ABEC VS. SKATE RATED WHAT ABEC RATING ARE YOUR BEARINGS?

We are often asked, What ABEC rating are your bearings? The answer is that Bones Bearings are Skate Rated not ABEC rated. Bones Bearings are the skate industry leader and favorite choice of professional skaters, and have been since their development in 1983. During the past 26 years, Bones Swiss have become legendary because of their superior speed quality, and longevity. Even though Bones Swiss are the top rated bearing in skating, we dont give them an ABEC rating. There is a good reason for this... thank you for asking. The ABEC rating system has been around for the last 35 years. The purpose of the ABEC committee (Annular Bearing Engineers Committee) is not to test every manufacturers bearings and proclaim them good or bad, but to establish dimensions, tolerances, geometry, and noise standards for bearings in an attempt to aid industrial bearing manufacturers and users in the production, comparison and selection of bearings for general applications. However, since every bearing is used in a different manner and environment, bearings should be redesigned or customized for special uses (like skating). The ABEC rating system is not intended to be the only criteria used for selecting bearings for use in specialized applications like skating. It is only one of the tools a bearing designer can use if it is appropriate for the application. The ABEC rating system includes grades 1,3,5,7, and 9. The higher the ABEC rating, the tighter the tolerances are, making the bearing a more precision part. High precision and small tolerances are required for bearings to function at very high RPM, in products like high speed routers that must spin at 20 to 30,000 RPM. In an application like this, an ABEC - 7 or 9 bearing rating may be appropriate. However, a skateboard with 54mm wheels turning 20,000 RPM will be traveling about 127 MPH! Since virtually all skating is done under 30 MPH, the realistic maximum RPM your skate bearings will see is about 4700 RPM and probably 90% of skating occurs under 2000 RPM. Thus, very high precision is not required at skating speeds. The dimensions and tolerances controlled by the ABEC standards include the diameters and widths of the raceways, their shapes to some extent and the smoothness of the running surfaces. The ABEC rating system ignores side loading, impact resistance, materials selection and grade, appropriateness of lubrication, ball retainer type, grade of ball, the clearance between the balls and the races, installation requirements, and the need for maintenance and cleaning. All these bearing design requirements are very important to the performance of your skate bearing, even though the ABEC rating says nothing about them. From our testing of bearings and our 26 years of experience designing bearings for skating, we know that there can be a HUGE difference between the performance of two bearings that both have the same ABEC rating. Indeed, we have found that in many cases, bearings with high ABEC ratings dont perform as well as others with lower ABEC ratings in a skate wheel. Thus, reliance on ABEC ratings alone can lead skaters and dealers to choose a bad bearing for skating over a good bearing for skating. That is why we dont use the ABEC rating system at all. In essence, the ABEC rating is irrelevant to the performance of a skate bearing when it is used as the sole criteria for selection. To explain this another way, choosing an ABEC-7 or 9 bearing for skating would be like choosing an Indy car to race in the Baja 500 because Indy cars can go fast and are of high precision. It isnt that the Indy car isnt a good piece of equipment, just that it is not designed for off road use and so it would quickly fail when its suspension breaks and its engine clogs with dirt.

Bones Bearings out perform all other bearings because we went to the trouble to skate rate Bones Swiss and Bones REDS, not just select an ABEC rated industrial bearing and put a customized plastic shield on it. Bones have been completely redesigned for skating from the ground up and are built to Bones specifications that include Skate Rated components, lubricants, tolerances and clearances. Bones Bearings component parts are engineered and tested to withstand the high impacts of hard landings, the high side loads of turning, and (to the extent possible) the dirt of skate environments. As a result, Bones roll faster and last longer than other bearings. To merely give Bones an ABEC rating would be to ignore all the improvements we have engineered into Bones and the resulting difference between Bones and standard ABEC rated bearings. Since there is no appropriate ABEC rating that will reflect the superior quality of Bones Bearings, we have given them their own rating, Skate Rating, to let you know that Bones Bearings are special and made just for skaters like you, not for electric motors.

