5 reasons why you should choose a plastic bearing over a metal one.

Why would you choose plastic bearings over metal ones? That’s a question we are asked continually. In today’s engineering world, the plastic bearing is fast becoming the obvious choice as a suitable alternative to the metal one but there are still some misconceptions surrounding whether or not a plastic bearing can stand up to the job of a metal one. Here are a couple of key reasons why our igus® polymer bearings are perfect replacements for metal ones.

Cost can be reduced by as much as 40%

igus® bearings are subject to thousands of hours’ worth of testing within the research and test facilities in Cologne, which allows us to understand performance and predict lifetimes of our bearings. Knowing how long a bearing will last helps planning which in turn can prevent unplanned downtime. This alone can save money. Mass production of the standard catalogue range allows us to keep the cost of the bearing minimal whilst not compromising the integrity of the bearing. Cost down, life up.

Maintenance-free

One of the key features of igus® products is the lack of requirement for lubrication, no oil, no grease, nothing. They are all completely dry running. Our plain plastic bearings are made up of different components: base polymers for wear resistance, fibres and fillers which reinforce the bearings for absorbing high forces and solid lubricants which lubricate the bearings independently and therefore reduce friction. You can save not only money and time by not having to lubricate them within your application but that’s not to say you can’t use lubrication should you wish to. This won’t be detrimental to the bearing.

Versatile

igus® plastic bearings are so adaptable and versatile that they can be used in a multitude of applications from mountain bikes to pianos, from artificial limbs to aviation. We have a large selection of materials which allows us flexibility in being able to identify customer issues and solve them with one of our polymer bearings. Plastic bearings are seven times lighter than metal but that doesn’t mean that they falter in regards to their strength. We have a number of ranges that are designed for high loads and easily replace metal bearings.

Corrosion and chemical resistant

igus® bearings are corrosion and chemically -resistant which allows the bearings to be used in various environments without compromising their performance. Being plastic they are even resistant to the abrasion and wearing that can occur with metal bearings. This means their low coefficient of friction is maintained, allowing smooth movement with minimum interference between the shaft and bearing. Thanks to the vigorous testing in the igus® headquarters in Germany, we have tested against hundreds of chemicals and have a resistance chart showing which materials are resistant and which are not.

Able to withstand varying temperatures

Our plain bearings come in various high performance materials which cover a wide range of temperatures that they can withstand. We have materials, such as iglidur® X that are specialists for continuous operating temperatures up to +250 °C and can reach +300 °C for short term bursts. This particular material can also be used in environments that have temperatures as low as -100 °C. Temperature specifications should not be an influencing factor for us not being able to help with an application. We have a large enough range of materials that in theory should be able to handle anything!

We will always have some people that can’t and won’t accept that plastic can stand the test of time like metal but the complex blend of fibres and fillers that have been developed will give most metal bearings a run for their money. Having the capabilities of being able to predict the lifetimes of bearings gives us an edge and allows you to be in control. We can replace most metal bearings with plastic but replacing misconceptions and stereotypes are not always as straightforward.

For more blogs relating to plastic bearings, click here.

Visit the iglidur® bearings page to find out more about iglidur® bearings.

Alternatively, contact our dry-tech® Director Rob Dumayne: rdumayne@igus.co.uk for all bearings enquiries.