Frozen Rotors

November 25th, 2009

One of the car parts that goes through extreme stress would be your brakes.  Several companies are searching for innovative ways to get better performance from your brakes.  Frozen Rotors® from Diversified Cryogenics now has a cost-saving solution for better brake systems.

The Frozen Rotors deliver increased performance and a higher level of safety while significantly reducing braking system costs.  The brakes undergo their proprietary, 60-hour cryogenic process that permanently and dramatically improves the usage life and stability of brake rotors.  It creates a distinct advantage in tensile strength, abrasive wear resistance and rotor longevity.

The Frozen Rotors® are robust enough that it can handle the stress and pressures of braking while resisting cracking, warping and fading on your brake system.  The cryogenic process inhibits the internal oxidation and increased thermal fatigue resistance thus allowing the Frozen Rotors® to last up to three times as long as untreated rotors.

The process also increases safety on your braking system.  The Frozen Rotors® provide more predictable and consistent braking performance even under extreme circumstances.  This is truly ideal for vehicles that require high-usage and high-performance braking systems at the same time, demand reliability and safety.

With all its features and excellent performance, the Frozen Rotors® effectively reduce your costs by extending the life of your braking system with the exceptional durability and confidence.  The Frozen Rotors® at the end sums up savings to thousands of dollars in brake rotor and pad replacement costs.

Materials Matter for Drilled Rotors

November 14th, 2009

Drilled Rotors are now a common component in your vehicle.  Most of the brand new cars prefer drilled rotors over slotted rotors since they usually prove to be more economical and practical.  When replacing your rotor brakes, one of the things that you should consider when purchasing drilled rotor brakes would be the material.

The type of metallic element used to produce the rotor should be a critical factor in your selection process.  This would determine the strength of your rotor as well as wear and tear, noise and braking actions.  Since the materials are element, it should be able to withstand high temperature.  Remember that constant exposure to high temperatures plus the immense pressure during braking can cause your rotors to break easily.

Another factor would be its cooling capability.  During the process of manufacturing, the cooling rate of the iron is closely observed since this would determine the hardness and strength of the material.  An iron rotor that cooled down too quickly will be too hard and would be a noisy rotor compared to one that is cooled naturally.  Also hard iron rotors would wear pads faster but if the rotor is too soft then it will wear unevenly that can cause braking malfunctions.

With these details, it is highly recommended that you choose a metal alloy like chrome moly steel.  Most of these rotors, may be a little bit more expensive than iron-casted but they definitely last longer and provides better braking action.  So if you’re purchasing your next drilled rotors soon, consider these factors when making your decision.

How To Do-It-Yourself Drilled Rotor

November 13th, 2009

If you want to purchase drilled rotor brakes but is out of budget, you can actually try to make one by yourself as a do-it-yourself project.  Of course, you will require your old-fashioned rotor brakes.  Once you have your master pattern ready, re-produce this you can use as working templates.  Next, with the aid of a compass and some draughting tools, make the pattern of holes that would be drilled on the rotor.  You need to remember that the holes must be properly spaced and with even gaps in between.  Note that if you put the holes so closely together, it can actually cause breakage of your rotor brakes.  Just imagine your brake pads pressing against your drilled rotors and the amount of pressure applied must be seriously considered.  If the holes are drilled near each other, then the tensile strength of the material in between each holes becomes lesser making your drilled rotors weaker and breaks easily.

The next step to this project is the actual drilling of the holes onto your rotor brakes.  Before proceeding, you must tape the pattern onto the rotor.  It is also recommended to centre punch each hole so that the preliminary hole will guide the drill bit properly.  Actual drilling must be done with a drill press.  Remember that your rotor brake is made of cast iron or other heavy material which will be too strong for your regular handheld drill.  If you do not have a drill press, then you must take your rotors with the templates to a machine shop for drilling and chamfering.  Once the holes are drilled, then you have your very own self-made drilled rotors.

Cryo Rotors – A “Brake” Through Technology

November 11th, 2009

cryoCryo Rotors is a revolutionary brake system now available on special order.  Originally intended for trucks and heavy equipment, the cryo rotors can also be customized to fit in your SUVs and other vehicles that warp their brake pads easily.  Cryo rotors are manufactured by Power Slot, a division of Centric Parts, one of the leading suppliers of replacement brake parts and hydraulics.

The rotors goes through a Power Slot’s proprietary 60-hour cryogenic process which gives the rotors tensile strength and resistance to harsh conditions that causes damage thus giving your rotors a longer service life.  This procedure involves treating the rotors at 300 degrees below zero which permanently alters the atomic structure of the elements used to manufacture the rotor.  The cryogenic process extends your brake life to twice or even thrice than normal brake rotors by redistributing residual stress on the rotor that provides an extra level of protection against damage.

The slots on the cryo rotors are designed to use the rotor’s direction in increasing functionality.  Therefore cryo rotors for the left wheel should only be used for the left side and same goes for the rotor for the right side.

Cryo Rotors are highly recommended for use in heavy equipment and vehicles like trucks.  It is also ideal for use in your race cars or your sports car that requires heavy braking at high speed.  At the moment, cryo rotors are made to order and needs at least 2 weeks for the cryogenic treatment.

Sport Drilled Rotors

November 5th, 2009

sport_drilledThe brake system of your car must be able to handle your car’s maximum speed capacity.  Several vehicles that are commercially available in the market like cars and motorcycles normally use drilled brake rotors.  The holes on the rotors help get rid of water, dust and other substances that might get on the surface decreasing stopping power.  It also helps lower the heat caused by friction produced by the brake pad pressed against the brake rotor. 

