Pneumatic Spring Applied Brakes

Industrial machinery and wind energy friendly, W.C. Branham has a wide breadth of pneumatic spring applied brakes ranging from 216 lbf (960 N) to 12,236 lbf (54,428 N) tangential force.

Click image to enlarge

How do they work?

Active minimum air pressure releases the brake piston (pulls the brake piston away) from the brake disc rotor and stores that energy in one or more Belleville disc spring stacks depending on model.

Then, at loss of air pressure the energy stored in the disc spring stack is emitted driving the brake piston and engaging the disc rotor for positive
stopping and holding. Most models can also be mounted on a linear rail or plate.

PFS Series Caliper Disc Brakes are intended to be used for intermittent emergency stopping and holding applications due to the relationship between spring force and friction pad wear.


Consult factory for use on cyclic applications.


Common features:

  • Cast aluminum construction
  • Hardcoated housings
  • Non-asbestos friction material
  • Replaceable friction pads
  • Buna-N seals
  • Float mount
  • Belleville disc spring stack
  • Standard models for brake disc thicknesses of 5/32, 1/4, 3/8,1/2, 5/8, 3/4, 1.0 and 1-1/8 inches

Optional Features:

  • Viton® seals
  • Electro-Nickel Plating
  • Stainless Steel Hardware
  • Fitment for other brake disc thicknesses
    including metric sizes possible.
Model Series Tangential Force Lb. (N) Clamping Force Lb. (N) Unit Weight Lb. (Kg.)
PFS38 216 (960) 480 (2135) 2.4 (1.08)
PFS47 465 (2068) 1033 (4595) 5.5 (2.49)
PFS200 929 (4132) 2065 (9185) 11.6 (5.26)
PFS200SUL 929 (4132) 2065 (9185) 11.6 (5.26)
PFS200UL-EP 929 (4132) 2065 (9185) 12.0 (5.44)
PFS400 1859 (8269) 4130 (18,371) 16.8 (7.62)
PFS400-EP 1859 (8269) 4130 (18,371) 17.2 (7.80)
PFS520 6149 (28,553) 14,264 (63,449) 123 (55.79)
PFS522 12,236 (54,428) 27,192 (120,956) 169.5 (76.88)