Brake ducts with Big Brake Kit ... yes or no ?
 

I bought the APR carbon fiber brake duct kit a few month back and it worked great with the stock caliper.

Note that the APR duct system works perfectly with the AP RACING / ESSEX Sprint kit. Not only it fits but it blows fresh air onto the rotor AND also to the center of the hub, which apparently is the more efficient and recommended way of cooling if you listen to the manufacturer of the ESSEX kit. The fit is very tight as you can see. It actually rubbed a little bit when I installed it but it went away after my first laps.

To check the temperature without the brake ducts, I added an Alcon heat sticker to my caliper and fully tapped the brake ducts, result: +- 330F.

Considering my brake pads (Carbotech XP12)start operating at 200F and all the way to 2000F, I don't think the ducts are needed.



Now that I upgraded to big brake kit. I don't think I need the ducts, but I am curious to hear your feedback.

Should I keep the ducts and try to keep my temperature as cool as possible to minimize wear ? or should I remove it to get i higher temperature and improve performance of the pads ?

YES, use the ducts. The only time this would be a no, is if you are overcooling your brakes for your pads to work well (unlikely unless you're using an endurance pad).

Use them. Like @CSG Mike said, keeping them cooler (assuming in operating range) will make them last longer.

My buddy is running ducts on his Miata WRL car on (so 200tw vs R-comps), but they already have something like 4 8 hour races on the Carbotech RP2 pads up front and they have plenty of life left.

But RP2 pads already last forever; they're closest to an Enduro XP10/12 :respekt:

Wouldn't the heat sticker only indicate the approximate temperature of the caliper? Wouldn't it be better to apply some heat paint to the rotor to get a better idea of what temperature you're getting at the rotor?

The sticker reacts to heat conducted by the caliper, and is there to indicate to you if you're overheating your braking system as a whole, and is used preventatively to see if the caliper is being overwhelmed. An overheated caliper can become compromised (boiling fluid, softened metal, etc.)

Paint on the rotor tells you if you're overheating the the pad and rotor, and if you need more cooling for the friction surfaces.

The two are distinctly different in function, but work hand in hand as a system.

Fair enough. I just thought that his initial question was in regards to whether or not the cooling ducts were required to cool the rotors, hence the paint on the rotors for a true indication of rotor temps.