Now that I have my setup issue largely worked out... and ABS is back (had a sensor that was dislodged)!
the F3R pads feel much better... and going through all that I think made me a better driver- more sensitive to the thresholds of braking on this car. I still think that for an extremely short track like FIR East where there is a lot of intense braking with brake zone bumps etc, having a pad with better feel would help... but at PIR and Chuckwalla, the F3R is proving to be very effective... just thought I'd drop that quick note... off to the track!