Ceramic bearings vs steel bearings ceramic materials offer superior corrosion and heat resistance higher dimensional stability and lower density which facilitates high speed.
Ceramic vs steel bearings.
The concept behind a bearing is simple.
This is mostly due to the additional time spent to perfect a quality ceramic ball.
Stainless steel bearings win the prize for load and speed ratings.
They will both also cope with higher temperatures than chrome steel but ceramic bearings also win here.
The first thing that strikes the eye when looking at bicycle bearings is the difference in price between steel bearings and hybrid ceramic bearings.
Cost of purchase for ceramic and steel bearings.
If solid ceramic they re lighter than stainless steel by as much as 60.
Stainless steel bearings and full ceramic bearings are both corrosion resistant but the ceramic bearings have greater corrosion resistance.
Initially the enduro bearing has lower friction at around 600km of use the ceramic bearing has worn a track into the comparatively soft steel races and the bearing friction starts to increase dramatically.
Full ceramic bearings have races and balls that are made entirely of ceramic material and are superior to common steel bearings in many ways.
I know that there has been a debate between steel and ceramic bearings for a while but i have wondered how it effects the esk8 world as well.
Most sealed ceramic bearings are actually hybrid ceramic bearings which combine a steel race with ceramic ball bearings.
Ceramic is the perfect material for any application seeking to achieve higher rpm s reduce overall weight or for extremely harsh environments where high temperatures and corrosive substances are present.
The different elements balls retainers and closures can change a bit.
The wear rate of ceramic ball bearings is significantly less than stainless steel especially when lubricated.
Ceramic bearings vs steel.
The graph below shows a comparison between two steel bearings skf and ntn and a ceramic bearing enduro.
Optimization is possible for the disparity that exists between these parts.
Things don t slide or roll.
July 19 2016 1 11am 1.
Can be solid or a coating on stainless steel balls.