[s-cars] Rotor & Caliper Incunabula

[Robin St.Clair]

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Guys

To clear up some misconceptions.

The Porsche rotors, from the South German Foundry, have their holes cast in=
to them, this is not a post fact modification - if you can believe the hype=
 - I have not seen the moulds, nor how they look in knock-out, so this coul=
d possibly be an urban legend, however I am assured otherwise.

With respect to the Monoblocs.  There have been failures because the forces=
 that are found in a one piece cast caliper are not easily understood or pr=
edicted. Many engineers prefer their brake calipers in several pieces, each=
 machined from solid billets as this removes the internal stresses. In shor=
t, monoblocs may or may not be an advance in technology - the jury is out. =
Personally, I am suspicious.

As far as the RS6 is concerned, I am suggesting that purchasers switch to 6=
 piston calipers front and rear. reason being, the long term experience on =
the road with 8 piston calipers has not been good. Great for the track, whe=
re they are a disposable, but apparently prone to failure on street cars. I=
 know that they can be very tough on the RS6 rotors.

As far as the Stoptech calipers are concerned. If it looks like ....., if i=
t smells like ......., if it tastes like ......., it is ......... manufactu=
red in an emerging Asian nation. They picked a great design as a starting p=
oint and should be regarded as a tribute to ....... I could have more faith=
 in them had their argument against upgrading the rear brakes not been so s=
elf-serving, it undermined their technical achievement with their front bra=
ke package.

A comparison between Stoptechs and Brembos should be made on the same car w=
ith the same brake lines, pads and fresh brake fluid - too many variables o=
therwise, and please upgrade the rear brakelines, even if they are otherwis=
e untouched.

As far as Don Istook's anecdotes are concerned, anybody who has been around=
 racecars on a budget for as long as Don has will have any number of simila=
r stories, some of these guys will even have remembered the truism "to fini=
sh first, first you have to finish". S4 racing experience is best epitomise=
d in the US by Champion Racing who have the knack of getting to the finishi=
ng line. I am not knocking Don, I admire what he manages on a budget, howev=
er, I look to teams with better results at race end for advice, guidance an=
d examplars.

HTH

R+C



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