Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/128376
MotoGP Tech Update: Them's the Brakes called ceramic matrix composite, or CMC for short. The same technologies are now coming to bikes. Ceramic matrix carbon brake discs are as hard as steel and are much lighter, but most importantly they are less temperature sensitive than the carbon carbon ones - so they work in the wet. Light, effective brakes are the way to go because they allow the suspension to be suppler, and the reduced gyroscopic effect makes the bike easier to turn. For the last 20 years or so, the technology has been a material called carbon carbon, material that came to motorcycles from the aerospace industry. The original versions of the material were a bit grabby and ran at very high temperatures. Over the years, the material has been developed into a smooth and powerful braking system. There are a few of snags, though. For one, they aren't cheap and they need to be replaced every 1500 or so racing miles. The other big thing is that they don't get hot enough to work in wet conditions. But from this year on, MotoGP races will no longer be stopped if it rains. The 1. Valentino Rossi's conventional steel discs. 2. Sete normal response to wet conditions has Gibernau's carbon disc brakes on his Honda RC211 V. been to fit steel discs when the wet tires 3. Yamaha's quick-detach calipers. go on. But if you want to give your rider the option of staying out on track as it his year's MotoGP rules are going to cause a few techgets wet, something new will be needed to replace the pure carbon carbon discs. It's possible to stay out on a wet track nical changes with the races now set to continue on even if it rains. Thus, the current system of changing brake on slicks longer than you might think, but it's not a lot of fun systems as well as wheels and tires may well be gone. if your brakes pack up, too. Ceramic matrix composite discs If you look closely at the front of any current MotoGP are a generation forward from the carbon carbon we have bike, you'll notice the discs are black. It's not some cosbeen used to, and the new material resolves many of the metic thing - it's because they are made of carbon fiber or problems. carbon carbon, to be precise. Over in the car world, some These discs work in the wet and are far more tolerant of top of the road-going sports cars are now being fitted with temperature variations - and some of them are even lighter. carbon brakes, too. All the top Porsche, Ferrari and Conventional steel discs weigh around 1500 grams. Mercedes models are using a new type of carbon disc Carbon carbon ones tip the scale at around 800 grams, and T Hitachi To Back Women's Motocross Association The Women's Motocross Association announced that the Hitachi America Ltd., Digital Media Division, has become its the newest sponsor. "Hitachi America is proud to sponsor the WMA," said Pete Denes, director of sales for Hitachi America, Digital Media Division. "The increasing number of female motocross riders and the demographics represented by the organization gives us an interesting opportunity to promote the Hitachi brand and our line of highperformance projectors in an environment that is increasingly converging both the home and the office. The WMA represents an active audience that employs the kind of multimedia tools that fit with our product profile." 14 Hitachi joins the WMA:s group of sponsors, which include Parts Unlimited's Z IR Helmets, Honda, Kawasaki, Scott USA, Alpinestars, VP Racing, Dunlop, Thor, Sick Racing, Pro Clean, Engine Ice, Mirage Trailers, Ready Filter, Northwest Motorsports and I Precision. Hitachi is an associate sponsor of the AMA/WMA National Motocross Championship, which will commence May 14 at Glen Helen Raceway's "Prequel." Hitachi is also the presenting sponsor of the Z I R Helmets WMA Cup, in Floresville, Texas, in November. Visit the WMA pit area at the WMA Nationals for information on Hitachi Digital Media products. MAY 4,2005 • CYCLE NEWS some of the ceramic matrix composite ones are down to 500 grams - that's a possible 4.4-pound weight saving on the unsprung weight of the front wheel alone. There are several types of carbon ceramic brakes available. German firm SICOM debuted road-going discs at Intermot last year, and now Braketech USA has produced a different version. It's only a matter of time before Brembo and composites specialist SGL get in on the act as well with bike versions of their current car systems. 50 how are carbon-based brakes made? The basic technology used for making carbon carbon discs is called CVI (carbon vapor infiltration). This involves taking a carefully selected group of carbon fibers in the form of a blank and then "cooking" them for between three and six months in a high-temperature oven while a graphite matrix is deposited on them. This creates a hard disc, which can then be machined to shape on a CNC machine. SICOM infiltrates silicones into the carbon blank as the discs are cooked, and the resulting disc works at very high temperatures and uses pads made of the same material in special calipers. Braketech's CMC discs are manufactured slightly differently, as the initial blank is infused with a special ceramic polymer that changes into an extremely hard material in the oven. Once there, they need only need to be cooked in an oven for six weeks rather than three to six months to "resin char," Le. to cook to the point that you have a usable disc. With carbon added to the disc mix to conduct heat away from the point of friction, Braketech uses a special sintered copper pad from Ferodo, and they work normally in the wet. Most importantly, however, is the fact that they are much stronger than the old carbon carbon racing discs so they can be machined down to a similar thickness to normal steel discs - thus they don't need special calipers. And it won't just be the MotoGP stars riding with these systems. Soon enough, they will be available for street use. Although the cost is likely to be prohibitive to the massproduced bikes, it might be a bit different when Ducati gets around to deciding the final spec of the Desmosedici street bike. Neil Spalding Hughes Smokes Glen Helen FourStroke World Championships Ryan Hughes, on the Team ECC Honda CRF4S0R, took top honors in the premier Open Pro race during the Four-Stroke World Championships at Glen Helen Raceway, April 23-24. On Sunday, Hughes won both motos to take the overall, while Honda rider josh Grant went 2-4 for second overall. Another Honda-mounted rider, Turbo Reif, took third after going 5-3 on the day. In Saturday'S 2S0cc F Pro race, things didn't quite go as well for Hughes, though he did win the first mota. In the second mota, Hughes DNFed with mechanical problems, handing the overall win to Grant, who went 2-1. Second in class went to jesse Casillas, followed by joaquim Rodrigues. John Betheo Ryan Hughes dominated the Open Pro class at the World Four-Stroke Championships at Glen Helen. 8 w > w In >- '" ~ :I: a.