secretive that Moto-Master
wouldn’t allow MXA to shoot
photos of how it’s done; however, we do know that the rotors
undergo a double-sided precision
grind. That’s important, because
if you grind on one side and flip
the rotor over, the accuracy in
parallelism is wrong. Moto-Master
grinds its rotors from the top and
the bottom at the same time and
works with very tight tolerances.
The deviation in parallelism is
within one-fifth of the thickness
of a human hair. The rotors are
very flat, which prevents any
form of vibration or chatter when
braking on a motorcycle.
THE INNER CARRIER:
Despite the intricate processes
needed to manufacture the outer
ring, this is really just the beginning of making a Moto-Master
Flame brake rotor kit. Next comes
production of the inner carrier.
Made out of aircraft-quality 7075-
T6 aluminum, the inner carrier
begins life looking like a round
saucer. It isn’t until an automated
CNC robot loads the aluminum
disc into the mill that the inner
carrier takes shape. A mill cuts
the carrier into a specific design
created by Moto-Master’s engineers. The robot automatically
loads the material and can work
non-stop for 24 hours a day,
seven days a week. Automation
is critical for ensuring maximum
efficiency. If something should
go wrong with the robot in the
middle of the night, the staff is
alerted via a text message. The
CNC milling machine and robot
loader cost in the neighborhood
of $500,000.
MAKING THE HANGER:
The front-brake-caliper hanger
is made from a bar of 7075-T6
aluminum. A software program
cuts the basic outlines. Six hangers are formed out of each piece
of aluminum bar. The mounting
holes are bored out and tapped.
Finally, the caliper hangers are
cut out individually. The gray
fluid seen on the aluminum bar is
the cutting fluid, which is a combination of oil and water. Cutting
fluid is sprayed onto the material
and cutting tip to lubricate the
interface between the tool’s cutting edge and the aluminum. This
lessens friction, maximizes the life
of the cutting tip and prevents
deformation caused by excessive
heat.