Drum brakes

[Nigelnightmare]

I've got 70mm drums on my Qnt and would highly recommend them, as others have said good all weather braking/modulation + they last a very long time 50,000+ miles.
According to ICE They have never had to renew any drum brake shoes on any of their trikes.
My "Q"nt 2007 is still on the original brake shoes, whereas my vortex fs 2011 disc brakes have been changed twice this year and there's not much difference in stopping power/performance.
Discs have a little more delay in wet weather before full stopping power.
HTH

 

[byegad]

I have independent drums on the front wheels of my Redmount. They are not as sharp as the BB5s I had on my Performer but they work fine and have been maintenance free. I suspect that if I bothered to take them apart and clean them the performance might be improved slightly but because they do the job ok I have not got round to it yet.
I would regard drums as being better overall than discs due to being low maintenance and only marginally less effective than discs (which depending on the weight distribution of the trike may make it less likely to accidentally lock up the front wheels)

My QNT had drums and my Catrike Trail and Kettwiesel have BB7 discs. They are way more fiddly to set up, but, unlike the BB5s I started on with the Kett' do stay adjusted a decent while. TheDrums are fit and forget.
The QNT with full day touring load and a few roadside repair items on board weighed quite a but more and was also a longer wheelbase than the Trail. The standard SA drums on the QNT were more than enough to lift the rear wheel [not recommended] or stop the trike with my 100kg on board from 50mph down hill. The BB7s on the Trail are less easily modulated and, being shorter wheelbase, lifting the rear off the Trail is really too easy.

 

[Nigelnightmare]

To help with the back wheel lifting under heavy braking I fitted the FB bracket to move the seat back.