semi metallic clutch pucks

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metalliatic

New Member
Mar 14, 2010
96
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Louisville Ky
I made some clutch pucks using an old set of brake pads off a car. I cut up the brake pad material and grinded them to fit in the clutch ring holes. they work great. no more slipping when i shift gears with my jack shaft kit. and it grabs great. pulls out of low speeds and up hills better then ever. no over power problems. if you try to make some your self make sure and use a brand new brake pad. I used a used pad and even though it looked to be in really good shape it had worn to a diffrent thickness on the inside. so some of the pucks I made where thinner then others. if you use a new pad they will all be the same. I made about 18 pucks with alittle over half a brake pad. the one i used came off a 2003 pontiac grand prix (regular size pad not real big, not real small). Im sure any pad will work. I work at a salvage yard so I just grabed a used set to see if it would even work. when I make another set I will buy the cheapest set of pads autozone of advance or who ever has in stock. I would add some pics but it says they are too big and I dont know how to resize
 

wildemere

New Member
Feb 12, 2008
269
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Newcastle
Thats a great idea.

Better to harden the driven disc (its only mild steel) or it with become the sacrificial piece in the friction setup.

Heat it to cherry red and quench it in used motor oil (for extra carbon) a few times.

Then increase spring pressure.

Or just keep using organic material with mild steel.
 

happycheapskate

New Member
Nov 26, 2009
1,989
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Rockwall TX
Thats pretty cool idea. How did you keep them in there. Did you glue them? Or do they just pop in place?

Maybe instead of buying the new part, you could make "pucks" out of rubber diesel mud flap material. That ought to grab pretty hard.
 

wildemere

New Member
Feb 12, 2008
269
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Newcastle
"Thats pretty cool idea. How did you keep them in there. Did you glue them? Or do they just pop in place?

Maybe instead of buying the new part, you could make "pucks" out of rubber diesel mud flap material. That ought to grab pretty hard."

Add some holes to the cover to let the smoke out and do some clutch burnouts.

Even better when soaked in diesel.
 
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metalliatic

New Member
Mar 14, 2010
96
0
0
Louisville Ky
Thats pretty cool idea. How did you keep them in there. Did you glue them? Or do they just pop in place?

Maybe instead of buying the new part, you could make "pucks" out of rubber diesel mud flap material. That ought to grab pretty hard.
they dont "stick" they just set there loose just like the rubber ones. the pressure plate keeps them in place. they have to be able to slide. the presure plate pushes them up to the backing plate and thats what makes it spine.
 

meowy84

Member
Jul 18, 2009
239
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16
Canada
Super idea! What did you use to cut the brake pad with BTW?

Just make sure you use asbestos free pads too. *chuckle*
 
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happycheapskate

New Member
Nov 26, 2009
1,989
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Rockwall TX
I looked in there to grease the gears when I built the bike. The rubber pads appeared to be adhered to the clutch pad rotor somehow. It would seem foolish to not have them attached to that, as when releasing the clutch, a pad could come loose and lodge somewhere it shouldn't be.

I am sure they will make much more debris if used as a conventional clutch, to slip it when taking off from a stop, or riding a lot/idling with the clutch disengaged. I hope to make mine last longer by pedaling to take off and engaging only at a speed that it will slip the least and engage the quickest.

Also, the rubber dust/shavings should pose less risk to damaging the gears or bearings when contaminating the grease compared to the harder brake shoe pieces suggested in post #1.
 

metalliatic

New Member
Mar 14, 2010
96
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0
Louisville Ky
been riding my bike alot and the clutch works great. no complaints. puts out less dust the then rubber ones, because they wear less. the harder matterial takes a beating alot better. love it!
 

Ditchrider

New Member
Jun 25, 2011
42
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0
California
Thanks for posting on this and bringing back to the top Pilotgeek, I lost one of the pads on my riding lawn mower brake. Now I'm thinking maybe the disk brake off the lawn mower might be just the thing for my front wheel. One of the other guys used a skill saw blade for a disk brake, thats a good idea but I'm not sure about how to connect it to the hub, the store bought hubs have those 5 little mounting ears.
 

Pilotgeek

New Member
Apr 6, 2011
403
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Green Bay, WI
They're floating pucks. They are held in place laterally by the holes they sit in, and the 2 pressure plates hold them in their place. When the clutch is disengaged, there's only a millimeter or two that the pucks can possibly wiggle around in, and when the plates engage, they press together, grabbing the pucks. Since they cannot move from within their holes, the entire assembly is forced to rotate as one.

An example of another thing that uses this design is the old-school Traxxas RC car slipper clutch.


The red circles are the clutch pucks, and they can easily be pushed through the holes in the gear. However, the plates to the left and right of the gear sit on both sides of the shaft and press against the pucks, holding them in place. By varying the tension, you can adjust how much the clutch slips.
 

Drewd

New Member
Jul 25, 2008
425
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Colorado
My factory clutch pads lasted only 2 years on one of my bikes even though my clutch is always engaged-I have a centrifugal clutch. I now have semi-metallic pads on my clutch and hopefully it'll outlast the engine.
 

happycheapskate

New Member
Nov 26, 2009
1,989
3
0
Rockwall TX
Maybe the rubber degraded, or maybe the clutch actually slips some when you take off or hit bumps.

If you use harder pads, will they slip more on the brass plate? Will the brass plate wear out a lot faster?

What is that cartoon guy from? I think I have seen it somewhere on internet joke pages.