Re: [Amc-list] Brake Balance

[David Crooks <david.crooks@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Andrew wrote:
> tires can't brake and steer to the limit at the same time; maximum
> traction is a product of the two.  
>   
Exactly, hence the usual drill taught at race school, only do one thing 
at a time:
Brake,
Turn,
Accelerate

> nb. when you're about to hit something large and immovable, doing a
> 180 first could significantly reduce your injury chances.  
True, but doing a 90 before impact would be worse....

Armand wrote:

> I used to set up the brakes on my Formula Fords using a torque wrench. The
> fronts would lock up with about 5ft lbs. less than the rear. In dry
> conditions that was the preference. In a wet race we used to set the bias
> more toward the rear. The car was more stable that way in the wet.   These
> are the safe methods and worked very well under racing conditions. Ask your
> local road racer.
I like this setup technique, very repeatable!  As someone else commented, 
5 ft lbs is virtually neutral, and of course for the shortest possible 
braking distance neutral is where you want to be.  

Which brings us back to the proportioning valve.  If you change the 
brakes on your car, you can easily upset the front/rear balance.  
Upsetting the balance can mean larger brakes give you longer braking 
distances!  A neutral setup can be had without a proportioning valve,
by playing with piston diameters.  A lot of factory setups are done this
way.  If you don't have the luxury of having multiple pistons to choose
from (who does other than a brake company?) then a proportioning valve
allows you to dial in the adjustment.

Cheers,   Dave




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