Radial play (diametral clearance) is the distance the inner ring can be moved radially from one extreme position to the other. Standard RBC Thin Section Ball Bearings are manufactured with enough radial play that some clearance remains after the bearing is properly installed.

When there is negative radial play (diametral preload) there is interference rather than clearance between the balls and the races. As the interference increases, the friction, stiffness and torque also increase. RBC Thin Section Ball Bearings can be manufactured with customer specified diametral preload or clearance. Consult your RBC Sales Engineer for design assistance.

Radial and Axial Runout

Radial runout of RBC Thin Section Ball Bearings is a measurement of the thickness variation of the bearing rings. The outer ring is measured from the ball path to the outer diameter of the ring, the inner ring is measured from the ball path to the bore. Radial runout is defined as the wall thickness variation of the rotating ring.

Axial runout is measured from the ball path to the face of the bearing rings. The variation in thickness measured is the axial runout.