Finest quality steel cartridge bearings

[Gearjunkie]

Hi all.

So I searched "steel bearings" and could only get lots of references to how ceramic is "better" than steel.

I'm over the ceramic revolution. No more ceramic thanks.

The best wheel bearings (other than Ceramicspeed, which are seriously expensive) I've tried have been steel and usually been OEM in quality hubs (Tune, Zipp, Alchemy).

But I can't seem to find a good source for replacement high quality steel cartridge bearings. The local bearing shops all say all their steel bearings are "top" quality but I haven't had good luck with the smoothness nor durabilty of those.

Ditto any steel bearings from the Bay.

So anyone got any tips on which brand / where to buy long lasting and smooth steel cartridge bearings?

Thanks in advance.

GJ

[ergott]

Enduro, SKF, and Phil Wood come to mind.

[Bridgeman]

I went with Phil Wood Bearings for replacement of my DT Swiss 190 Hubset. While they spin freely, I was surprised at the amount of play between the races. Out at the rim the displacement is about a 1/4 mm. I can reduce this somewhat by making the quick release very tight, but I'm not in favor of doing this for obvious reasons.

Out of all the wheels I have owned these display the most axial play. All the rest exhibit virtually zero play.

[eric]

At a lower price point than SKF or Phils I've found VXB bearings to be decent.

What ABEC rating are those Phils? I usually get ABEC 3 or 5. The ABEC rating is how much clearance there is between balls and races.
The Phils may be deliberately a bit loose and expected to be used in a system where preload can be adjusted.

[Gearjunkie]

Thanks for the replies.

Phil Wood - good idea, should have thought of them.

Trouble is their web site doesn't yet sell on line and a google search has only given me on line shops in the US that will charge more for shipping to New Zealand than the cost of the bearings I need.

Anyone know of an online source in the UK for these (shipping from the UK to NZ is usually much more reasonable).

Thanks again.

GJ

[ergott]

I would contact Tristan and see what they can do for you.

http://wheelworks.co.nz/

[Ozrider]

Enduro Abec 5 bearings are really good and not too expensive

[fifarafa]

better/best quality bearings are from FAG. I've 6802 2rs made in Japan.
in UK:
http://www.akbearings.co.uk/product.asp ... 4&P_ID=995

or
http://www.wychbearings.co.uk/bike_bearings.html

[bm0p700f]

NTN bearings are the best you can buy. Finding them though is not easy. Royce sell 6001 and 6901 for there hubs but where you get the others I'd love to know.

[sanrensho]

I doubt you could go wrong with SKF or NSK.

[DMF]

Work as a bike mechanic and "forced" to use SKF. Seriously have to say that for high end wheels, bottom brackets, etc, I feel they are a bit disappointing and not all that super smooth. For industrial use, they're fine. For my own best bike, I wouldn't use them if given a choice. Then again, I'm a snob.

[thisisatest]

At a lower price point than SKF or Phils I've found VXB bearings to be decent.

What ABEC rating are those Phils? I usually get ABEC 3 or 5. The ABEC rating is how much clearance there is between balls and races.
The Phils may be deliberately a bit loose and expected to be used in a system where preload can be adjusted.

ABEC is not the clearances between balls and races. That is specified separately. It is a general "quality" level, with tolerance levels set for race width and roundness, parallelism, among other things.
A quote from AST Bearings:
"While the bearing tolerance classes primarily control boundary dimensions of the rings, it should also be noted that there are features that are critical to the bearings performance and life that are not controlled by the ABEC (or ISO) specifications. These include: internal clearance, surface finish, ball accuracy, torque, noise, cage type, and lubrication. These items should be specified along with the precision class when selecting bearings to ensure optimum life and performance. In many cases, it is one of these features, not precision level, that when specified properly yields the desired performance and or life."
ABEC also doesn't take into account material. Material type and quality can make a big difference.

[kavitator]

What about EZO bearings?

How much are SKF or FAG better? If they are

ENDURO looks like same durable as EZO

[shimmeD]

Check out speedtheory.co.nz aka cyclenut (on this forum) and keep it local.

[TheRookie]

Epic thread resurrection!