Clearance - Bearings - Technical

Bearing Clearance

The clearance or radial play of a bearing is equal to the total radial displacement, in the median plane perpendicular to the bearing axis of the inner ring in relation to the outer ring, under the effect of a small measuring force.

clearance Diagram

Exagerated depiction of various levels of Radial Play. The starting amount is also adjusted by other factors such as housing tolerances, loads and temperature.

Because of the complexity of measurement and taking into consideration manufacturing tolerances, radial play is always indicated between two limits. Normal clearance for miniature bearings is considered to be 5 to 15 um (.0002 to .0006").

MBA bearings are usually further broken down into sub groups using the precision miniature bearing clearance scale MC1 to MC6. Refer to the chart below.

Clearance (play) is not one of the criteria of bearing quality but if badly chosen or unfavourably influenced during mounting, it can adversely affect the operation and even reduce the working life of a bearing.

Miniature bearing clearances (MC1 to MC6) are not the same as large bearing clearances (C1 to C5 and CN). Miniature clearances more accurately grade bearings under 10mm bore.

MC3 IS NOT C3.

To confuse the issue, bearing manufacturers who only dabble in the miniature market often don't use miniature clearance designations because the clearances to which they manufacture less precise.

A miniature bearing without a clearance designation is usually made to a large clearance range. For example, 624-2RS or 624-ZZ bearings with no clearance designation could have an internal clearance anywhere within the range 5 to 13 microns. It's quite a wide range which is usually ok for everyday applications.

Precision miniature bearing clearances are broken down into more precise groups. MC3 and MC4 can both be considered "standard". MC3 clearance range is 5 to 10 microns and MC4 is 8 to 13 microns. In precision applications, selecting the correct clearance can be critical, but in everyday applications both MC3 and MC4 bearings can be supplied as standard. They are both within the specifications of "standard clearance", just more precisely graded.

Miniature Bearings (Less than 10mm bore size)

This table shows the basic radial clearances available for miniature bearings and applications for these clearances. Dimensions shown in microns um 0.001mm and (1/10th's thou 0.0001").

MBA/ISO Code	Description	Minimum	Maximum	Applications
MC1	Tight	0 (0)	5 (2)	Radially loaded low backlash gear systems. Very low speed.
MC2	Tight	3 (1)	8 (3)	Radially loaded low backlash gear systems. Very low speed.
MC3	Standard	5 (2)	10 (4)	Tape Guides, Synchros, Servo Motors, Low Speed Electric Motors and Gear Trains. Gyro Gimbals (Horizontal Axis).
MC4	Standard	8 (3)	13 (5)
MC5	Loose	13 (5)	20 (8)	High speed Electric Motors and Tape Guides. Provides some compensation for axial loading. Gyro Gimbals (Vertical Axis).
MC6	Loose	20 (8)	28 (11)

Bearings 10mm bore size and over

This table shows the basic radial clearances available for bearings over and including 10mm bore size. Dimensions shown in microns um 0.001mm.

		Min / Max Clearance
		Bore Size Range
MBA/ISO Code	Description	10mm Only	Over 10mm to 18mm	Over 18mm to 24mm	Over 24mm to 30mm	Over 30mm to 40mm	Over 40mm to 50mm
C2	Tight	0 to 7	0 to 9	0 to 10	1 to 11	1 to 11	1 to 11
CN (standard)	Standard	2 to 13	3 to 18	5 to 20	5 to 20	6 to 20	6 to 23
C3	Loose	8 to 23	11 to 25	13 to 28	13 to 28	15 to 33	18 to 36
C4		14 to 29	18 to 33	20 to 36	23 to 41	28 to 46	30 to 51
C5		20 to 37	25 to 45	28 to 48	30 to 53	40 to 64	45 to 73

You can find many types of bearings in the Small Parts and Bearings Bearings Online Catalogue pages.

For a huge range of bearings online please visit the Bearing Shop Online Website.

Hobby and Engineering Supplies lists a smaller range of products and only the most popular items in each range. They also list many additional hobby specific categories.

For the best range of miniature and small bearings please try the Miniature Bearings Australia website. Miniature Bearings Australia also list a large variety of miniature engineering products.

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