Cheaper bushing material

[alexit]

Have supplier who complains about cost of C360 brass I specify for wheel bushing, what is cheaper material that will do this function too?

Should I have Aluminum or Cast Steel bushing with stainless shaft?

Thanks for your ideas,
Alex

 

[metengr]

To help with a recommendation, could you provide some additional information regarding the type of stainless steel shaft material and operating conditions?

 

[mewhg]

Alex,

Check out the IGUS brand bushings....they are fairly inexpensive and offer good performance.

http://www.igus.com

 

[alexit]

This is a wheel bushing, 6mm OD 316 SS shaft, this bushing (6.5mm ID 10mm OD 30.5mm L), 10.5mm ID PP molded wheel. Load is expected to be ~400N maximum. Maximum speed is <450rpm.

I looked to IGUS, they only make 6mm L standard, so Im using 5x for each wheel which is more money than the brass piece I think.

Thanks still,
Alex

 

[btrueblood]

Sintered bronze (powder metal process) bushings are available from a variety of sources, and are (usually) cheaper than machined parts from bar stock, plus they are usually filled with grease or oil to provide semi-permanent lube source.

 

[EdStainless]

The old name was Oilite, but there are many porus bronze bushing materials available.
Your 316 is cold finished, right? If it is soft you may have a lot of trouble getting good bearing life.

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
Corrosion never sleeps, but it can be managed.

http://www.trenttube.com/Trent/tech_form.htm

 

[tripleZ]

Sintered bushings would be the way to go. Normal P/M, whether it be for brass or another material, often retains it's porosity after sintering. This porosity is used to facilitate oil impregnation, which is primarily used for self-lubricating bearings. Visit the website for more info on P/M (

http://www.ssisintered.com)