Drilled/Slotted Rotors on a Truck?

[MParr]

Take a look at Bendix Fleet Metlock line. These are severe duty brakes. The pads are semi-metallic.
Raybestos and Wagner have similar products.

 

[RDY4WAR]

I actually get to respond to a thread where I get to be an 'exshpert'

YAY!

I worked in brake pad and rotor manufacturing, for a pretty well respected company.

Your past buying habits are pretty much optimal. I shan't go into reasons why, but much smarter people who had worked at said manufacturer for much longer than I had gave me the cliffs notes and told me to "just buy our standard stuff, that fancy stuff is only for the race organizations that we are the official supplier to, and obviously, Porsche. We don't even make that stuff for your truck"

I'll give 'em a plug by saying this - PFC Carbon Metallic pads are fantastic pads.

Pull the rotors off and go see what O'Reillys has to say. Only reason I will go to the big O' is to get rotors turned. They still do it (or at least they do here) and last time I did it, they didn't charge 75% of what a new rotor would cost (like many other places charge)

Also - what the guy above me said....

Thanks for giving insight with experience in this field. Did they ever mention anything about the "fancy stuff" being beneficial for trucks towing heavy loads through the mountains, such as preventing brake fade on long downhill grades? They made a significant difference for me in eliminating the fade I had with factory replacement pads and rotors.

The O'Reilly's here still turns rotors for pretty cheap. My wife works there and does several sets a week. We're in Edgefield, SC.

To add to the brake p0rn, here's the Strange Engineering drag race brakes on the front of my Camaro. The total amount of weight dropped with this setup was -41 lbs compared to stock.

 

[SubieRubyRoo]

Ok - it means I don’t roll with extreme confirmation bias …

Using your own single data point that stands in contrast to dozens or more exactly opposite results from many isn’t “rolling with the extreme confirmation bias”?

Wow. Learn something new every day.

 

[MParr]

https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/threads/drilled-slotted-rotors-with-which-pads.280013/

 

[Nesterenko]

I've got a 2021 GMC Canyon with 50k on it and its time for front brakes...again. There is plenty of life on the pads and rotors but I've warped one or both front rotors. I tend to do this alot with just about any vehicle I drive, I usually never get more than 25k out of brakes and it is normally not due to them wearing out....but warping.

I don't race or drive aggressively, I just commute 100 miles a day and there is often stop and go traffic and sometimes some aggressive stopping when traffic comes to a halt. I guess I just develop hot spots that eventually warp the rotor.

That said....I always buy premium rotors and pads, not the cheapest stuff I can find, usually Raybestos, Centric or OEM and ceramic pads.

I've been thinking about trying PowerStop. They sell a kit that includes drilled/slotted rotors with some brake pads that are designed to help with towing.

I would think the drilled and slotted rotors would help remove heat quicker but I'm not sure how well they will work in the long term, especially on a truck. Occasional light mud, pebbles, and I live in MA so salt and sand in the winter.

What is your opinion on these? Give them a shot? Or not worth the trouble on a truck that sees dirt, salt and sand? Thanks!

I had the drilled and slotted rotors Z-23 kit from Powerstop and they didn't last. I would go for some EBC brakes. I like them so far but a little more $ than Wagner or Raybestos and the like.

 

[Nesterenko]

Thanks for giving insight with experience in this field. Did they ever mention anything about the "fancy stuff" being beneficial for trucks towing heavy loads through the mountains, such as preventing brake fade on long downhill grades? They made a significant difference for me in eliminating the fade I had with factory replacement pads and rotors.

The O'Reilly's here still turns rotors for pretty cheap. My wife works there and does several sets a week. We're in Edgefield, SC.

To add to the brake p0rn, here's the Strange Engineering drag race brakes on the front of my Camaro. The total amount of weight dropped with this setup was -41 lbs compared to stock.

View attachment 236644

That's quite a contrast between the new and old components on that chassis.

 

[Nyati]

No way are those 18" rotors. 20" wheels yes but rotors are not.

Typo? ............... 13", 14" ?

I misspoke off the top of my head. The front Turbo S ceramic brakes are 420mm (about 16.5”) and 10 piston calipers. The photo is of the rear brakes which are “only” 390mm (15.5)”. On the front brakes, there is barely any room between the calipers and the wheel

.

 

[4WD]

Using your own single data point that stands in contrast to dozens or more exactly opposite results from many isn’t “rolling with the extreme confirmation bias”?

Wow. Learn something new every day.

I’m not using a single data point - I shared my experience …
There are still big names in brakes building these products …

 

[4WD]

I had the drilled and slotted rotors Z-23 kit from Powerstop and they didn't last. I would go for some EBC brakes. I like them so far but a little more $ than Wagner or Raybestos and the like.

