heavy85 Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 I need to buy rotors to fit the front Outlaw calipers and JSK hats I just ordered. There's a large variety of options (12.19x1.25) from Wilwood, Coleman, probably others. Std, heavy duty, light duty, straight, curved, etc, etc. Anywhere from $48 to several hundred $. I'm not running cooling ducts since this is still street driven but it will spend time on track so they need to hold up without fade. Any recommendations where to start here? I'm thinking with 2300 lb weight the lighter duty curved rotors may be the way to go but looking for some others experience here to lean one. Thank Cameron Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heavy85 Posted February 19, 2009 Author Share Posted February 19, 2009 Bump - nobody?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doublexl240z Posted February 20, 2009 Share Posted February 20, 2009 The light weights should work fine. Call Wilwood and ask for Mike. He has owned like 18 Zs and knows them well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1 Posted February 20, 2009 Share Posted February 20, 2009 I use the Wilwood GT48 series. They cost more but last longer with track pads. Track pads can eat up the softer rotors pretty quick. I don't have any cooling ducts, and don't have any fading problems using the 12.2x1.25 GT48's, PF01 pads, and valvoline synthetic fluid. jt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnc Posted February 20, 2009 Share Posted February 20, 2009 Curved vane pumps more air through the rotor. Other then that, more money will generally buy you a longer lasting rotor. Cryo treatment will also extend the life of the rotor. I've always had good luck with Coleman products. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heavy85 Posted February 21, 2009 Author Share Posted February 21, 2009 I was thinking the heavier duty rotors would be more heat tolerance and less likely to fade. Therefore I was looking at this from a performance perspective trying to trade off weight, cost, and fade - life being far down on the list. Since most of my use is autocross with the occasional high speed autocross (<15 laps total between three practices and 4-6 times runs) and possibly an open track or two at the most the lighter weight duty rotors may be the ticket. If the lighter duty rotors dont last as long but perform just as well then that makes it a little easier. I'm going to run Hawk HP+ since I still drive to the track so they are not true track pads. Also have been a bit gun shy because both Wilwood and Coleman rate their lighter duty rotor as dirt, rear axle, etc only. Anyway from everyone's input I'm now leaning toward 160-5845 & 160-5846 Ultra-Light ULHP- 32 from Wilwood or possibly similar 'custom' Coleman lightweight directional rotors. The Wilwoods are a bit cheaper and I have no idea the weight of the Colemans. Cameron Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Savage42 Posted February 21, 2009 Share Posted February 21, 2009 I was going to go with the lightweight rotors, but after talking to Wilwood, I ended up with the slotted GT rotors with my car having an LS6 and also being a 280. With the ease of changing pads, a track day is better suited to actual track pads in most cases. I've had great luck with Porterfields R4S pads on street & track use and with so much brake and a fairly lightweight car (compared to most). Of course, race tires will increase the loads on the brakes, too. Good pads will be a key component, for sure! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnc Posted February 21, 2009 Share Posted February 21, 2009 Since you're not planning on running air to the front rotors, I would stay away from lightweight rotors. A standard Coleman or Wilwood curved vane rotor will work fine. Try to keep the thickness down. I ran .81" thick 11" curved vane vented rotors on the front of the ROD and never had a braking issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thehelix112 Posted March 25, 2009 Share Posted March 25, 2009 Hey guys, I was wondering, does anyone have any information as to what designates a rotor light duty of heavy duty? Is it just a function of the thickness of the material? Hence, is a light duty rotor going to offer any significant weight savings over a heavy duty one? Thanks, Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1 Posted March 25, 2009 Share Posted March 25, 2009 My experience with the Wilwoods is that the heavy duty rotors are made of a better grade iron. They don't heat crack as bad, and they last a lot longer than the standard rotors. The weight of the rotors themselves are nearly identical. jt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thehelix112 Posted March 25, 2009 Share Posted March 25, 2009 Cool. Thanks jt. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMortensen Posted March 25, 2009 Share Posted March 25, 2009 The Wilwood lightweight rotors have 32 vanes, the standards have 48 vanes. I'm not sure about material differences in the iron, but I seem to recall that the 48 vane rotors was a couple lbs heavier than the lightweights, which I want to say weigh 12 lbs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMortensen Posted March 25, 2009 Share Posted March 25, 2009 http://www.wilwood.com/Products/002-Rotors/004-ULDV/index.asp 10.5 lbs for 8 on 7" 12.2 x 1.25 rotors http://www.wilwood.com/Products/002-Rotors/003-HD/index.asp 12.7 lbs for 8 on 7" 12.2 x 1.25 rotors Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1 Posted March 25, 2009 Share Posted March 25, 2009 Jon is correct. I was mistakenly thinking of the HD vs. GT rotors, which are generally the same weight. jt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heavy85 Posted March 25, 2009 Author Share Posted March 25, 2009 Ended up buying the lightweight Wilwoods due to the lighter weight but upgraded to the more expensive ULHP- 32 which are finish ground. I speculate this is why AZ gives the BS line that they have to be turned after installed because they use the cheaper rough machined version. They arrived today so we'll see how they last. I ordered from Summit but they were back-ordered and ended up delaying delivery date so I canceled and ordered from Revolution Brake. They were great to deal with and kept on top of getting Wilwood to ship them so I can make a race this weekend. Nobody ever answered the phone at Wilwood to order direct. I just checked and got notice from Summit that they shipped today despite canceling the order .... sigh. All this sweating weight just to find out the 240sx rears add 8 lb a piece over stock ... double sigh. I'm not real impressed with the 240sx set-up but haven't run them yet. Only reason I went here is for the e-brake function which I now dont even have the flocking bracket for - anyone have a drivers side e-brake bracket? Cameron Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnc Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 I just checked and got notice from Summit that they shipped today despite canceling the order .... sigh. Spares! You are planning on keeping an extra set of pads and rotors in your spares box right? Also keep brake fluid, bleeder bottles, bleeding wrenches, bleeder screws, and two complete caliper rebuild and pad hardware sets for each type of caliper you have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustinOlson Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 Are you running these brakes under your 15X10 steel wheels? How is the fit? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thehelix112 Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 Cam, Sorry to hear about the woes. Have you considered going Outlaws on the rear? I was planning on Outlaws all round from the member scca (http://www.outlawbrakes.com), until a good deal on wilwood front calipers popped up. I've got the old Integra 4 calipers on JSK hats, and I'd previously bought JSK hats for the rear. So now I need to work out what wilwood calipers to get for the rear, what rotors, and put it all together. It would seem that almost any decent upgrade is going to weigh more on the rear that alu drums? I'm not sure what bracket you need? The stock one that has two small bolts at the lower rear of the strut assembly? Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heavy85 Posted March 27, 2009 Author Share Posted March 27, 2009 Are you running these brakes under your 15X10 steel wheels? How is the fit? Doh .... 15x10 Diamonds fit fine but the 15x8 street rims dont. Guess I wont make the first race this weekend. Dammit Dammit Sunnovabiatch. I'm not sure what bracket you need? I need the left 240sx e-brake bracket that bolts to the caliper since the caliper did not come with one if anyone has one. Cameron Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustinOlson Posted March 28, 2009 Share Posted March 28, 2009 Which Outlaw calipers did you go with? Bummer about the street wheels Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.