By the end of this article, you’ll know if you should choose a radial bearing for your application and the three things you need to know about radial ball bearings.

No built-in ball bearing support. Has no RPM limits & Supports high torque needs: 609 to 14,060 Nm. Bore (ID) sizes: 38.09 to 220 mm (1.499 to 8.66 in)

After taking all this information into consideration, now we will look at the applications that generally work best using a radial ball bearing.

The most common type of shield is the Z shield made of a low-cost metal that’s stamped or c-clipped to the outer ring of the radial bearing. If stamped, then the bearing can’t be regreased in the field. If the shield is fastened with a c-clip then you can regrease and re-shield the bearing as needed.

Internal clearance can be affected by the machined shaft and housing tolerances, not just after the application’s thermal effects, but before.

The best protection for your bearing. Easy to install with a simple “drop-in” next to your bearing. No added space needed. CF seals offer 100% sealing efficiency against splashing liquids.

“Local police officer” also includes any employee of a contracting agency that is a city, who is employed in a jail or a detention or correctional facility and having as his or her primary duty and responsibility the supervision and custody of persons committed to the jail or facility. It shall not include persons employed as clerks, typists, teachers, instructors, or psychologists or to provide food, maintenance, health, or supporting services, even though responsibility for custody and control of persons so committed may be incident to, or imposed in connection with, that service.

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A tight press fit on a machined shaft that’s slightly bigger than the inner ring of the bearing will reduce the bearing clearance dramatically.

Radial bearings don’t need to be purchased in pairs like angular contact bearings so they’re a good choice if space is limited in your application.

At GMN Bearing USA, our ball bearing products proudly support operations in several industries and applications. To learn more, contact our in-house engineers!

This heavy-duty clutch (aka a hold-back clutch) is good for high torque operations and ensures motion freezes in place. Bore (ID) sizes: 15 to 40 mm. (0.59 to 1.73 in)

This section shall not apply to any contracting agency nor to the employees of a contracting agency until the agency elects to be subject to this section by contract or by amendment to its contract with the board, made pursuant to Section 20474 or by express provision in its contract with the board.

To conclude about internal clearance, choosing the right internal clearance for your application can be tricky. You’ll need to look at multiple metrics and calculations like:

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There are three key pieces of information you should know about radial ball bearings before you start using them in your application. They are:

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If this sounds like you, you’ve probably come across some information about radial ball bearings, a.k.a. deep groove ball bearings, and are wondering if this is the right bearing for your application.

Our GMN Gap Seals are plastic and a great choice for washdown applications, such as food conveyors and food manufacturing facilities

A lower cost electric motor may have a bit of electrical flux that’s offset from the rotor to the stator. This could cause some axial force to get produced within the motor to the shaft. A radial bearing can handle this kind of sporadic force with no issues. Even if that flux happens to change directions, a radial ball bearing can handle that because it supports axial loads in both directions.

For example, a common 608 radial ball bearing has a max speed rating of 40,000 RPM.  If your application is running at 35,000 RPM, then a tolerance analysis may tell you to leave ~5 microns available for some ball movement at this high of an RPM utilization.

Internal clearance is the amount of distance the inner ring moves relative to the outer ring from the geometric center of the bearing. Axial clearance is the allowable movement in the direction of the shaft and radial clearance is the allowable movement perpendicular to the shaft.

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Does your application allow some shaft movement and have low precision requirements? Then a more liberal tolerance strategy can be used. If your application is giving root canals, then the bearings need to be locked down to a couple of microns!

Not all radial bearing applications are slow. In fact, most handheld rotating dental tools are made with radial bearings and can spin well over 100,000 RPM, some even close to 200,000 RPM. The next time you hear the buzz of the dental drill, remember radial ball bearings are present, keeping that tool steady.

These clearances have been standardized in the bearing industry and are represented as “C” numbers. The higher the number the more relative movement allowed between the inner and outer ring. Here are the standardized clearance ratings from tightest to loosest:

Phenolic material is made of layered fibers, like fiberglass on a corvette or a boat, but the phenolic fibers made for a bearing are tightly controlled without voids, inclusions, or porosity.

If you don’t find manual calculations interesting, then contact us. Our bearing engineers would geek out love to professionally help you with your analysis.

