Sinter Model 001 Shimano A / M Type

A Shimano A-type pad shape covers a wider span of Shimano calipers than most riders realize, and Sinter's Model 001 is the organic-compound replacement that fits the whole span. If you're running an XTR M970, an XTR M960, an XT M770, an SLX M660, or any of the older Deore, Alfine, Saint M800, or HONE M600 calipers, this is the pad shape Shimano cut into the back of the caliper body. One Sinter model number; a long compatibility list.

What's in the kit

One caliper's worth of pads (2 pads, left and right), plus the spring and pin that hold them in place on a Shimano caliper, and Sinter's bedding-in instructions. Sized for a single caliper swap; order two if you're servicing front and rear together.

Fits

A-type pad shape, covering this Shimano range:

• XTR M970, M960, M950 series (BR-M975, BR-M966, BR-M965)
• Deore XT M770 (BR-M775), M760 (BR-M765)
• SLX M660 (BR-M665)
• Deore M595 (BR-M595), M530 (BR-M535)
• Deore LX M580 (BR-M585), T660 trekking (BR-T665)
• Alfine S500 (BR-S501, BR-S500)
• Saint M800 (BR-M800)
• Hone M600 (BR-M601)
• Other Shimano legacy calipers: BR-M596, BR-M545, BR-R505, BR-T605, BR-M776

If your Shimano caliper has the A-type pocket and isn't on this list, Sinter's fitment tables are exhaustive at the series-and-generation level for the brakes they support; check yours against the table before ordering.

Compound and feel

Sinter only makes organic brake pads, and the Model 001 is the organic-compound replacement for this Shimano shape. The friction matrix is kevlar, ceramic, clay minerals, and carbon bound in resin, which translates into a pad that bites cleanly off the lever, modulates softly under heavy braking, and runs quiet in dry weather. For the legacy Shimano XTR / XT / SLX MTB calipers this pad covers, that organic-compound feel is what most original-equipment Shimano pads delivered when the brake was new; the Sinter pad brings that feel back at the bench.

Specs

• Compound: organic (ceramic-loaded, resin-bound)
• Backing plate: steel
• Pad shape: Shimano A-type
• Pads per package: 2 (one caliper)
• Includes spring and pin

Includes: 2 pads (left and right), Shimano-compatible spring, pin, bedding-in instructions.

Slovenian friction materials, distributed by Euro Toolworks

Sinter has been making friction materials in Ljubljana since 1969, and developed the first disc brake pads in the former Yugoslavia in 1972. Unior has been forging hand tools in Zreče since 1919, and is the official technical partner of multiple World Tour and downhill teams. Distribution through Euro Toolworks is the same path that brings Unior's bench tools and Bleedkit's hydraulic kits to the North American market; the Model 001 is the long-tail Shimano A-type pad in that Slovenian-tools catalog, the one that earns a place on the shop wall for the legacy-brake customer base that almost everyone forgets.

Pro tip from our mechanics

A-type pads cover a long generational span on the Shimano side, and the pad shape outlasts most of the brake systems it ships with. If you're keeping a 10- or 15-year-old XTR M970 or XT M775 alive, the Sinter Model 001 is what closes the loop, but the brake-side wisdom (rotor thickness, bleed condition, caliper alignment) is what determines whether new pads fix the problem or paper over it.

The compound choice, the fitment matrix, and where Sinter Elite earns its premium are laid out in How to choose Sinter brake pads →.