Thin Section Bearings

Silverthin Precision Thin Section Bearings Brochure »

Silverthin precision thin section bearings are manufactured in standard configurations, and are available as either sealed or unsealed units depending on requirements. All Silverthin bearing products are manufactured in the USA in line with the strict regulations set out under the Berry amendment. There are a wide variety of bearings available in a wide variety of materials, coatings and lubrication combinations.

The product range comprises of the following standard cross sectional sizes: (Each cross section below is linked to the catalogue)

UNSEALED A, C & X TYPE SERIES SECTION ID OD SAA 3/16″ .187 1.000 to 1.750 1.375 to 1.990 3/16″.187

SERIES SECTION ID OD SA 1/4″ .250 2.000 to 12.000 2.500 to 12.500 1/4″.250

SERIES SECTION ID OD SB 5/16″ .3125 2.000 to 20.000 2.625 to 20.625 5/16″.3125

SERIES SECTION ID OD SC 3/8″ .375 4.000 to 30.000 4.750 to 30.750 3/8″ .375

SERIES SECTION ID OD SD 1/2″ .500 4.000 to 30.000 5.000 to 31.000 1/2″.500

SERIES SECTION ID OD SF 3/4″ .750 4.000 to 35.000 5.500 to 36.500 3/4″.750

SEALED C & X TYPE SERIES SECTION ID OD JSA 1/4″ .250 2.000 to 6.500 2.500 to 7.000 1/4″.250

SERIES SECTION ID OD JSB 5/16″ .3125 2.000 to 6.500 2.625 to 7.125 5/16″.3125

SERIES SECTION ID OD JSU 1/2″ .500 4.000 to 12.000 4.750 to 12.750 3/8″.375

Standard and Special Large Diameter Unsealed and Sealed Silverthin Bearings are available upon request. These bearings are available in a variety of cross sections to meet customer needs. Email your request to us and we will advise availability or help you with your special application requirements.

SERIES SECTION ID OD SG 1″ .1000 4.000 to 35.000 6.000 to 37.000 1″.1000

Type “A” – Angular Contact

In applications with axial loads in one direction the A-Type, angular contact ball bearing should be used. This bearing also works well in radial or combined radial-thrust applications. The A-Type bearing should never be used alone to support moment loads or reversing axial loading.

Type A Load Condition Radial Axial Moment Reversing Axial Combined Radial Thrust Good Excellent Use in pairs Excellent Use in pairs Excellent Good

Type “C” – Radial Contact

The C-Type, radial contact ball bearing is designed with deep ball grooves to withstand high loads. Although this bearing is used primarily in applications with radial loads, it can withstand moderate axial loads, reversing axial loads, and moment loads.

Type C Load Condition Radial Axial Moment Reversing Axial Combined Radial Thrust Excellent Good Good (light to moderate loads) Good (light to moderate loads) Good

Type “X” – 4-Point Contact

The X-Type, or 4-point contact, ball bearing is ideal for moment loading. X-Type bearings are designed with Gothic arch raceways creating four contact points between the balls and the raceways. This design is excellent for moment loading and reversing axial loading. The X-Type bearing can be used for other light loading conditions, but is not recommended in place of the C- or A-Type bearing for pure radial loads.

When specifying this type of bearing for use with axial or moment loads combined with radial loads application speed (rpm) should be carefully considered. Please contact Carter engineering department for information on combined load and limiting speeds.

Type X Load Condition Radial Axial Moment Reversing Axial Combined Radial Thrust Poor Good Excellent Excellent Poor

Please contact Carter for radial bearing use with combined radial loads with axial or moment loading and for limiting speeds and separator selection.

Two A-Type bearings are often used as a duplex pair. Different configurations for duplex bearings are shown in the Engineering section of the product catalogue.

Please consult Carter engineering for application of these bearings.

Special non standard bearings are engineered and manufactured up to 40 inches in diameter, some from special materials, to serve the needs of our diverse customer base.

