I’m building a custom gearbox with 7075 T-6 spur gears, and I’m concerned that aluminum flakes will enter the races on the roller bearings (SKF 2307) and cause premature failure. So my question is — should I place an oil seal on the shaft first to protect the bearing — or is this an unfounded concern and I should mount the seal in the typical manner outside the bearing? Or both? Or go with a sealed bearing? I’m confused and could use your expertise, please.

The number one question today is: are the current low oil prices a near-term or structural development?

In 1991, Needelman and Zaretsky presented a set of empirically derived equations for bearing fatigue life (adjustment) factors (LFs) as a function of oil filter ratings.

Tucked away in the southwest quadrant of the state of Georgia, amid stately pine stands, pecan farms and cotton fields, sits Oak Crest Lumber.

There is often a lively debate early in a program when we are discussing the pros and cons of laser welded ring gears vs. bolted ring gears. Just a...

End market conditions for the power transmission industry continue to worsen. With the Euro down 13% year to date and U.S. oil production surging we are seeing increasing headwinds, if not storm clouds, for the sector.

With two armed conflicts underway impacting economic performance in Eastern Europe and the Middle East, we continue our investment stance of “Buy on the Sound of Cannons — Selectively” — but readers of Power Transmission Engineering should not be sanguine. Geopolitics is beginning to exert significant pressure on several end markets: I specifically refer to oil price. West Texas Intermediate or WTI has dropped from its $95-105 trading range in late spring to about $75 — about a (25%) drop despite wo ongoing conflicts because of excess supply.

The scene is serene and picturesque. Sunshine reflects off the light chop of the Ohio River, as a barge winds its way into view. While those driving along Louisville’s River Road may be inclined to reach for a camera to capture this idyllic scene, the mood at Nugent Sand Company is anything but tranquil.

The air-oil, two-phase flow inside the multiple-point, oil-jet lubrication ball bearing was studied based on CFD (computational fluid dynamics) theory and technique, and compared with single-point, oil-jet lubrication. The results indicate that the air-oil distribution inside the bearing with multiple-point, oil-jet lubrication is more uniform than single-point injection.

Global economic activity remains good -- noise about China slowing, notwithstanding -- and despite the ObamaCare debacle, non-Christmas-related consumer spending looks pretty good. Europe is still Europe and China continues to grow 7-8 percent -- even as the government seeks to clamp down on its own shadow banking system. And India remains a mess.