Are drums as bad as everyone makes them out to be? A discussion.

[r1emperor]

All I know is that before I did my conversion, my front rotors always warped. Since the conversion, no problem. (and I drive HARD)

[westsideaccord]

Drum brakes are used on Big trucks all around for a couple of reasons, they stop a large mass easier last longer and are cheaper to make! They also stay hot so stopping is easier for the rigs could you imagine discs on a rig it would ugly fat! Straight from an episode on tv, I beleive stacy took a trip to a rig comp.
If you do the disc conversion you are gonna make changing your pads alot easier than if you had drums, the pads for our cars are cheap either way!
The disc looks ten times better, and is gonna cool alot faster! Good for our little cars.
SO what if I am a flip-flopper lol! I like my drums for auto-x but had I a set of discs I wouldnt fret to change, I like my brakes as easy to fix as possible!
Dillemma- discs:easy to work on, not many parts, look great!
- drums:already on the car, not that bad to work on!

[clarksterdotcom]

here is where i see the disc. turning pointless.. yes the people who ARE auto-x have been giving us more info. then everyone else points at them and says well thats auto-x.. the track is more demanding than most of our daily drives, and if your daily drive is more than a day at the track then id consider working from home.

as far as the average persons needs off the track it will be w/e came stock on your car, most other mods would be for cosmetic purposes.

drag racers havent placed too much input into the thread but that is because if you are truly going fast all you need is a rear chute!

[wagalude]

Figured I would chime in as a CB9 owner.The wagon didn't get rear disc till the 5th gen wagon. My rear disc set up came from a 94 accord and are the same size as the 5th gen wagon disc, the wagom came with a much larger front rotor than the CB7. H23ACCORD is now sporting my fronts I just did a 5 lug conv. and he will attest to the added size and power of the CB9 fronts. before I did my conversion my wagon needed more peddle pressure to stop the disc rear is def. worth it. I have a set or rear drums and a set of rear discs laying around I'll get 'em on a scale and post weight differances.

[ACC0RD22]

Figured I would chime in as a CB9 owner.The wagon didn't get rear disc till the 5th gen wagon. My rear disc set up came from a 94 accord and are the same size as the 5th gen wagon disc, the wagom came with a much larger front rotor than the CB7. H23ACCORD is now sporting my fronts I just did a 5 lug conv. and he will attest to the added size and power of the CB9 fronts. before I did my conversion my wagon needed more peddle pressure to stop the disc rear is def. worth it. I have a set or rear drums and a set of rear discs laying around I'll get 'em on a scale and post weight differances.

so you have front 5 lug and rear 4 lug? . . . interesting

[owequitit]

I actually have already weighed the rear drum vs rear disk setup. The drums are 3 lbs lighter per side for a total savings of 6 lbs. Granted, it is "unsprung weight" and every little bit helps, but it isn't that much. You would save more mass by keeping a light set of 15s with a sticky racing tire, than 16s or 17s.

Also, on a side note and just a thought, rear drums don't hold up as well on a longer track with a lot of turns. Or down a mountain. They just don't dissipate heat as well, but they aren't functionally obsolete either. They get the job done and there are some instances where they are even preferrable.

[H23Accord]

As wagalude said above, I recently have changed over the wagon rotors in the front. There is a noticeable difference in size as well as weight. I can feel the weight difference of the stock vs. wagon conversion. I am using oem pads and rotors all the way around and the pads in front are brand new and need to be broken in. Once i break them in I will tell you my thoughts on the wagon "bbk".
I can tell you that I thought that the caliper was different between the cb7 and cb9 from a size standpoint. Ends up that the caliper was the same, but the part that holds the pad is larger for the cb9. So we just moved that over with the calipers that were already on my car and everything worked out fine.

[wagalude]

I don't have 5 lug front and 4 lug rear I'm 5 lug all the way around

[owequitit]

Originally Posted by SteveB How heavy are discs on 777's?

do you mean planes? . . . planes are in the air most of the time and use air resistance to slow them down mostly. the brakes only kick in to slow to a complete stop

Actually, the brakes on an airplane are used very heavily. Even with tons (literally) of aerodynamic drag, 390,000 lbs travelling at almost 200 MPH isn't going to slow down very fast without the aid of brakes. They use reverse thrust AND brakes on a normal landing to help get speeds down to around 80 knots or roughly 100 MPH, but after that it is all disc brakes. The brakes still do about 80% of the stopping, but it eases wear and tear on them. Keep in mind that all of the discs are carbon which saved about 200lbs per disc, but they have something like 60 or 70 discs for a total weight of probably 12-13,000 lbs.

Also, on a maximum effort stop (an aborted takeoff at decision speed) the plane will stop at max weight of almost 800,000lbs in around 3,500 feet using nothing but the brakes, blowing all 12 main gear tires in the process.

Just a separate rant, but I too am a fan of all disks.

[JDMcb7]

THE main problem with drums is UNEVEN brake pressure and the fact that wheel cylinders suck, blow out frequently under hard braking and will cause it to grab.........they're just older designs, inferior because brakes have evolved to doing the stopping AND staying cooler, being more consistent, more controlled......

If drums are properly serviced and maintained they will not cause uneven braking. I have also never heard of or experienced wheel cylinders blowing out and I do some really heavy braking.

[H23Accord]

I will tell you what else I notice. If i am parked on a hill, with disc brakes i seem to have to put the car in gear while when I had drums I didn't have to do it. I pull the parking break the same amount with both situations and seem to get better results on parking on a hill with the drums. Otherwise, the disc have been far superior from a braking standpoint.

[gloryaccordy]

If you wanna stop harder get a big brake kit for the front. Yo, the first time I changed my pads I was like MY LIFE DEPENDS ON THIS? The front pads probably have as much area as like 8 bicycle brake pads, and to say the rotors are rinky dinky would be an understatement. Plus there's only ONE PISTON!!! WTF? So if you're really doing anything where you're stopping from high speeds a lot (or your car is making a lot more power than stock) you REALLY NEED a front BBK upgrade. Like, your life depends on it. I think a lot of people here with 200+HP Accords are still running on our stock potato chip/bike caliper brakes...safety first people...

[aero]

After changing the rear brake shoes.. I am very happy to not have to do it again for quite a while. That was a PAIN in the arse, I would rather replace an axle.

[wed3k]

all i want to do is yank the e-brake and lock em up around a corner....

[DeathFromAbove]

don't be knocking on bicycle brakes! i got 6 piston hydro discs on my downhill bike. they are titanium coated too! they'll eat car brakes...proportionally that is.