Precision Thin Section Bearings

As with all bearings, precision thin bearings can improve the overall efficiency of your machinery or equipment. From greater accuracy and reliability to higher speed – put simply they help you increase your profit and build on the service you offer your clients. They also help to lower the running cost of your machinery and lead to less frequent services.

What makes precision thin section bearings unique is that on top of the aforementioned benefits, they also offer reduced friction and increased design flexibility. Thanks to their size and shape they also help to save weight and create additional space.

From medical equipment and aerospace telescopes to fridges and ceiling fans, bearings can be found in almost every mechanism that involves movement. As with all bearings, the precision thin section type work on a very simple principle – things move better when friction is reduced. They can drastically improve the overall efficiency of your machinery or equipment, and at a fraction of the size and weight of a standard bearing.

Inspection

Due to the large diameters and thin sections of these products, it is necessary to address measurement and inspection techniques. To accurately measure the bore and outside diameters of thin section bearings, a specific procedure must be followed.

Appropriate measuring equipment must be used which will allow the inspector to take 3 to 5 readings around the circumference, which are then averaged to determine the true measurement of the bearing in the free state i.e. (unmounted). This procedure allows for the inherent out-of-roundness these particular bearings will exhibit. When measuring, special care must be exercised to ensure neither the bearing weight nor pressure from the measuring equipment affects the measurements.

Installation

If thin section bearings are being installed into a housing, pressure should be applied only on the outer ring. Bearings to be installed on a shaft should be pushed on the inner ring. Since the majority of Silverthin products are open (without seals), a clean, contaminant-free installation area is advised.

Lubrication

Rolling element bearings rely on ball and raceway surface lubrication. A thin film of oil or grease should be used. Be sure not to contaminate the lubricant. Our standard open (unsealed) bearings are shipped with only a light oil as a corrosion inhibitor. You must lubricate these with the appropriate grease or oil for your application. Sealed bearings are shipped as standard practice with 20% – 30% fill of Mil-G-81322 grease.

Load Ratings

Information listed on this website such as load ratings and bearing dimensional data has been compiled from industry standard data as well as ABMA and ANSI information and formulas. Technical information and ratings have been modified from empirical data and test data from Silverthin™ load capacities shown on the website are not additive. For combined radial and axial loading an equivalent radial loading must be calculated.

Thin Section Bearing Housing & Shaft Fits

Thin section bearings are affected by the tolerance, roundness, and expansion & contraction rates of the housing & shafts used to mount them. The “Precision tolerances & Recommended Fits” shown on this website are for bearings with standard diametric clearance and steel shafts & housings. Those with special clearances or preloads and those which are mounted in, or have shafts in, materials other than steel, will need special internal clearance consideration to account for different expansion & contraction rates of dissimilar materials.

Thin Section Bearings with Thin Dense Chrome Plating

NTDC – Nodular Thin Dense Chrome Plated bearing rings of 52100 steel are designated with an “A” in the Silverthin™ part numbering system. This electro-deposited chrome plating process will not chip, crack or peel under severe stress experienced in bearing raceways. This process increases corrosion resistance, improves surface hardness to the Rc70-Rc78 range which in turn reduces friction and helps retain lubrication. Silverthin apply this plating to their standard 52100 steel inner and outer rings so allowances must be made to standard housing and shaft fits to allow for the plating build up on the exposed surfaces, especially the bore and outside diameter. The plating build up per surface can generally be from .000040 inch to .00015 inch. Contact us at Carter for bore and shaft fits.

Silverthin Thin Section Bearing Specifications:

Races (rings) AISI 52100 vacuum degassed bearing steel

Heat treatment Through hardened and stabilized for use at -65 degrees F to +250 degrees F. Please check with factory for operating temperatures for sealed bearings

Balls AISI 52100, 440C or ceramic (Silicone Nitride)

Seals Buna-N rubber-metal reinforced

Cages “A” type – circular pocket G, H, R, U, & F “C” & “X” type – snapover type D, N, P, L, T & F

Diametric Clearance ABMA standard 26.2

Preloads ABMA standard 26.2

Internal geometry ABMA standard 26.2

Identification All Silverthin™ bearings are marked with part number, lot code and “Silver” on the outside diameter

Cleaning Immersion and agitation with preservative oil applied.

