Friction disk shock absorber

Friction disk shock absorbers or André Hartford dampers were an early form of shock absorber or damper used for car suspension. They were commonly used in the 1930s but were considered obsolete post-war.

The friction disk pattern was invented by Truffault, before 1900. These used oiled leather friction surfaces between bronze disks compressed by adjustable conical springs, with the disk pack floating between arms to both chassis and axle, in the distinctive style. From 1904 these were licensed to several makers including Mors, who had first applied shock absorbers to cars, and Hartford in the US. Similar dampers were also applied as steering dampers from this early date.

The dampers rely, as their name suggests, on the friction within a stack of disks, clamped tightly together with a spring and clamp bolt.

The friction disk material was usually a wooden disk between the two faces of the steel arms. As for the development of the clutch and brake shoes, the development of these friction materials was in its infancy. Treated leather had been used for clutches and although it offered good friction behaviour, it was prone to stiction when first moving off and also failed when overheated. Asbestos-based friction materials were sometimes used for racing, in an attempt to keep dampers working correctly even when overheating.

The damping force of a friction shock absorber is adjusted with the central pivot and clamping bolt. A star-shaped spring applies a force to the stack of disks. The damping force is roughly proportional to this force and the clamping nut is provided with a pointer arm to indicate the approximate setting.

André Hartford dampers were made in four sizes, according to vehicle weight and intended use. These were the combination of two disk diameters: 3¼" & 4½" and as either single or multiplate designs. Single dampers had two friction surfaces: a single arm on one side was nested between two arms connected to the other. Multiplate dampers had two and three arms on each side.

Dampers were mounted to the chassis and axle through Silentbloc bushes at each end. Silentbloc bushes were another development of the early 1930s, a vulcanised rubber bush bonded into a steel tube. These provided the stiff location that accurate suspension required, but reduced vibration and road noise, compared to earlier cars. Many cars used a different design for front and rear, where the rear arms were rigidly bolted to the chassis, rather than with a swivelling bush.

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Wikipedia