Asura

JP, have you already tried ducting before you decide to cut them off?

reverendsgarage.net has a great 'how-to' on this topic.

IMO, the extra heat to the bushings in that section will cause them to age prematurely. Long-term wear and tear would be higher. The propeller chopping, as Richard has described, might lessen this. Either way, there would be more radiant heat present with any sort of cutting.

Ludedude

Nope, haven't tried ducting yet. I've been toying with the idea of getting the C&T ducts though and those would require me to cut off the shields anyway.

My reading led me to believe two things:
1) Radiational cooling is very much inhibited by the presence of the dust shields and that's maybe why the inside pads seem to get chewed up first.

2) The only instance of damage to the suspension components I noted was that of davepk since he's running much larger calipers and thicker rotors causing the space between those and the suspension bushings to be much reduced.

Am I totally off base here?

Asura

I don't think C&T are the only choice available to you. You can rig home brewed ducting yourself without modifying the dust shields. The dust shields, IMO, are not completely useless as they create pressure between the shield and the inside of the rotor. The stock dust shield has three slits through which air passes to the rotor. Increasing airflow through these slits via ducting, will optimize the role of the dust shields by providing more concentrated and directed airflow. Especially when the air is routed from the front bumper where the air pressure is relatively high.

Davepk is a special case. He sees higher top speeds in straightaways due to extra power and traction. When he brakes, he has more speed to scrub off. This kinetic energy has to be accounted for somehow. He therefore has more heat to dissipate. I believe (please correct me if I am wrong Dave) Dave upgraded from his 'former' brake kit due, in part, to these issues.

Another reason for the inside pads getting chewed is due to honda giving us single piston calipers. I bet the effect of uneven pad wear would be mitigated by a 2 or 4 piston caliper.

vapors2k

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Asura
I don't think C&T are the only choice available to you.

krazik

[QUOTE]Originally posted by vapors2k

silvershadow

Krazik and Vapors - would be interested to see some pics of each approach.

vapors2k

if rylan has got a way to get air aimed properly right at the eye of the rotor, props to him as it's not an easy task. I must say I haven't seen anyone else with a kit or DIY kit that accomplishes this. to Rylan for doing it properly. I'll retract my statement as C&T being the only kit to get, that's if ry decides to market his kit.

krazik

Just wire ties.

You tie the end of the tube the the ABS encoder.

If I have a camera handy next time I have my wheels off I'll snap a pic.

vapors2k

Strike

Here's a picture of the C&T backing plate. Note the hole, which is aimed directly into the center of the rotor allowing for even distribution of the air to the whole rotor.

http://gallery.s2ki.com/imagecatalog/custo...image/list/267/