Hi paul,
Some questions on the alloy end plates.
 From earlier posting's there was discussion on using aluminium end plates.
Was there not a wear problem with these and many suggestions to use
ceramic coating.
End plate supplied by Racing Beat, what grade of alloy is used. Are they
cast or machined from plate or billet.
Regards Don

Coatings of almost all kinds are very problematic and that is why I suggest the
detonation gun method. If fires carbide particles at the aluminum at supersonic
speed and they mechanically embed them selves in the aluminum surface.
That is the main reason for the two piece end housings. The wear surface can
be 4130 steel sheet, hardened and ground. Even nitrided for super hard
and super low wear.
I don't know what alloy Jim at RB is using and he won't tell me what kind of
coating he is using.
Paul Lamar

Hi again,

Do you know wether  they are cast or from mill section.
The front plate is 40mm thick or 1,57 " and if we used 5083 H321 which is very hard marine alloy also used for amour plating. We could make these ourselves as the cost of the plate is $50 US per plate plus machining.
Regards Don Dunbar.

The Racing Beat aluminum end housings  are cast. Here is a pic of the cut away casting. 

I am a bit confused Don. Are you going to use the 5083 H321 without
a wear coating? Can you cast 5083 H321? Or is that what we call plate stock?
Do you plan to cast or machine?

That seems like a very good price for a 13 by 13 by 1.57... 27 pound (U.S.) aluminum plate.
That is $1.85 US per pound while we pay about $3 US a pound here.

Mill section = plate?

The bottom line is if you have an NC mill the two piece design should come
in well under the Racing Beat price of the cast end housing at $1200 US.

BTW Also it can be overhauled by replacing the steel plate wear surface.

Paul Lamar


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