Sliding-caliper Brake

Function

With the sliding-caliper brake the inner brake pad is pressed against the brake disc by the piston directly, the outer brake pad via the moving guide pins. This way it is not necessary to have the brake fluid pass by the eventually hot brake disc to reach the piston on the other side. Steam bubble formation is avoided.
The sliding-caliper brake has a number of advantages; Its weight is relatively low, there is more space to put a fancy wheel design, the costs are lower, and exchanging the brake pads is easier.

How it works

The picture above shows the brake pliers with its brake pads. The brake disc has been removed. The brake pliers are being held by two guide pins with special rubber seals. Depending on the construction it might be enough to disassemble one pin for exchanging the brake pads. The pins are assembled with screws. The way how the sliding-caliper brake works is very similar to the way how the floating frame brake works. The difference is that the latter slides on the calliper bracket.