I put Callahan D&S on a Silverado years ago. Not even a premium brand. First thing I noticed was how much more iron was in the disc compared to the OEM coming off. (thicker flanges to offset the D&S?) ...
They were also my first galvanized - ran those with PS truck/suv pads ...
EBC yellow ate my stock rotors - overshot the mark there ...

 

[D60]

When I've run Callahan stuff before the calipers at least were Powerstop and everything shipped from Powerstop.

I can't recall if the rotors were obviously Powerstop so I can't swear they don't have two grades of rotors, esp drilled and slotted.

Here's another thread I stumbled on (not mine) where he says the only difference may be the pads. This was drilled and slotted:
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1688679-1999-2003-power-stop-and-callahan-brakes-scam.html

IME Callahan has been more difficult to find lately, at least on Amazon. Clicking on kits I've previously purchased simply yields a "no longer available"

 

[AdmiralYoda]

All, thanks again for the helpful input! Some thoughts and answers to your comments:

1. EBC doesn't make any parts for my truck, bummer.
2. I'm not a mechanic, but the son of one. My father owned a shop for 45 years and I worked there quite a bit when I was younger and always do all of my own work. This doesn't make me as ASE certified mechanic, but maybe a bit better than the shade-tree guy I'd like to think the install is done correctly.

Lastly....rotors do warp! Now, it's easier to buy a replacement than it is to turn a rotor on the brake lathe these days....but back in the 90's and early 00's when I worked at my dads shop part time I turned tons of rotors! There were definitely high spots and low spots, not just accumulation of pad deposits. Sometimes it would be crazy how much we'd take off the high spots before true-ing out the whole surface.

This weekend I'm going to take a trip on a long country road and re-bed the pads to see what happens. I'll report back and let you know if I'm back in business or if its time for brakes again!

 

[DuckRyder]

I guess i'll have to go back and tell all those rotors with the high spots that they weren't really warped that's just deposits.

 

[mr_boring]

Thanks for giving insight with experience in this field. Did they ever mention anything about the "fancy stuff" being beneficial for trucks towing heavy loads through the mountains, such as preventing brake fade on long downhill grades? They made a significant difference for me in eliminating the fade I had with factory replacement pads and rotors.

The O'Reilly's here still turns rotors for pretty cheap. My wife works there and does several sets a week. We're in Edgefield, SC.

To add to the brake p0rn, here's the Strange Engineering drag race brakes on the front of my Camaro. The total amount of weight dropped with this setup was -41 lbs compared to stock.

View attachment 236644

No sir, race applications only. We made stuff for heavy machinery and hauling/towing applications as well as for first responder applications. They weren't solid rotors, but they weren't drilled or slotted. Vanes did the cooling.

 

[CarlB]

I guess i'll have to go back and tell all those rotors with the high spots that they weren't really warped that's just deposits.

Uneven wear is observed on the run-out.

 

[sluggo]

I have a 2021 Ram 1500. At 45,000 miles and still on the OEM rotors and pads, I got a braking shimmy that I felt was coming from the rear of the truck. Despite the relatively low mileage, I ordered new rear rotors and pads and installed. Still had the shimmy! So I ordered front rotors and pads and installed. Still shimmying under braking! At this point I figured that I had a bent hub or two. So I used my runout gauge to check. There were no issues with the hubs. In a last ditch effort, I bit the bullet and ordered the PowerStop Z36 upgrade kit for trucks. They have been installed for only a month or two, so I dont have any long term opinions, but the shimmy is definitely gone and the braking is strong and fade free. These rotors are drilled and slotted. We will see how they hold up long term, but in the short term I am very pleased with them. They were not cheap, but I am so happy that the truck doesn't shimmy when braking.

My guess is that the original rotor(s) developed a warp, and the new rotors arrived with a warp or two. The first set of replacement rotors were Raybestos coated.

Good luck with your issues.

 

[mackintire]

For my truck my favorite rotors are the raybestos R-300s. I ve never has one warp, and the wear better than most others. They are slotted and I m convinced that the slots counter-act glazing to some degree. My current brake pads are the powerstop z36s. They wear well, but the initial grab when cold is a bit underwhelming. Once they heat up a little, they are quite impressive. My preferred pad is the hawk LTS pads, they have a great progressive bite and less fade at temps at or over 600. At very high temps the z36 still wins. But the LTS has a nice high temp curve, compared to some lesser pads that give up entirely. I d consider them comparable for consideration as a cleaner less agressive version of the EBC Yellow with proportionally less dust as well. I ve run 14 different pads on the same truck, so I can definitely give you an experienced opinion.
I m going to replace all of my brake hoses with Kevlar braided stainless steel hoses along with a full fluid flush to see if that paired with the z36 brakes feels more progressive. 2018 colorado 4x4. I m an aggressive driver when unloaded, but I also haul stuff and pull a 6k trailer on occasion. So I work my brakes in various conditions. Fyi my last set of z36 pads lasted 28k which is phenomenon considering what I put them through.