Ok since the HRC pads are no longer available for the RC51, I get a lot of requests of what "other" brake pads are recommended so I am going to give my opinion on what I have learned about brake pads over the years. The original HRC Pad review and info is still on this page it is just way down below everything else

1. The Vesrah SRJL XX are the best pads I have ever used bar none, but they are also the most expensive. Their SRJL line followed by their regular RJL line are simply pads you cannot go wrong with, but the cost of the pads along with the sometimes difficult time and effort it takes to acquire them had me looking for alternatives which I found in the following

2. Carbone Lorraine

The Carbone Lorraine C55/59 Race Compound is near as good as the Vesrah's, but usually less than half the price. I use them in my Brembo calipers to replace the crappy Z01 Brembo compound. These are the best value for the dollar you will find on the current market for brake pads period. Just for the record I started using the Carbone Lorraine C55's when I could no longer get HRC pads for OEM calipers and was very skeptical at first simply due to the low cost of them, but they really get the job done. I like them because they are powerful and predictable plus the hotter you get them the better they work. It's like they really enjoy the abuse
http://www.rogueracing.org/GP4RX.ht

Carbone Lorraine also makes a very formidable street compound that easily pulls double duty for trackdays

3. SBS Dual Carbon

The SBS Dual Carbon's aren't bad either especially for the price point. They require heat to work, have good initial bite and only a tiny bit of fade when really aggressive, but once you hit that point of fade it NEVER gets any worse. The only real downside to them is they don't work well in the wet and in pouring rain they literally disintegrate into a graphite like mush in just a few track sessions.

4. Galfer pads

Every Galfer pad I have ever sampled including some of their supposedly new stuff over the last couple years no matter how much they cost or how many accolades had been thrown on them all seem to feel wooden to me and have tons of fade.

5. Performance Friction

I have only tried Performance Friction pads a couple of times and they have never failed to impress, but they seem to also be difficult to find and I don't recall the compound I used so this statement is worthless until I can figure that out...

6. Ferodo Pads

I don't have much experience with Ferodo pads. They sent me a set to test back in 2004 and I think they were allegedly performance street pads called SinterGrip ST. Those were the worst pads I have ever used in my life with no consistency whatsoever. You literally never knew what kind of response you were going to get when you pulled the brake lever. Your mileage may vary and they may have a lot better offerings as well in the way of race pads, but that little test pretty much swayed me away from their brake pads... I have used some of their rotor products with excellent results and their ceramic composite stuff is in a league of its own if you can afford it!

7. EBC Pads (I don't like them)

The main pad people refer to when it comes to the EBC brand is their "HH" model. Some people swear by them and others chine in accordingly, but in my experience they are crap... The backing plates are too thin and the heat causes them to warp which creates parasitic drag on the rotors. I have heard for several years now that EBC created a new kit pad with a thicker backing plate to address the warping issue, but nobody has ever been able to present me with a set of these new kit pads to confirm.

Now inevitably someone will pop up & spew out something along the lines of "I've been using them for years and have never had a warping problem"> Yea well those are usually the same guys that say their tires "stuck like glue" all day when they review the latest rubber donut for their steed. If they never got the tire to spin up they simply weren't riding it hard enough to find the limit of traction and the same is true with brake pads. Those that don't have problems with the EBC pads are typically guys that aren't riding hard enough to need the HH Sintered pad to begin with and funny enough they are usually the one that praise them the most. A lot of my racer buds used to put EBC stickers on their bike for contingency money as well, but never actually ran the pads in the bike so be wary of equating what you see on the racetrack to what is really getting the job done...

10-12 years ago when there were no other choices for HH type pads the EBC's were better than most in spite of the warping problem (although I preferred DP pads back then), but huge advances have been made in the technology behind the brake pad compounds and now there are many far better choices out there. In fact I think the OEM honda pads outperform many of the race pads from even just a few years ago. They OEM Honda pads have the feel, feedback and outright stopping power as well as the longevity that puts most race pads to shame from the same time that the EBC HH pads were initially introduced.

RC51 Mods HRC Pads Review

Forget about at new calipers, master cylinders , iron rotors & such... Simply buy a set of the HRC pads:

Part # 45105-NL3-621 (hard initial bite & the most popular choice)
Part # 45106-NL3-621 (softer intitial bite)

I always thought the RC51's brakes were the best I had ever experienced on a stock bike & even though I had entertained the idea of adding some aftermarket calipers & rotors to the bike for both improved performance & the cool factor I must say after experiencing the HRC pads that I will never deviate from the set-up I have now! If they quit making these pads then I'm going to give up riding altogether

The linear feel of the pads is unbelievable & they just scream stopping power! These are probably the best pads I have ever used on a Stainless Steel rotor.

They are kind of pricey & really don't last all that long compared to some other premium brands, but they just make the good brakes on the RC51 even better & most importantly I like the way they perform as they give me confidence which is priceless to me

There are 2 different types of HRC pads one with a hard initial bite & the other where the bite is softer. While the vast majority of riders prefer the hard initial bite I personally prefer the latter as it suits my riding style better. I like to trailbrake very late into the turn & I don't mean just applying the brakes & tipping into the turn sometimes I even apply the brake long after I have already initiated the turn & with the harder biting pads the front end dives as the brake pads grab which as you know isn't a good thing when you are already at or near full lean mid-turn. The softer biting pads allow me to apply the brakes more gradually, but they still have tons of braking force.

& Yes I use them on both the street & track.