CAST NYLON BEARING MATERIAL

Picture Caption: A surface mining truck utilizes several wear-resistant nylon components in place of bronze parts and roller bearings. The machined nylon parts include an axle nosecone bearing, a steering kingpin thrust bearing, and two body pivot bushings. The nosecone bearing is the largest of the parts and provides impact resistance to the truck's bouncing. The nylon axle bearing is machined from Nylatron NSM nylon tubular bar. The truck, which has a 190 to 205 tons payload capacity, also has two nylon body pivot bushings. Wear resistance of the bushings, which are located underneath the dump body, is very important. Self-lubrication avoids the use of lubricants in the highly dusty environment which can become an abrasive slurry that may damage both the bushing and the expensive shaft.

Nylon bearing materials that contain solid lubricant additives, impart self-lubricating, high pressure-velocity (PV), and excellent wear resistance. In many applications, the high wear resistance is achieved without start-up or running lubrication. The internally lubricated materials reduce periodic maintenance, lowering overall maintenance costs.

Nylon bearing materials are made by either extrusion or casting. For demanding applications, where larger-sized parts are required, the cast material allows larger shapes to be made than what is possible by extrusion.

Nylatron® NSM is a highly wear-resistant, premium cast nylon machining stock available from DSM Engineering Plastic Products. Key benefits are its low coefficient of friction, good dimensional stability, and very low wear rate under the most demanding pressure and velocity conditions. This type 6 nylon has high strength, flexural modulus and hardness.

The wear resistance is up to 10 times better than that of any other nylon-based bearing material. The "k" factor is only 9: in comparison, the standard type 6 nylon has a value of 87 (both measurements for journal bearings running at 118 fpm, 42.2 psi). The limiting PV value, a measure of a material's resistance to the combined effects of pressure and velocity on its bearing surface, is 15,000 lb/sq-in. min. (as measured at 20 fpm, unlubricated).

Nylatron NSM nylon cast plate, rod and tubular are available through Authorized Distributors in thicknesses up to 4 in. and in rod with diameters up to 28 in. Tubular bar, gear ring blanks and custom parts for specific application requirements, such as vacuum feed star wheel segments and bottle guides, are also available.

Typical applications for the cast nylon shapes are bushings, wear plates, slide bearings, valve seats, thrust bearings, seals, rubbing blocks, guides, cams, gears and wear strips.

For more information, contact DSM Engineering Plastic Products, P.O. Box 14235, Reading, PA 19612-4235, 800-366-0300, FAX 800-366-0301.