This material is constructed using a very fine cotton fiber fabric combined with a specially formulated phenolic resin. Although it was first manufactured for the electrical industry, it quickly entered the bearing market due its strength to weight ratio along with its ability to retain oil.
(Price Range: Low-Mid)

PFTE is an abbreviation for PolyTetraFluoroEthylene; it’s a fluorocarbon-based polymer.  TEFLON is a registered trademarked brand of PTFE.  PTFE’s mechanical properties are low compared to other plastics, but it can be used over a wide range of temperature range of -100F to over 400F.  Mechanical properties are often enhanced by adding fillers such as; glass fibers, carbon, graphite, molybdenum disulphide and bronze.

(Price Range: Low-Mid)

Trade name for a family of reinforced proprietary PTFE compounds manufactured by Saint Gobain Performance Plastics.  This family of materials offers the combination of high compressive strengths, low coefficient of friction, and abrasion and corrosion resistance while running without lubrication.  These materials are used in bearings and seal applications at temperatures from -400F to 500F.

(Price Range: Mid-High)

Peek is an abbreviation for (PolyEtherEtherKeytone) A unique, semi-crystal-line, high temperature engineered thermoplastic. PEEK grades offer good chemical and water resistance, and can operate at high temperature continuously up to 480F in hot water or steam without permanent loss in physical properties.  Mechanical properties are often enhanced by adding fillers such as; glass fibers, carbon, and PTFE. Unfilled PEEK is FDA approved for food contact applications.

(Price Range: Mid-High)

A common name for a family of thermoplastics with the chemical name “PolyOxy-Methylene”. It is available in a general purpose copolymer grade, a homopolymer version (Delrin) and several filled versions. Some natural grades are FDA and USDA compliant. Acetal provides high strength and stiffness, enhanced dimensional stability with low moisture absorption.  It has good wear and abrasion resistance and has a wide range of chemical resistance. 

(Price Range: Low)

Several versions are available, although these two (8100 & 9000) series were originally developed for the aerospace industry.  Ideally for the use in Gyroscopes, one major application is the ball bearing cage.  Gyroscopes must operate with very low friction ball bearings.  These two series of Meldin are used due to their unique ability to contain oil within the porous structure of the material.

(Price Range: High)

The families of nylons consist of several different types; nylon 6, nylon 6/6, nylon 6/10, nylon 11 and nylon 12.  Of these, nylon 6 and nylon 6/6 dominate the market and are the most commonly used. Nylon has excellent tensile and compressive strengths, good wear properties compared to other common materials. It can also be purchased with a list of fillers that improve standard properties, including glass fibers for improved heat performance.  Nylon is prone to water absorption and therefore; has limited dimensional stability in high humidity or wet conditions.

(Price Range Low-mid)

See Acetal Description.

It’s a glass fabric coated with PTFE, which is wound over a variety of sized mandrels utilizing heat and pressure to form a convolute tube. The end result is a custom laminated Teflon Coated Glass Fabric Cylinder that can serve as bearing cages. These bearing cages then can be utilized in jet and rocket engines. Due to the pure Teflon bond layers used in the lamination process, as the cage wears at the extreme high speeds the more Teflon is exposed, thus lubricating the bearing. Many of these bearing cages have seen service in liquid nitrogen and oxygen as well as elevated temperatures up to 550F.

PGM-HT (PTFE, Glass fiber & Molybdenum Disulphide) is a self-lubricating composite which has been accepted in recent times as a replacement to RT/Duroid 5813; a similar composite no longer in production. The material is used primarily within the space industry as a ball-bearing cage material.

PTFE stands for PolyTetraFluroroEthylene, also known by its trade name Teflon® brand of PTFE resin which is manufactured only by DuPont. Several other manufactures make their own brands of PTFE which can be used as a substitute.
PTFE is a soft, low friction fluoropolymer with outstanding chemical resistance and a low coefficient of friction. PTFE is stable at temperatures up to 500F and is often used in high-temperature environments. PTFE is available in a variety of formulations including unfilled, glass-filled, and bearing grades. Glass-filled PTFE has enhanced strength and stiffness. Bearing grades of PTFE have extremely low friction and high service temperatures. They are frequently used in high-performance bearings, particularly in applications that require a dry lubricant or resistance to corrosive chemicals.

Vespel is the trademark of a range of durable high-performance polyimide-based plastics manufactured by DuPont. This high-performance polymer is mostly used in aerospace, semiconductor, and transportation technology. It combines heat resistance, lubricity, dimensional stability, chemical resistance, and creep resistance, to be used in hostile and extreme environmental conditions.

Aluminum is a chemical element in the boron group with symbol Al and atomic number 13. It is a silvery-white, soft, nonmagnetic, ductile metal. Aluminum is the third most abundant element in the Earth's crust (after oxygen and silicon) and its most abundant metal. Aluminum and its alloys are vital to the aerospace industry and important in transportation and structures.

Brass is a metal alloy made of copper and zinc; the proportions of zinc and copper can be varied to create a range of brasses with varying properties. Brass is used for applications where low friction is required such as locks, gears, bearings, doorknobs, ammunition casings and valves and extensively where a combination of high workability (historically with hand tools) and durability is desired. Brass is often used in situations in which it is important that sparks not be struck, such as in fittings.

Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12% tin and often with the addition of other metals (such as aluminium, manganese, nickel or zinc) and sometimes non-metals or metalloids such as arsenic, phosphorus or silicon. These additions produce a range of alloys that may be harder than copper alone, or have other useful properties, such as stiffness, ductility or machinability.

Stainless steel does not readily corrode, rust or stain with water as ordinary steel does. However, it is not fully stain-proof in low-oxygen, high-salinity, or poor air circulation environments. There are different grades and surface finishes of stainless steel to suit the environment the alloy must endure. Stainless steel is used where both the properties of steel and corrosion resistance are required.

Graphite is a crystalline form of carbon, a semimetal, a native element mineral, and one of the allotropes of carbon. Graphite is the most stable form of carbon under standard conditions. Therefore, it is used in thermochemistry as the standard state for defining the heat of formation of carbon compounds.

See Phenolic Laminate

Torlon ® is a high performance amorphous (non-crystalline) engineering thermoplastic. Torlon® is the highest performing melt processable plastic. It has superior resistance to elevated temperatures. It is capable of performing under severe stress conditions at continuous temperatures to 500°F (260°C). Parts machined from Torlon® stock shapes provide greater compressive strength and higher impact resistance than most advanced engineering plastics. Its extremely low coefficient of linear thermal expansion and high creep resistance deliver excellent dimensional stability over its entire use range.

Medium low-carbon steel. Good ductility, toughness, and strength with good machinability. Low-cost steel.

4340 is offered in two grades 6414 vacuum melt and 6415 air melt. Both have medium carbon content, good for hardening to aerospace's most common needs. 6414 is slightly more expensive due to the special vacuum melt process but creates much cleaner steel. For high-stress parts 4340 is an excellent choice.

52100 is a high carbon + chromium bearing grade steel. High carbon content allows for a deep hardening, high wear resistance. 52100 is commonly used in aircraft bearings.

Other machining materials are available as well, please contact us for more information.