Blog: Lightweight Drag Brakes: Lose the weight without sacrificing stopping power Drag Racing brakes over the years have evolved to adapt to the vehicles they are installed on to accomplish two specific things. Reduce rotating and unsprung weight (aka be a lightweight racing brake option), and effectively stop your vehicle at extreme speeds.   Lets take a step back and talk about the differences in drag brakes and normal brake components on a form of vehicle such as an SCCA, late model, or other circle track brakes which see repetitive use.  Rotor Design:  The main differen ..read more

Manual Brakes - Pedal Box & Balance Bar Assembly / Tandem Master Cylinder & Adjustable Proportioning Valve We build brakes for race cars; not that some don’t see street use, some are even used predominantly on the street, but at our core, we are a racing brake company. Race cars have manual brakes. The reason is simple, the purpose of a race car is to go as fast as possible as simply as possible. All sorts of complexity has come into racing over the years: EFI, multi-adjustable shocks, traction control, bumpstops, etc. The one thing all of these technologies offer is better perfor ..read more

The world does not need another article on brake pedal ratio, there are plenty out there that are good and accurate, but this one in particular walks the reader through the measurement and modification of the pedal assembly to correct a “non-ideal” pedal ratio. Special thanks to our friends at NAPA. http://knowhow.napaonline.com/how-to-measure-brake-pedal-ratio ..read more

We see a lot of confusion about master cylinder sizing and how it impacts pedal feel and clamping force. In EVERY and All CASES, changing to a SMALLER master cylinder bore size will INCREASE LINE PRESSURE at the expense of LONGER PEDAL TRAVEL. The opposite is also true, a LARGER master cylinder bore size will give a FIRMER pedal at the expense of LOWER LINE PRESSURE. Higher line pressure = higher clamping force. For more information on choosing the correct master cylinder, make sure to figure out your pedal ratio, then email us at info@tbmbrakes.com ..read more

Ultimately all brake systems rely on pressure to activate the calipers.  There are lots of articles on pedal ratio and master cylinder sizing, all of which are important.  However, the pedal ratio and master cylinder arrangement only serve to create the line pressure that the calipers use to clamp the discs, and what is appropriate for a 300 pound monster in the seat may be largely different than the requirements of a 100 pound driver.  The great equalizer is line pressure, all drivers, regardless of size will need the same brake line pressure to stop the car effectively. If eve ..read more

Virtually all aftermarket calipers are made 1 of 2 ways: either 2 aluminum halves are bolted together, or the entire caliper is formed from one piece of aluminum, known as “Monoblock” construction. Aluminum does lots of things really well; working at elevated temperatures is not one of them. Typical aluminum alloys lose about 30% of their strength by 300°F. Some aluminum grades are better (i.e. 2618), but the trend is the same for all of them. That is important because the pistons in the calipers are held in place with o-rings. These o-rings have different cross-sections and levels of hardness ..read more

Did you know that TBM Brakes is the system of choice to stop virtually every monster truck? A modern monster truck is 10.5 feet tall, has 1500 horsepower and weighs 12,000 pounds.  What makes the application even more difficult is that there is only room on the truck for two 12.19” rotors!  All 12,000 pounds is stopped by a pair of rotors no bigger than you would find on the back of your average minivan! An application this difficult required TBM to go back to the basics, engineering a system that would reliably stop the trucks while maximizing safety for the fans in the stands.  ..read more

Brake Piston Count Does Not Matter! You may hear that having a higher piston count means better stopping power, or you may have seen calipers on the market with 6 or more pistons. Do not fall for the hype. It's just a gimmick some brake companies are hoping you'll fall for so you spend more money. Brake piston count doesn't matter! A 4-piston brake caliper typically performs as well or better than a 6 or more piston brake caliper. The Reason Brake companies are trying to sell you on 'upgrading' to expensive 6 or more piston brake calipers, yet properly designed 4-piston calipers deliver the be ..read more

Drag Race Brake Tips - TBM drag brakes, and lightweight brakes in general, come with several benefits: lighter weight, significantly less rotating weight and, in the case of TBM brakes, lower drag and higher clamping force. All of these are great advantages, however the lack of brake system mass also requires some attention on the driver’s part. Lightweight brakes must be used in a particular manner to get maximum life and maintain the highest margin of safety. The method is simple: you should either be on the brakes firmly or off them completely. Again, be on the brakes firmly or off of them ..read more

6 Ways TBM Calipers are better than what you are currently running - Best Racing Calipers Looking for the best racing calipers you can find? Look no further! TBM Brakes manufactures long lasting, high quality brake calipers for an extensive range of racing applications. 1. Longer Pad Life If your pads wear tapered, there are several bad things happening, the least of which being replacing pads more often than you should. TBM’s stiffer design and tighter piston fits prevent the flexing, wedging, and cocking that causes taper. Brake pads cost $100-200 a set or more, that’s money you don’t need t ..read more