MAINTAINING YOUR BONES BEARINGS FOLLOW THESE STEPS FOR THE BEST PERFORMANCE. Congratulations on acquiring a set of Bones Bearings, known world-wide as the best brand of skateboard bearings available. All Bones Bearings are Skate Rated to our precision tolerances to give you the absolute maximum speed and life possible, not ABEC rated like bearings designed to operate in motors or normal machinery. The superb quality of Bones chromium bearing steel races with their mirror like super finish, removable, non-contact rubber shields, high speed, precision molded ball retainers, and Bones Speed Cream lubricant provide unequalled roll and ease of maintenance. So, carefully install them in your wheels and youre ready to roll. KEEP THEM CLEAN

Exploded View of bearing Your new Bones Bearings are the most accurately manufactured part of your skateboard, with clearances and tolerances considerably smaller than 1/1000th of an inch. That means that a single hair is thicker than the clearance between the balls and the races inside the bearing, and a hair will clog it up and slow you down. Because you skateboard outside through dust, sand, water, mud, etc; your bearings will eventually get dirty and/or wet. When they are dirty, you will notice they dont spin freely when you flick the wheel and you may also notice they are getting noisy. At this point you have two options: clean your bearings or replace them. WARNING! Dont continue to use bearings that dont spin freely on your skateboard. If you continue to ride very dirty or un-lubricated bearings, you run the risk of permanently damaging them and/or yourself. Dirt in your bearings will cause pitting of your balls and races, increase friction, cause extra heat, and can eventually cause the

bearing to freeze up or stop rolling. If this happens to your bearings, the skateboard will stop abruptly, causing you to fall and be injured. So keep them clean, dry and lubricated with Speed Cream. MAINTENANCE INSTRUCTIONS Keep your bearings dirt-free, moisture free, and lubricated. Water will rust your bearings and dirt will destroy the smoothness of the super finish on your bearing races, increasing friction. 2. Clean your bearings when they become dirty or noisy with the most environmentally friendly cleaner you can find that is suitable for dissolving oil, grease, and removing dirt from the steel, plastic and rubber surfaces. We have tried many cleaners and solvents and many of them can be used safely. Citrus based cleaners can work, but they tend to leave behind a slight residue. Solvents are dangerous to use, but often provide a superior solution to cleaning very dirty bearings. If you use a water based cleaner like a citrus cleaner or a detergent, be sure to dry your bearings IMMEDIATELY and then re-coat them with lubricant to prevent rust. Some solvents/commercial products that we have used are: pure, or almost pure, isopropyl alcohol (The kind normally found in markets is only 10% pure and does not cut grease well.); Gumout carburetor cleaner (found in auto parts stores); acetone (found in hardware stores). If you cant find any of these solvents like acetone or pure alcohol, you can use paint thinner or lacquer thinner, but these cleaners are oil based and may leave an oily residue on the inner surfaces of your bearings. 3. If you use a solvent cleaner, please wear appropriate rubber gloves and work in a safe well ventilated area. When you are finished, please remember to dispose of your solvent in a safe, ecologically sound manner. 4. Do not add oil to dirty bearings. It will not clean the bearing, but merely flush the existing dirt further into the bearing. It may seem like they roll faster initially, but in reality you are only spreading the dirt around, and it will still be there to ruin the high precision rolling surfaces of your bearings. Clean your bearings before relubricating them. CLEANING INSTRUCTIONS 1. Gently remove the non-contact rubber shield with a push pin or the edge of a small knife by prying the shield upwards from under the shield at the inner race. It should pop up and out quite easily, so handle them gently and dont bend them or cut the seal. If you have the labyrinth shield bearings, make sure to remove both of them. Be careful not to bend or tear the shield as you remove them. Bent shields dont fit right and may allow contaminants into the bearing. Dont use solvents to clean the rubber shields! Doing so may cause the rubber to blister or swell from the solvents. Just wipe the rubber shields down with warm soapy water and a lint free cloth. Make sure the shields are completely clean and dry before re-installing. 2. Optional Cage Removal: You can clean your bearings more thoroughly by removing the ball retainer or cage. We only recommend this if you are using the Bones Bearing Cleaning Unit or are an experienced bearing cleaner. To remove the ball retainer, take a straightened paper clip or similar object and place it in the spaces between the ball seats, then push the ball retainer out. Pushing alternatively in several different spots is often helpful. We recommend ONLY pushing the retainers out. If you pry them out, you will damage the ball cavities, ruining the surface of that cavity. This will, at a minimum, create more vibration and a slower bearing, and at worst, cause the entire bearing to fail. When you remove the cage, the balls can all shift over to one side and in some cases, may fall completely out of the rings. The Bones Bearing Cleaner isolates each bearing with spacers, so there is less of a chance the balls may all come together on one side of the bearing and then fall out of the races. This is, however, somewhat common during bearing cleaning, and doesnt mean the bearing is broken, merely 100% disassembled! If your balls fall out of the races, youll need to reassemble the bearing from scratch. Its easy, and is how the bearings were assembled in the first place, so dont panic. You need a soft surface like a folded towel. Take the outer race and the 7 balls and place them on the towel. Make sure all the bearings are on one side like a crescent moon. Press down on the side of the outer race where all the balls are at. Angle in the inner race so the running surface of the inner race aligns with the balls and pull to the center of the outer race. It will take you a few tries more than likely, but youll get it. 3. Clean your bearings and your ball retainers: If you have chosen to remove them, soak them in your cleaning solution in a polyethylene, polypropylene, or metal jar. (We dont recommend glass, because it is easy to break, but be aware that some plastics may melt in some solvents, so be sure to use one you know is safe.) Wear suitable rubber gloves and eye protection. Gently agitate the jar making the solution flush through the bearing. Keep replacing the dirty solution with clean solution until the solution no longer changes color and 1.