There are also sport drilled rotors available that can be purchased to replace the normal drilled brake rotors.  So what makes the sport drilled rotors different?  Sports cars like the fitted with the sport drilled rotors.  This type of brake rotors are made out of high-carbon cast-iron vented material that increasing the braking performance to halt even the fastest car.  The material, high-carbon can withstand high temperature produced by friction without warping your brake pads thus prolonging its life.  This high-carbon material is strong and durable giving a lasting performance for your brake rotor compared to drilled brake rotors made of iron.  It is engineered to maximize strength and each hole is strategically placed distributing braking strength evenly for a smooth stop.  The holes also relieve stress on the whole rotor decreasing breakage and cracks. 

Sport drilled rotor brakes are manufactured as a direct fit replacement so that it can immediately replace your normal drilled rotor with no need for any conversion.  If you are thinking of transforming your car into a speedster, one important component to change as well is the brake rotor.  Then the sport drilled rotor is the brake for you.

Slotted Vs Drilled – Which Rotor Type Is For You?

October 30th, 2009

The brake system of a vehicle is equally important as its engine.  Every time your vehicle moves, you will need something to stop it too and that is your brake system.  Nowadays, cars and other modes of transportation uses brake rotors.  There are two types of brake rotors that are popularly used, the slotted rotor and the drilled rotors.  Brake rotors available in the market are mainly made out of cast iron or carbon.  There are also some specialized materials used to manufacture brake rotors. 

Drilled brake rotors are commonly used in our cars today.  Even motorbikes and bicycles commonly use this type of brake rotor.  In this type of rotor, there are holes drilled through the surface with a main purpose of dissipating heat quickly. The brake system works with a brake pad pressing against the rotor to stop the latter from turning which would cause the vehicle to stop and the friction between these two parts produces heat.  Another purpose of the drilled holes is to let water pass through it.  When a vehicle passes through a puddle of water or mud, water goes into the tires and mainly spreads all over the parts in it.  The holes on the rotor allow water to pass thus drying the surface quickly.  One downside of the drilled brake rotor is compromised durability. 

Slotted brake rotors on the other hand boast durability and lasting performance.  The slots on the surface help in releasing heat from the rotor caused by the friction between the pad and the rotor during braking action.  Slotted rotors may last longer but it will wear out the brake pad in much shorter time.  This type of brake rotor is usually installed in high-speed vehicles that require a stronger stopping power on its brakes like race cars.  So which type of rotor is suited for you?

Cross Drilled Brake Rotors

October 25th, 2009

A vehicle’s brake system has two main components, namely the brake pad and the brake rotor. Depending on your vehicle type and required braking performance, there are two types of brake rotor namely the drilled and the slotted. Drilled brake rotors are commonly used in our normal vehicles nowadays while slotted brake rotors are installed in vehicles that require stronger braking powers like race cars.

The drilled brake rotor also comes in a variety and one of them is the cross drilled type. This type of brake slot is used mainly on motorcycles, mopeds, scooters and even on high performance mountain bikes. It is called crossed drilled due to the placement of the holes on the rotor. The holes in the crossed drilled are not aligned but usually are in a formation similar to the letter v drilled around the rotor. This type of brake rotor helps prevent lower the heating up of the disc due to friction between the brake pad and the rotor. An added feature of the cross drilled rotor for is its decorative appearance since the brake rotors are visible and without cover. However since there are more holes on the cross drilled than the drilled brake rotors, the cross drilled usually are less durable and wears out easily.

Cross drilled brake rotors are used on lightweight vehicles that would not require a strong braking performance due to the speed limitation of the vehicle. For the smaller vehicles, there are a variety of materials used to manufacture cross drilled brakes and not limited to iron or the expensive carbon. Some cross drilled brake rotors are made from stainless steel or even the lightweight aluminum which is mainly installed on mountain bikes.

Brake Rotors – How Do They Work?

October 20th, 2009

Your vehicle even if it’s the Fred Flintstone’s car or whatever it may be, requires a braking system.  Brake rotors or what used to be called brake discs are the main component of the brake system.  This system works with the brake pads pressing down on the rotors to slow down and eventually stop the rotation of the rotor.  When the rotors stop rotating, the vehicle also comes to a full stop.  There are a variety of materials or elements that can be used in manufacturing brake rotors which could be heavy cast iron, carbon or other specialized materials. 

There are two major types of brake rotors used in transportations today, namely the drilled and slotted.  To determine which type to use on your vehicle may largely be dependent on how you want your vehicle to perform.  The drilled brake rotors have holes drilled through them.  In earlier days, there was a problem with heat in the brake system.  The holes were positioned to help ventilate the heat caused by the friction between the brake pad and the rotor. When this heat is not aired out, it could lead to brake fade that diminishes the brakes power.  Another reason is water wherein a wet brake rotor can be slippery causing brake failure.  However with the drilled brake rotor, the holes moves gas, heat and water from the surface of the rotor ensuring the brakes stopping power. 

The second type is the slotted brake rotor which instead of holes would have slots on the surface of the rotor.  This type is much more durable than the drilled and performs better but tends to wear out the brake pads faster.  This is the ideal brake rotor used for car racing due to its higher stopping power required to halt a speeding car.  One thing to remember though is that regardless of what brake rotor you are using, drilled or slotted – keeping your brake system in top condition is a must to get the best performance in your brake rotor.