Brake Cylinder

A brake cylinder is a cylinder that contains brake fluid which is compressed by a piston and in the process generates the engine's power. It is also known as wheel cylinder or slave cylinder.

Types of Brake/Wheel Cylinder
Besides the standard wheel cylinder there are two other types of wheel cylinders: Stepped wheel cylinder and Single-piston wheel cylinder.

Brake cylinder fitted with push rods which extends from the outer side of each piston through a rubber boot is found in the drum type brakes. Whereas the cylinder is part of the caliper in disc brakes.

Characteristics of Brake Cylinder

• Brake cylinders play an important role in drum brakes. A leaky cylinder can cause the failure of the brake system. It can contaminate the brake lining.
• In wet environments, corrosion can occur in the brake cylinder due to the built up moisture in the brake fluid.

Materials used for making Brake/Wheel Cylinder
High quality materials give a smooth finish. Since a brake cylinder is placed inside a brake drum, the possible damages on them are not easily visible, so it is important that very good quality materials are used for making brake cylinder. Some of the materials used for making brake cylinder are:

• Cast Iron
• Aluminum

Maintenance of Brake Cylinder

• Because the brake cylinder is inside the brake drum it is not easy to know the extent of damage on the cylinder, until and unless there is an apparent leakage, so they should be changed whenever a brake job is being done.
• When replacing a brake cylinder it is better to use wheel cylinders made of the same material as the original.
• After installation of new cylinders, they should be bled to remove air which can cause a soft pedal.