Very basic question about axles/shafts.

[tangen78]

What is the official compenent name for a shaft end bearing? I have looked at giant sized component catalogs that seem to have everything. Yet, every bearing is for a shaft that goes straight through. Isn't that how nearly all shafts end... on a bearing? How else would you end one? Maybe I'm just not looking at the right catalog, but I have sure seen a lot of them at this point.

Sorry if my question is offensively stupid, but I'm learning this stuff on my own... playing around with inventions that don't seem to work. In the past I've worked around this problem but for a project I'm doing now I really think I have to buy one.

 

[sreid]

Is it a Thrust Bearing you are looking for to take axial loads?

 

[Barry1961]

Often the bearing butts up against a shoulder or snap ring on the shaft to take the thrust load. This is common with ball and tapered roller bearings. Depending on the type of bearing the thrust load will be some percent of the axial load rating. The loads will be added in most cases.

Barry1961

 

[tangen78]

I have seen a few thrust bearings, but to me it looks like the shaft goes straight through the bearing, failing to end the shaft.

An example of what I need would be an ordinary drill. You put the drillbit (shaft) in the drill(bearing), and it will be able to rotate the y-axis. If you try to push the drill bit in, it won't go in any further assuming it is properly secured. And in the case of a drill you can't pull the shaft out either. However, I only need it to be impossible to push the shaft further.

 

[Iskit4iam]

There is no special bearing for the end of the shaft. The difference is in the housing and bearing covers. Not all applications generate thrust loads but high thrust load applications often require special thrust bearings. Most bearings have some thrust capacity. Tell us about the loads and we can offer more help.

 

[tangen78]

Iskit4iam, its surprises to me to know there are no bearings for shaft ends. I would think such a bearing would be used all the time. I'm powering my project with a cordless drill. The entire cordless drill can slide along an axis, though cannot rotate. The drillbit, actually a gear shaft, has to be able to move something along that same axis. In case you are not sure what I mean, imagine using your drill (turned off) to slide a small piece of plywood along the floor, by gripping it with the drillbit. A serious problem happens when you turn the drill on, which is what my problem is. The weight of the piece being moved vertically along the axis is going to be three pounds at most. So, only a few pounds of load are all I am dealing with.

 

[tangen78]

Iskit4iam, it just occurred to me I have another spot on my machine that needs a bearing end. I have a shaft that ends with a freely rotating gear. Another spot where I would have no idea what to do without a specifically designed bearing.

 

[aamoroso]

I don't see why the shaft cannot go through the end of the bearing. Typically the shaft does pass through the bearing and into a clearance pocket below the bearing in the housing. It sounds to me like a housing issue, not a bearing issue. How are you planning on mounting the bearing, in other words what is holding the bearing inplace.

 

[tangen78]

aamoroso, after thinking about it, the first shaft can in fact go through the bearing, and end without support.

But in my second case, where I have a freely rotating gear on the end of a shaft, any housing would be a major issue.
I may just superglue the bearing on the shaft. Not exactly elegant, but I think it would do the job.

 

[diamondjim]

You might want to search on Wheel Bearings
in your search. Some bearings are bolt on
style rather than fitting on a shaft, but
these are usually large bearings and not
the little guys. Super glue does not take
force the radial direction but primarily used
in the axial direction. I may have this
confused with loctite products.