you are satisfied with the smoothness of the bearing roll. If you have the Bones Bearing Cleaning Unit, please revert to the instruction methods provided in the bottle. 4. Dry your bearings: Remove the bearings and the ball retainers from the cleaning solution and dry immediately. We recommend a can of compressed air to make sure all the dirt, grease, solvents, cleaners, etc. have left the inner workings of the bearing and no water is left. Do so carefully, so as to not get the cleaning agents in your eyes or anywhere but onto a cloth on your work area. 5. Reinstall your cages: If you have removed the ball retainers, use the paper clip to spread the balls out evenly and then insert the ball retainer so that each ball is over a ball seat. Then, gently snap the ball retainers back into place. Once you have all the retainers installed back into your bearings, check each bearing to be sure it spins freely. If not, repeat your cleaning cycle or replace the bearing. 6. Lubricate your bearings: We recommend 2 drops of Bones Speed Cream per bearing for bearings with steel balls. For Bones Swiss Ceramic Bearings, only one drop per bearing is needed. Do not be tempted to use your bearings without any lubricant because they spin faster without lubricant. Although this is partly true in a superficial way, riding your bearings without lubricant will cause them to fail quickly and may cause them to freeze up, which is NOT something you want to happen to you when you are skating! 7. Reinstall your clean rubber shields: Place each one flat on the open side of a clean bearing where the balls are visible. Be sure the Bones name on the shield is facing outwards, then press the rubber shields gently into place using your thumb and a rolling action. Inspect the ring around the inner race making sure there are no dimples in the rubber shield. If there are, run your thumb around it to flatten it out. If you have Bones labyrinth shield bearings, the shields are identical so follow this procedure for both sides of the bearing. Spin each bearing for a couple of revolutions in your fingers to distribute the lubrication throughout the inner workings of the bearing. Leave a slight coat from your fingers on the outer sides of the bearing to prevent rusting. 8. Reinstall your bearings: When installing bearings into your wheels, be careful not to use a tool that will put direct pressure on the shield or the inner race only. Denting the shield will only cause friction and slow your bearing down. A proper bearing press or tool will only press on the outer ring of your bearing during insertion. Use a bearing press or your truck/axle to press the bearings back into your wheels. Be sure to check that your bearings are aligned properly so that your wheels spin freely, quietly, and smoothly. If they dont, you will have to back track to seat the bearings parallel and fully into the wheel. If they still dont spin smoothly and quietly, you will have to troubleshoot the cleaning process to find out which bearing component is incorrectly installed or worn out, and then replace that component or bearings as need be, before using the bearing in your wheel. REGARDING COMPETITION USE High precision bearings like Bones roll their best after about an hour of use in a clean environment (this initial use is called a break in period). If you want your bearings at their peak prior to a competition or a race, we highly recommend you break in your bearings, then clean and re-lubricate them and store in a moisture free container until you are ready to use them. When storing your bearings, be sure there is a light coat on the outer races with our Bones Speed Cream, or a light oil to prevent them from rusting. Note: We have attempted to foresee any possible problem you may have during your cleaning process, and so these instructions may seem complex at first reading. The bearing cleaning process is logical and simple though, and you should have no problem doing this if you can understand our sequential steps. If you have any questions regarding your bearings, please feel free to contact us. Skate hard and enjoy your new Bones Bearings! GEORGE A. POWELL