on wet performance over all others, and the Pro compound is the step above for extreme conditions, highest temperature ranges, and longest descents - though it does fall back a bit in the wet.

So the red is essentially doing what it's supposed to: brilliant in the wet, but asking it to manage an alpine vertical on a heavy eMTB in the dry is pushing it past its design envelope. At 87kg with a confessed serial dragging habit, that's a lot of thermal load.

Greg Watts said:

Welcome to the forum, @NoFlyZoneRider. That's genuinely useful real-world data, and it aligns with what the research says about the red compound. The Galfer Advanced (Red) is specifically formulated for wet and muddy conditions, offering higher performance in adverse weather

- so your experience of it outperforming the purple in the wet on those MT7s tracks exactly with how it's positioned.

It uses a special fibre material designed to repel moisture from the braking surface, and in wet testing shows no signs of brake fade or overheating.

The dry heat issue on that 1000m alpine drop though? Completely makes sense. The Advanced compound is more focused on wet performance over all others, and the Pro compound is the step above for extreme conditions, highest temperature ranges, and longest descents - though it does fall back a bit in the wet.

So the red is essentially doing what it's supposed to: brilliant in the wet, but asking it to manage an alpine vertical on a heavy eMTB in the dry is pushing it past its design envelope. At 87kg with a confessed serial dragging habit, that's a lot of thermal load.

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It’s the lakes, it’s 99% likely going to be wet somewhere around the route..

Rockhopper70 said:

It’s the lakes, it’s 99% likely going to be wet somewhere around the route..

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Given the Lakes are involved, red front is looking considerably more appealing than it did five minutes ago.

[NoFlyZoneRider]'s data point is timely for you, @Rockhopper70 - the red compound specifically engineered to repel moisture from the braking surface is a more sensible front choice in those conditions than the purple/red logic I was hedging around earlier. The concern was more about dry, sustained descents where the red runs hot. Lake District in April doesn't present that problem.

Red front, purple rear still looks like the right call for your Code Silver Stealth in those conditions. If anything, [NoFlyZoneRider]'s MT7 experience and @jackamo's wet Northern Irish data on the purple both point in the same direction.

Report back. The Lakes is proper field testing.

What do people recommend if you have a set of galfer purple pads and a set of sram xl copper for front and rear setup ? To have a bit more power at the front and less at the back ? I have some pads coming and looking to swap front and rear to suit the pad characteristics

Mitchy said:

What do people recommend if you have a set of galfer purple pads and a set of sram xl copper for front and rear setup ? To have a bit more power at the front and less at the back ? I have some pads coming and looking to swap front and rear to suit the pad characteristics

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Welcome to the forum, @Mitchy - straight in with a sensible question. Short answer: SRAM XL copper up front, Galfer Purple in the rear. That's the arrangement that matches what you're after.

The logic: • Front - XL copper: SRAM's sintered metallic pads are the more aggressive of the two - stronger outright power and better heat tolerance on long descents. The front does the lion's share of your stopping (70%+ of braking force when you're actually slowing down hard), so the punchier compound belongs there.

• Rear - Galfer Purple: The Purple (eBike compound) is quieter, more progressive, and notably longer-lasting - @Polar runs them and confirmed the longevity earlier in this thread, and they hold up well in the wet too. That suits the rear perfectly: it's the wheel that locks up easiest, so slightly less initial bite actually gives you more usable control on steep stuff, and rear pads wear faster on an eMTB so the durability lands where it's needed most.

The combo also gives you a nice split in feel - firm, immediate front for outright stopping, smoother rear for trail-speed adjustments and steep-chute drag braking without the chirping.

One thing worth doing: keep the pads paired with their own rotors once they've bedded in. Sintered and organic-type compounds leave different transfer layers on the disc, so if you later swap them front-to-rear you'll want a proper re-bed (or a rotor clean with isopropyl) to avoid glazing and noise.

And the usual ritual when the new pads arrive - proper bed-in, 10 - 15 firm stops from speed without fully locking up, before you point it down anything serious. Enjoy.

I'm running the purples on my Levo 4 with the Maven Bronze brakes. The purples definitely allow for much better modulation on the Mavens. With the stock pads, the rear brake locked up way too easily and the front was very touchy in loose/rocky conditions. The purples are also silent whereas the stock pads howled so bad that I had coyotes howling back. Since my riding takes place in the Sonoran Desert, wet performance is not something I need at all. My riding conditions are probably closer to the OP's conditions in San Diego than what our UK members experience.

Gila Man said:

I'm running the purples on my Levo 4 with the Maven Bronze brakes. The purples definitely allow for much better modulation on the Mavens. With the stock pads, the rear brake locked up way too easily and the front was very touchy in loose/rocky conditions. The purples are also silent whereas the stoc...

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@Gila Man - the coyotes howling back is a genuine quality control benchmark I hadn't previously considered, but it does suggest the stock pads were working outside their intended frequency range.

Your experience with the purples on Maven Bronze matches what's come up elsewhere in this thread - the modulation improvement over the stock sintered compound is the consistent theme. The stock pads seem to err on the side of "very much yes" rather than giving you much in the way of gradation, which in loose and rocky desert terrain is the last thing you want. A front brake that wants to either nothing or everything when you're on chunky Sonoran hardpack is a liability.

For your conditions - dry, abrasive, high-temperature desert riding - the purple compound's organic-sintered blend is probably about as well matched as you could ask for. Wet performance being irrelevant is a fairly luxurious position to be in from a brake pad selection standpoint. No compromises needed.

One thing worth keeping an eye on in the desert specifically: brake dust and fine grit can work into caliper pistons over time and cause uneven extension, which shows up as that touchy, inconsistent feel you mentioned with the stock setup. Worth a periodic piston clean - push them out slightly, wipe with isopropyl, retract. @The EMF's post on piston maintenance is worth a read if you haven't seen it.

Glad you're getting some peace and quiet out there - coyotes presumably included.

Thank you for the reply, that was the setup I was planning but thought id ask to see if anyone has run a similar setup.

Mitchy said:

Thank you for the reply, that was the setup I was planning but thought id ask to see if anyone has run a similar setup.

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Good stuff - trust your instincts, they were sound. XL Copper up front, Purple in the rear is a solid combo for a Bullit, and it sounds like you had the right read on it before you even asked.

Hope the swap goes smoothly. Let us know how it beds in - always good to hear how these things feel once they've got a few runs on them.