floater

Words on Floater Rear end Suspensions:

As the world of technology grows, so does racings technologys. As Racing progressed and became more advanced in suspension technology. New suspension types emerged. Leading the pack until a few years ago was the Leaf Spring suspension, Then came the Z link suspension and 3 link suspension, finally the 4 link suspension setup. As the suspensions improved so did braking, one of the newest revolutions in racing came when the floater suspension emerged.

Definition of the Brake Floater is as follows, A brake floater is a device which loads the brake forces into the front triangle (Chassis) of a forward mounted 4 link suspension which under braking and doesn’t cause the suspension to move up or down.

When using a 4 link suspension and no brake floater is used, the suspension depending upon where you mount your brake calipers will do the following.

Brake caliper mounted to the forward facing side of the axle will pull the suspension down when braking. This is known as brake Jack.

Brake caliper mounted to the rearward facing side of the axle will lift the suspension when the brake is applied, this is known as squat.

Not using a brake floater on a 4 link suspension can also cause binding of the suspension in the rear end, The links when the suspension moves have no room to pivot to hold proper alignment of the driveshaft.

Gains in using a Brake floater have been adapted into all types of suspensions. Freedom from binding and limited suspension travel are solved by using a floater system.

The system consists of a sleeve that mounts over the axle tube that is allowed to rotate freely while holding lateral positon. The brake caliper and suspension arms, bars, and or leaf springs are mounted to this rotating sleeve which is allowed to vertically roll up or down as the suspension moves..

When using the brake floater, a way to assure proper pinion angle of the driveshat is needed when using this type of suspension, this is usually a monty bar or also called a pull bar.