Reddit reviews Kool Stop Dura 2 Brake Insert (Salmon)

Second time I've recommended these today! When the pads wear out, you can try these pads for the wetter weather.

I've always been fine with the Shimano pads, but some like the Kool-Stop better.

Front brake is your friend! And the pads on stock tektro brakes are awful in my opinion. I would recommend these instead.

Thanks for the detailed reply. Here are two pictures of my brake pads so from what you're saying, I can actually just buy these and switch them out? That would be great for sure. What about these?

These are my brakes and it just says "standard road cartridge pads" so I feel they would work but I hate wasting money on incompatible products.

> I think I might like a minimum of a 105 groupset, but I haven't seen any bikes on that website that include the brake calipers/pads in that groupset. Is this cause for concern?

One way that site saves money is by going to less expensive brake calipers. Some major manufacturers do this as well, actually. Fortunately, Tektro brakes aren't all that bad -- maybe a bit heavier, but the stopping power is usually fine. If it's not, replacing the brake pads with some good Kool Stop pad for about $7 (each wheel) is an easy fix. You can also replace the brakes with [105 calipers]http://www.nashbar.com/bikes/Product_10053_10052_576933_-1___) for $46 total (during a 20% off sale), and that's a relatively simple change to make.

> Next, are the clipless pedals that are sometimes included any good? I thought I read here that the pedals that are included for free are always pretty bad.

I wouldn't say they're bad, but they definitely give you the cheapest pedal they can find. And it's not like good pedals cost that much anyway. Shimano's R540 ($26 during a sale) and M520 ($19 during a sale) are perfectly fine pedals for casual riders. Or even modestly serious riders, honestly. I wouldn't choose a bike from them because it came with pedals. The pedals might be good enough, but if not it's an easy upgrade.