Crossed roller bearings vs. plain roller bearings: How to choose the best mounting method for you?

1. Installation accuracy requirements
Crossed roller bearings: Crossed roller bearings are precisely designed and the contact surfaces of the inner and outer rings are very close, so extremely high precision is required during installation. Any minor installation error can have a significant effect on the running performance of the bearing. Due to the 45° cross arrangement of the rollers, the contact angles between the inner ring, outer ring and rollers must be very precise. Incorrect installation may lead to uneven distribution of contact force on the bearing, thus affecting its load-bearing capacity and working stability.
Installation Notes:
It is important to ensure that the inner and outer rings are parallel and coaxial to avoid additional radial or axial misalignment.
The rollers and cages need to be handled carefully during installation to avoid damage.
Before installation, it is best to use special tools, such as installation sleeves or manipulators, to avoid deviations during manual installation.
Some cross roller bearings are designed with installation locating holes. During installation, you need to ensure that these holes are aligned with the holes of the matching equipment.

Ordinary roller bearings: Ordinary roller bearings are relatively simple in design and usually bear a single load direction (such as radial load), so the accuracy requirements during installation are relatively low. The contact surface between the inner and outer rings of ordinary roller bearings is usually wider and more tolerant, so a larger tolerance range can be allowed during installation, and the installation process is also simpler.
Installation Notes:
It is necessary to ensure that the inner and outer rings of the bearing can rotate freely and should not be too tight or too loose.
Plain roller bearings do not usually require as much fine alignment as crossed roller bearings, other than ensuring that the shaft and bearing fit tightly enough.
For application scenarios with high precision requirements, some ordinary roller bearings also have corresponding installation requirements, but overall they are more relaxed than cross roller bearings.

2. Installation tools and methods
Crossed Roller Bearings: When installing crossed roller bearings, specialized tools are usually required. These tools help ensure that the correct position and angle of the bearings are maintained during installation. Common tools include:
Mounting Sleeve: This tool helps to properly position the bearing and ensure even force during installation.
Robotic arms or automated equipment: In automated, high-precision applications, a robotic arm may be used to precisely position the crossed roller bearings, reducing human error.
Torque control tool: Use a torque tool to control the force applied during installation to avoid damage to the bearing due to excessive installation force. Due to the complex design of crossed roller bearings, some equipment or products will be calibrated multiple times during the bearing installation process to ensure that the accuracy requirements are met.

Ordinary roller bearings: The installation method of ordinary roller bearings is usually simpler. You can use conventional tools such as:
Hammer or impact tool: During installation, you can use a hammer to gently tap the outer race (or inner race) of the bearing to help it install correctly, but you must be careful not to generate too much impact force to avoid damaging the bearing.
Hand Installation Tools: Simple hand tools, such as installation sleeves, allow the bearing to be pressed into the correct installation position.
Press-in tools: In equipment used for mass installation, tools such as press-in machines can be used to smoothly install bearings into shafts or seats.
Due to the looser installation requirements, the installation process of ordinary roller bearings is more intuitive and easy to operate.

3. Debugging and testing after installation
Crossed roller bearings: After installing the crossed roller bearings, more detailed debugging and testing are usually required to ensure that the bearings can run smoothly and meet the designed performance requirements. These tests include:
Contact surface detection: Check whether the contact surface of the inner and outer rings is uniform to avoid uneven load distribution due to installation errors.
Bearing clearance check: Ensure that the clearance after installation meets the design requirements. Too small a clearance may cause overheating, while too large a clearance will affect accuracy and load-bearing capacity.
Rotation accuracy detection: Use precision measuring tools to detect the rotation accuracy of the bearing to ensure that there is no obvious vibration or noise.

Ordinary roller bearings: For ordinary roller bearings, the debugging and inspection after installation are relatively simple. Usually check the following:
Is the rotation smooth: Make sure the bearing rotates smoothly without obvious sticking.
Noise check: Confirm that there is no abnormal noise during the operation of the bearing.
Is the installation position secure: Make sure the bearing is not loose or offset.

4. Maintenance and care after installation
Crossed Roller Bearings: Due to the precision design of crossed roller bearings, they are often used in high-precision or high-load applications and therefore have higher maintenance requirements. Post-installation maintenance includes:
Regularly check the operating status of the bearing, including temperature, noise, vibration, etc.
Replace the lubricating grease or lubricating liquid regularly to ensure the lubrication effect of the bearing.
In high-precision equipment, it may also be necessary to regularly calibrate the running accuracy of the bearing to ensure its long-term stable operation.

Ordinary roller bearings: The maintenance of ordinary roller bearings is relatively simple, usually only requiring regular inspection of the working condition of the bearings, cleaning and lubrication. If the application environment is not harsh, the maintenance cycle can be longer and the maintenance workload is relatively small.

Whether it is crossed roller bearings or plain roller bearings, Shaoxing Shangyu Flight Seiko Machinery Co., Ltd. (FTM) is always committed to providing customers with the highest quality bearing products and professional technical support. We have advanced production equipment, strict quality control system and rich industry experience. We can provide customized solutions according to your needs to ensure that each bearing meets the highest standards. If you are looking for precise and reliable bearing products, FTM is your trusted partner. Please contact us and let us bring more efficient and stable performance to your device.