ball bearing with a flat?

[lagfish]

Hello,
We are looking to use a bearing ball with a flat on it with a depth of less than the radius of the ball. I am wondering if there are already something out there we can use? I can make a few by clamping them in a collet and grinding/machining it down but this would be expensive on a mass production basis. We might be even able to change the design to a plastic like delrin. The surface finish and roundness is important because it will be used to seat against a cone seat for a valve.

 

[Walterke]

If you can do it in plastic I'd suggest injection molding. Make a mold with a bunch of those together connected in such a way that you can break them off easily. That is if you can allow for a small bump (breakoff point) somewhere on the part.

You do know a bearing ball can't serve as a bearing ball if it can't roll right? (you probably do, but I just thought I'd mention it...)

NX 7.5.5.4 with Teamcenter 8 on win7 64
Intel Xeon @3.2GHz
8GB RAM
Nvidia Quadro 2000

 

[lagfish]

How out-of-round are injection moldings? It needs to seal quite well. I should also mention that these balls will be about 0.10 in diameter.

 

[Ceramicguy]

What is your guess on required roundness? Will a grade 25 ball suffice or will you need a grade 5 ball? If it was my job, I would bed the balls in wax so many could be ground simultaneously on a surface grinder or Blanchard.

Bruce

http://www.accuratus.com

 

[dgallup]

Ball manufactures can grind flats, drill holes, etc. Modified balls cost much more than round ones which can be had for pennies.

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