Do holes in discs help?
TOP Well, it depends what you mean by help. Holes in the blade of a disc (the part that the brake pad sweeps over as it is in motion) will save a bit of weight but contrary to public opinion, they do not help to cool a braking system. Notice on MotoGP motorcycles and most race cars, there are no holes on the rotors. There are actually situations where holes can be detrimental to your braking. In muddy conditions, dirt gets trapped in these holes and proceeds to chew up pads that, in turn will chew up rotors because of the constant uneven abrasion between the pads (which have the dirt imbedded in their surface) and the rotors, which get gouged to heck by that dirt. If youll notice, if there are holes in a Galfer rotor, they are never round. They are usually oval, teardrop or cylindrical in shape so that foreign debris is directed away from the rotor via centrifugal force.
