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| Gathering Opinions on 2.5" Eldorado Parkbrake Caliper [message #81358 is a reply to message #81293] |
Wed, 21 April 2010 17:05  |
78 Barbi
Messages: 80
Registered: August 2004
Location: Tiverton, Ontario , Canad...
Karma: -1
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Gathering Opinions on 2.5" dia. Eldorado parkbrake Caliper
Many times at rallys over the last 5 years or so I have asked folks what their opinion was regarding the
performance of the large Eldorado caliper. Got many opinions and tried to form some sort of arguement
as to their pros and cons. Well, I'm still looking for people that have had sucess stories about said
caliper. Admittedly if you look at great number of brake upgrade sites you will find the Eldorado caliper
almost exclusively used.
When time permitted I have long planned to build a test bed to test calipers with regards to their park
brake capabilities . I have only had one instance where a chap at a rally proclaimed he had a parkbrake
that he was completely satisfied with. However when I went to his coach to put the tensiometers on his
cables and have him apply the parkbrake under engine load ; he remembered that he had taken the
Eldorado calipers off a couple of weeks before, Good old Bobby Moore , May He Rest in Peace ! , We'll
probably all get that forgetful eventually.
The Eldorado caliper auto adjusts via spring loaded assembly that essentially acts as a ratchet and
adjusts when pad wear dictates, this adjustment only happens when the parkbrake (PB) lever is
actuated and all 9 of the internal adjuster components are performing properly. The Eldorado PB
caliper is a lead screw type caliper and thus its mechanical advantage is a fixed linear relationship
at about 14 to 1. The analytical data that I have collected thus far can be viewed on our photo album at :
www.gmcmhphotos.com/photos/showphoto.php?photo=33235&title=parkbrake-caliper-testing&cat=5445
One thing that shines about the Eldorado PB caliper is that it's one of the easiest calipers in existance to
mount and in theory at least , is large enough mechanical force to be used on the GMC , even if a foot
long piece of pipe has to be used on the handle to actuate it. I would like to find , develop , steal , etc. a
PB caliper that would be reliable, robust, sealed as best as possible from the elements and above all that
could be used as an emergency brake. The emergency brake aspect has always been a priority but one
can only accomplish so much braking of any sort with 2 tires, wheels, rotors and calipers. In an emergency
situation one would almost certainly ruin the rotors by warping them. There's only so much heat that 45
pounds of steel can absorb before it changes shape but the cost of a couple of rotors would be cheap if
they performed as required.
Any input that anyone has pro or con would be greatly appreciated and I have more information on our
project as time goes on. By the fall rally I would like to have a prototype PB caliper on 3 separate coaches
to try and assess design flaws, performance, ease of use, and the compatibality with the new reaction rod
system. Thanking you in advance for any info you can lend to " THE CAUSE " and feel free to email me
with any thoughts you might have.
Albert Branscombe
Tiverton, ON
78 - 23 foot Birchaven
branscoa@bmts.com
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