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No built-in ball bearing support. Good for large orders & low to high torque needs: 1 to 2673 Nm. Bore (ID) sizes: 2 to 240 mm (0.078 to 9.448 in)

If you’d like to talk to an engineer about radial ball bearings or want to double-check if your bearing is right for your application, reach out to our onsite engineers either using our contact us form or by giving us a call at 800.323.5725.

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The most common type of radial bearing seal is the RS seal made of a low-cost metal that’s coated with rubber. This seal will contact the inner and outer race of the bearing which could slow down the speed of rotation and produce extra heat during operation.

There are other less common cage material options, like injection molded plastics or other machined cages made with various metals, plastics, or even glass. We recommend, that if your application is operating in a room temperature environment, then a J or TA cage will be best. Plus, these cages will save you from having supply chain issues and cost headaches.

If either the shaft or housing is pressing on both the inner and outer ring of the bearing, then be sure there’s enough internal clearance left for a successful operation, making sure to take the application loads and RPMs into account also.

Designed with grooves in the outer ring to offer more protection (than our L-type seal) against contamination and direct spray liquids. Liquid gets pushed out through outer grooves when in rotation.

Includes built-in ball bearing support. Supports HEAVY loads & has a high torque capacity: 53 to 588 Nm. Bore (ID) sizes: 10 to 60 mm (0.393 to 2.362 in)

To answer this question, we have to first uncover the type of load your application will place on the radial ball bearing.

Both the RS seals and Z shields are low-cost options that work well with an application that has operating temps < 212°F (100°C). There are many different types of materials available for the sealed radial ball bearing and most can support high or low operating temperatures, chemical exposures, and dirty environments.

A reasonable rule of thumb is for every 3 microns of ID (bearing inner diameter) that’s press fit on the shaft, 1 micron of internal clearance is lost. The same rule of thumb applies to the housing tolerance too.

Knowing the internal clearance of your bearing is important because it affects the load distribution, vibration produced, and the rolling elements of the bearing.

This article has covered a lot and hopefully shed some light on radial ball bearings. When it comes to choosing one for your application, remember “first things first,” check the type of load that your application will place on the bearing support.

Radial ball bearings can also support axial loads in all directions, whereas angular contact bearings can support axial loads in only one direction.

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To recap, If your application needs ball bearing support for radial loads and axial loads in all directions, then a radial ball bearing is probably a good choice. Make sure you keep reading for 3 important things you need to know about radial ball bearings before you start using them in applications.

Radial ball bearings, just like angular contact ball bearings, carry radial loads (forces perpendicular to the shaft) in both directions. The difference is in how these two types of bearings handle the axial load.

This may seem like a small number, but if a bearing only has 5 microns of internal clearance and a 15-micron press fit, the bearing could lock up at a low RPM.

The bearing world considers radial ball bearings to be the “duct tape” of bearings. Good for many different applications and easily found. Applications from skateboards to dental drills (more on that later) use radial bearings.

This comes in handy for many pumps where liquids surge or cavitate and cause the axial load to switch directions for just a second before going back to its original direction.

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The most common industrial application that uses radial ball bearings is an electric motor. This is because radial bearings carry loads and movement between the shaft and housing in both axial directions. An axial direction is defined as rotating, or moving, in the direction of the axis. Radial bearings can accept load in both directions along the axis (back and forth), whereas an angular contact bearing can’t.

We know that not every application requires super, high-precision bearings. We stock other industrial parts from quality brands.

Next, understand the type of internal clearance that your application will require of the radial bearing and pay attention to how it fits on the shaft. Finally, choose the type of radial ball bearing cage material and shields that will support the operating environment.

Not sure where or how to start? We’ve developed numerous engineering tools and automatic calculators that can help you find some of these answers.

Shields (including Z-shields) do make contact to the outer ring of the bearing but not the inner ring, like a seal. Shields usually cause less friction and drag when compared to a seal.

To learn more about internal clearance, bearing fits on shaft and housing units, and materials of radial ball bearing applications, contact GMN Bearing USA!

Includes built-in ball bearing support. Supports MEDIUM loads & low to medium torque capacity: 53 to 267 Nm. Bore (ID) sizes: 17 to 40 mm (0.669 to 1.57 in)