TECH TALK

Air Disc Brakes Are Not One-Size-Fits-All

How is it one fleet will swear by air disc brakes, while another one will say they get longer life and less maintenance from drum brakes? Both are right. The truth is, when it comes to air disc brakes, one size does not fit all applications.

There is a big difference between a long haul tractor-trailer that gets up to 900,000 miles per brake change, and a cement mixer/hauler that gets 50,000 miles per brake job.

Unfortunately, when distributors sell brake pads they often only look at the D-number and don’t ask about the application and friction grade. Just like drum brakes, disc brake frictions should be dictated by application (23k, 23k low noise, 26k, 29k).

To make matters worse, in their quest to make lighter weight calipers, manufacturers are making pads smaller. That means the pads have to handle more heat.

So, when you are specing your brake pads, make sure you have a distributor who has multiple grades of friction.