Packaging Sealed in plastic and boxed up to 12″ bore. Boxing or special packaging as required.

Quality Operating Groups of Mechatronics Inc. including Silverthin Bearing Group are registered to the ISO 9001:2000 quality standard. A copy of the registration certificate is available upon request.

Lubrication Sealed bearings 20% – 30% fill of Mil-G-81322 grease. Open bearings are dipped in light oil as a corrosion inhibitor (not intended to be a bearing lubricant).

A list of applications and equipment where thin section bearings are used

Medical, rotary polishing, X-ray – MRI, rotary pipe cutting, rotary welding and semi-conductor equipment. Rotary actuators, rotary work holding tables, aerospace – auxiliary equipment (not flight critical), turrets, gun turrets, turntables, gun barrel mounts, indexing tables, missile launchers, machine tools, lathe accessories and radar equipment. Robotics, radar drives, antenna pedestals, satellite antennas and labelling machines.

Equipment for packaging, truck mounted communication, food processing, bottling and converting. Telescope bases, wallpaper & screen printing, camera mounts, camera lenses, textile and knitting machinery. Optical drivers, tyre production equipment, security camera mounts, wire handling, winding & bonding equipment, orbital welding, sensors, oil well equipment, mounts for sensors. Blow out protectors, instrument mounts, king post bearing applications, gimbals and gimbal assemblies, gear boxes, slip rings, transmission gear & chain, rotary unions, rotary joints and clutch backstops.

Precision Thin Section Bearings

As with all bearings, precision thin bearings can improve the overall efficiency of your machinery or equipment. From greater accuracy and reliability to higher speed, put simply they help you increase your profit and build on the service you offer your clients. They also help to lower the running cost of your machinery and lead to less frequent services.

What makes precision thin section bearings unique is that on top of this they also offer reduced friction and increased design flexibility. Thanks to their size and shape they also help to save weight and create additional space.

From medical equipment and aerospace telescopes to fridges and ceiling fans, bearings can be found in almost every mechanism that involves movement. As with all bearings, precision thin section bearings work on a very simple principle – things move better when friction is reduced. Precision bearings from Silverthin can drastically improve the overall efficiency of your machinery or equipment, and at a fraction of the size and weight of a standard bearing. For greater accuracy, reliability and speed from your engineering application, call Carter Bearings today.

Here at Carter Bearings our strength lies in finding the solution to your individual engineering problems, and providing them at the most competitive prices. If your machinery is used in an application where size, weight and space are at a premium, from the aerospace industry to the production of food processing equipment; your solution may lie in precision bearings. Precision thin section bearings provide unique solutions as the bearing width and section (distance from bore to outside diameter) in each series remain constant regardless of the change in bore diameter, offering reduced friction and increased design flexibility – even at sizes of up to 40 inches in diameter.

Why Choose Carter Bearings?

Here at Carter Bearings, we understand that no single bearing is appropriate for every single application. Some applications require special bearings in order to cope with the demands of the harsh environments they’re to be used in, such as ultra-high vacuum, cryogenic and the clean requirements of the pharmaceutical industry.

Since 1999 Carter Manufacturing Ltd. has been providing engineering solutions to various industries across Europe. Over time, we have expanded our range and built our reputation to such great heights that we are now the European Master Distributor of the Silverthin product range. We carry a large stock of Silverthin products in our UK warehouse and can order in any specialised or large bearing from the entire range on request.

Our team of experts have a deep understanding of both the interactions and applications of thin section bearings. We are entirely focussed on understanding your engineering problems, and constantly strive to produce the best solutions to each individual application. We have proven able to provide the best engineering solutions to the industry at the most affordable prices across a range of currencies. No matter where you are in the world, Carter Bearings has a solution for you.

If your machinery is used in an application where size, weight and space are at a premium, from the aerospace industry to the production of food processing equipment; your solution may lie in precision thin section bearings. Call today for more information on our extensive Silverthin range.

For more information please contact us »