Maintaining vintage cars is a real labour of love. But after 20 years of temporary fixes to an ageing rear wheel bearing carrier, vintage race car driver Adam Berryman needed a more permanent solution. He found it with Titomic’s D523 cold spray system.
It isn’t easy to keep vintage cars track-ready – especially when dealing with decades-old parts. Just ask vintage race car driver Adam Berryman, who spent the last two decades relying on fast fixes like adhesives, putty, and sleeving to maintain a 90-year-old wheel bearing carrier.
“The bearing carrier had become worn, which left the bearing inside it loose. It was a very difficult thing to repair,”
While welding might seem like an obvious solution, it’s a slow process that comes with the significant risk of heat damage and distortion – which would have left the vehicle unserviceable in the future.
A winning solution
Titomic proposed its low-pressure D523 cold spray system as a simpler, superior solution to get Adam back on the road sooner.
The bearing housing was repaired rapidly in just 5 steps:
- Surface blemishes were removed during pre-machining.
- A thin coat of cold spray was applied with a gun.
- The part was machined back to its original tolerance.
- The bearing was pressed back into the surface.
- The housing was refitted to the vehicle.
Back on track
Following the fast repair, Adam drove away with a permanent, proper solution that didn’t compromise the classic car’s heritage.
“We’re repairing real components, rather than just having new components made or machined for it. And with a car like this, originality is such a big part of maintaining the integrity of the vehicle,” Adam said.
Case study snapshot
What: Repair wheel bearing carrier
Where: Vintage vehicle
How: D523 low-pressure cold spray system
Outcome: Original bearing carrier rapidly repaired without damage
