SmallParts 7 - Skate - Hobby Information

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SmallParts 7 - Skate - Hobby Information

Skate Bearings - Question 7

What are the Abec grades of bearings available. How different are the grades?

You don't need anything higher than ABEC 1 for skating applications. The precision grade only tells us how close the tolerances are (ie, how close the bearing is to the stated size). There are many other factors relating to the quality of a bearing that will have more impact on your skating experience than the ABEC Grade of the bearing. But if you are still curious - here are the grades...

From Lowest to Highest

ABEC 1 Approximately equal to ISO P0
ABEC 3 Approximately equal to ISO P6
ABEC 5 Approximately equal to ISO P5
ABEC 7 Approximately equal to ISO P4
ABEC 9 Approximately equal to ISO P2

There are a number of factors covered by the ABEC grades, but to give you an idea we will just examine one of these factors - the eccentricity (out of roundness) of the track in the inner ring. For an ABEC 1 (lowest grade) bearing, the maximum eccentricity allowable is 0.0075 mm (0.000295"). This is quite precise - more than precise enough for skates and skateboards. The figures for other grades are

ABEC3: 0.005 mm (0.000197")
ABEC5: 0.0035 mm (0.000138")
ABEC7: 0.0025 mm (0.000098")
ABEC9: 0.0012 mm (0.000047")

If used in high precision, high speed machinery (see above), these minute variations can make a difference. The fact is that no matter which of these bearings you use in skates or skate boards, after 5 - 10 minutes of use the tracks won't just be eccentric, they will become damaged enough to be indistinguishable from one another. Your high priced ABEC 9 bearing might as well be a 50 cent ungraded cheapie.

Skate Index

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Site Summary:

Small Parts and Bearings offers over 100,000 products including small bearings, timing pulleys, timing belts, seals, o-rings, gears etc - see the full listing in the Online Catalogue. Our main business is handled primarily through our internet store or via phone, fax or mail order. To keep our prices low we have minimised overheads by not having a storefront. If you would like to deal through an MBA distributor with a showroom and counter service you can contact H.E. Supplies (Hobby Engineering Supplies).

Using the links at the top of this page you will find extensive information including catalogues (Products and Store link), technical data, and other product specific information. We sell our product worldwide through our online store and have quite low overseas freight rates.

The Small Parts and Bearings online store is linked directly to the Miniature Bearings Australia online catalogue, so all new MBA products are added automatically. Recent additions include full ceramic bearings in Silicon Nitride and Zirconia, and ceramic hybrid bearings for pushbikes and other applications. New products are being added every week. We also suggest that you may want to take a look at the technical information sites - Shafting Information, Couplings Information, Gearboxes Information and General Engineering Parts Information.