Tandem Cycling - arai drum discontinued

Hi,

I was able to order an arai drum brake from co-motion who still has a stock of these things. It seems that neither co-motion or Santana plan on offering a drum drag brake after the current stock is depleted.

I heard that QBP owns the rights to the Arai name and the design. Does anyone know if the Arai will ever go back into production by QBP or anyone else?

I just had the disk tab cut off my co-motion since I wanted to add proper rack mounts. I had been using the avid mech disc. I did a trip to France a few years ago in the Pyrenees and I think the performance of the disk was marginal. Granted the roads out there require extreme braking. The disc would fade, often accompanied by noise and vibrations. I also melted the front rim shoes and had to replace them a couple times during the trip. Our team is also pretty light (260 without bike and no big load).

Anyhow, it just kind of sucks that the proven technology is discontinued and all we are left with are marginal solutions.

Thanks,
Jason

There is purportedly an alternative drum brake in the works by someone but I don't have the particulars.

However, in the mean time, I believe there are a number of folks like Mel at TandemsEast.com who have also stock piled the Arai drums and it's not too hard to find used (or in most cases just previously owned) ones by posting "wanted to buy" notices to the tandem-specific classified ad sites and web lists.

Perhaps the usage/popularity of disc brakes has had an impact on the sale of Arai drum brakes?
Agree, there is likely to be a supply of Arais for a few years to come.

Haven't read all the threads on the Tandem Cycling forum so maybe I missed something on the subject of the alledged discontinuation of the Arai drum brake. Over here in Holland, a similiar rumour is around for about six months now but nobody knows anything for sure. "They say" it would have had something to do with the asbestos in the brake linings. But since car brakes are already asbestos-free for ages now, this seems hardly likely IMHO.

To shed some light on this matter and with all due respect to anyone who writes about this, I'd like to know if anyone can verify whether the Arai drum brake actually has been discontinued or is going to be discontinued in the near future.

Here is an email response that I got from QBP (Quality Bicycle Products):

Jason,

We do not have the rights to the Arai name.

At this time we have discontinued their products.

Arai has ceased production and is no longer in business.

Unfortunately I have no contact information for this manufacturer or any new manufacturer that has taken on this type of product to help in your situation.

Thanks for your inquiry.

-Tyler

Tyler R. McKay

Customer Service Agent

Quality Bicycle Products

tmckay@qbp.com

800.346.0004 ext. 1464

I'd like to know if anyone can verify whether the Arai drum brake actually has been discontinued or is going to be discontinued in the near future.

As noted earlier and affirmed in the note back to jbyrne from QBPs Tyler R. McKay, the last production lot has been stuffed onto the shelves of OEM builders and retailers.

I'm not sure what the OEM builders like Co-Motion or Santana are holdling in inventory, but Tandems East has an ample supply of new units that will last for several years. In fact, they may have simply bought up whatever QBP had on hand as Mel's a savy businessman when it comes to such things.

Moreover, and as alluded to in my assessment of how long the existing inventories -- new and used -- may last, because of disc brakes,whatever remaining inventory there is will certainly cover future requirements for the folks who really need a drum brakes as most of the folks sitting on the fence these days opt to fit a rear disc as their belt & suspenders approach to rear brake technology. Again, there are just so darn many of these things that have been sold to teams who ultimately found they didn't need them. So, until the hundreds of new units sitting in inventory are gone and all of those second hand ones are redistributed to those who need them, the 'need' for a replacement may be a few years down the road.... at least for buyers who are willing to investigate.

Looking forward and again as noted earlier, there is some product development on-going that could yield a new drum brake in the future. If it does come to fuition for use on tandems, just don't expect it to be cheap like the Arai. Like most new products, covering development costs on a low-volume product = premium pricing.

As noted earlier and affirmed in the note back to jbyrne from QBPs Tyler R. McKay, the last production lot has been stuffed onto the shelves of OEM builders and retailers.

I'm not sure what the OEM builders like Co-Motion or Santana are holdling in inventory, but Tandems East has an ample supply of new units that will last for several years. In fact, they may have simply bought up whatever QBP had on hand as Mel's a savy businessman when it comes to such things. [SNIP]
@Tandemgeek and Jbyrne: thanks a lot for this information.

I'll be covering this in a blog entry this weekend, but just to close the loop on this thread for anyone who might find it doing a search of the archives, here's a photo of the Arai drum brake replacement currently being developed and about to begin pre-production testing.

Interesting. Looks like a Tandems East shaved model. I had wondered if they'd lose the heat sink in the prototype.

I still have 4-5 Arai's in my parts box that I somehow acquired over the years. I'm good for the next century, I guess!

I'll be covering this in a blog entry this weekend, but just to close the loop on this thread for anyone who might find it doing a search of the archives, here's a photo of the Arai drum brake replacement currently being developed and about to begin pre-production testing.

Interesting. Who's developing this brake? I was just curious who will be selling this in the future.