Sinter Model 040 SRAM Maven

SRAM Maven is the company's newest heavy-duty MTB brake; a four-piston DOT 5.1 caliper launched in 2024 for downhill, heavy enduro, and high-power e-MTB applications. Maven generates the highest stopping torque in the current SRAM catalog, and the pad shape is new: not the Code pocket, not the Guide pocket, a fresh design that the Sinter Model 040 is built for. If your bike runs the Maven brake, this is the organic-compound replacement pad.

What's in the kit

One caliper's worth of pads (2 pads, left and right) for the SRAM Maven pad pocket. The kit ships with the spring, pin, and bedding-in instructions. Order two kits if you're replacing front and rear pads in the same service.

Fits

SRAM Maven pad shape:

• SRAM Maven Ultimate Expert
• SRAM Maven Ultimate
• SRAM Maven Silver
• SRAM Maven Bronze

The Maven pad pocket is specific to the Maven caliper family. The other current SRAM heavy-duty calipers (Code, Guide RE, DB8) use the Model 013 pocket; the Guide / G2 / Trail family uses Model 008. Maven is the new design, and the Sinter Model 040 is the pad pocket that goes with it.

Compound and feel

Sinter's organic ceramic-loaded compound has been calibrated for the Maven's higher thermal envelope. The Maven caliper's larger piston area and more aggressive pad-to-rotor contact pattern generates more sustained heat than the Code platform it sits above, and the Model 040 compound is tuned to stay inside its working envelope at those temperatures. The kevlar, ceramic, clay, and carbon fibers in the resin matrix hold their bite at a higher pad-surface temperature than a standard organic compound would. For the Maven customer running a 220-mm front rotor on aggressive enduro or downhill terrain, the Sinter pad delivers the modulation organic compound is known for plus a thermal ceiling that approaches sintered-pad territory.

The Maven specifically is the SRAM use case where sintered pads have the strongest conventional argument; Sinter's response is to deliver an organic compound calibrated to the same thermal envelope without the noise, rotor-wear, and bedding-time penalties sintered pads bring. Pair with a 220-mm-plus front rotor and a deliberate cool-between-inputs descending pattern, and the compound stays in its working range.

Specs

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

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

Slovenian-made organic compound

Sinter has been making friction materials in Ljubljana since 1969, and developed the first disc brake pads in the former Yugoslavia in 1972. The plant supplies organic-compound pads to motorcycle OEMs whose brake systems work the friction matrix harder than almost any bicycle application. The bicycle Model 040 draws on that motorcycle-tier compound work, and the Maven's thermal envelope is well within the range Sinter's plant designs to. Unior has been forging hand tools in Zreče since 1919, and is the official technical partner of multiple World Tour and downhill teams. Euro Toolworks is the North American importer for both Slovenian brands. The Model 040 is the newest Sinter pad in the catalog, and the only one that pairs with a brake (the SRAM Maven) that was launched the same year the pad shape was designed for it.

Pro tip from our mechanics

Maven pads benefit from a longer, more deliberate bedding-in sequence than the older SRAM Guide / Code calipers because the Maven's piston area and pad surface produce more aggressive initial transfer-film deposition. Sinter's bedding instructions are the right starting point; on the Maven specifically, plan to ride the bedding cycle on a dedicated flat-and-moderate-gradient road rather than launching straight into a singletrack descent, and the pad-to-rotor transfer film seasons evenly before the brake is asked for hard braking.

Which compound suits your riding and which Sinter model fits your brake is covered in How to choose Sinter brake pads →.

FAQ

Which brakes does the Sinter Model 040 fit? The Model 040 pad is made for SRAM Maven calipers, which use a distinct new pad shape SRAM introduced with this caliper, so it is not interchangeable with earlier SRAM pad profiles. To be sure, pull a worn pad and compare the backing-plate outline, the tab, and the pin hole with this one, or read the model number stamped on the old pad. The shape is what matters, not the brand alone. If you have any doubt, send us a photo of the worn pad and we'll verify the fit.

These are called Sinter pads. Are they sintered metal? No. Despite the name, Sinter only makes organic brake pads, not sintered-metal ones. Organic compound runs cooler at the caliper, gives you more lever feel and finer modulation, stays quieter, and is easier on the rotor than sintered metal. All three compound colors offered here are organic.

How do I reset the caliper so the new pads fit? As the old pads wore down, the caliper pistons advanced to take up the gap, so a fresh, full-thickness pad will not clear the rotor until you push them back. Remove the old pads, then gently and evenly spread both pistons back into the caliper bore with a plastic tire lever or a dedicated pad spreader before you fit the Model 040. Once the pistons are reset, the new pads and rotor will clear, then pump the lever a few times to bring the pistons back to the pad before your first ride.

Do I need to bed in the new pads? Yes. New pads need a transfer film laid onto the rotor before they reach full power, and the kit ships with Sinter's bedding instructions. On the Maven specifically, do the bedding cycle on a flat or moderate road rather than dropping straight into a steep descent, so the film seasons evenly. Skipping this is the usual cause of weak bite or a glazed, squealing pad on a fresh set.