MTFCA Forum

I need to buy some Kevlar bands. Are they all the same or are some better than others?

Kevlar is a specific product. There could be differences in the actual construction of the bands. My car has Kevlar bands, and they work very well and have not required adjustment after many miles over several years. I don't know who supplied them.

Kevlar is a brand name for the material the bands are made from. As you say, different companies weave the bands, which means the are likely variations in the final product. I am just wondering if there is a meaningful difference between the available bands. I have Kevlar bands in my 22 but I don’t know where they came from.

Short answer No. Various issues in the past with different manufacturers of bands. Now its up to which supplier provided good ones this year.
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They are all yellow, as the manufacturing process leaves them that color.

To quote Will Rogers, who once said he never met a man he didn't like, I never found a Kevlar band that did not work fine and last a long time.

The real secret of success is to keep your feet off all the pedals and avoid any overheat problem.

When Kevlar bands were first being used for model Ts, there were a few tries made at getting a balance between a cushioning effect and harsh realities. Some of the earlier efforts were too harsh. However, I "think" most of those issues got worked out some time ago. There was also a change in manufacturer a few years ago, I haven't tried any new ones since, but haven't heard anything bad about them since.

As far as the cracking of drums goes, I have always suspected that a lot of the problems were due to heavy-footed use of the bands. I knew several people that often said they had Kevlar bands and they were gonna use 'em HARD! They were usually the ones that later broke drums.
Personally, I like good cotton bands, and got a lot of miles out of them. However, since good reliable cotton linings are tough to get, I have used Kevlar in a few different Ts. I drive with Kevlar just like I did with cotton. Sometimes, in a few different Ts, I have used Kevlar on the brake, and cotton for low and reverse. Anymore, I am not sure what is in there. But I drive them all as if they were cotton.

Th first ones I used were supplied by the Custom Friction Company. These were not woven bands. Rather the kevlar was included in a lining material bonded to a fabric backing. They were difficult to rivet in place because the head of the rivets had to be countersunk into the wear surface, without getting into the backing material. These disappeared from the market when they went to a synthetic backing material which collapsed under the heat generated in operation.
The first woven ones, and probably the best I have used, were from Steve Connif.
Since then, I have used Wearever brand as sold by the vendors. I have seen some which appear a little thinner, and I avoid these.
FWIW Allan from down under.