Just to shed some light on the subject of bearings, there are some misconceptions about bearing numbers and what they mean. I would like to think that I have some knowledge on the subject being that my main business is bearings and seals, for my industrial company.

The bearings that come in these superchargers are C3 bearings. This C3 has nothing to do with quality or precision, it's just the internal clearance of the bearing. C3 is considered "standard fit". C2 or C1 is "tighter fit" while C4 is looser fit. That said, don't be fooled by someone saying C3 is a higher quality bearing, it has nothing to do with quality, just the internal clearance of the bearing.

There are also a million brands that manufacture bearings. Obviously, you do want to stay away from Chinese bearings, although there are some high quality Chinese factories that produce good bearings. Many of the Chinese factories have all state of the art new facilities, it's just the quality of the material that they use to manufacture that can be questionable. SKF is a brand that everyone thinks is an industry leader in bearing quality, however, you are really paying a higher price for the name rather than quality. ORS is a mfg. in Turkey that is 1/2 the price of SKF, but quality is top notch. They purchase all their steel from SKF Sweden, balls are from SKF Italy, and equipment is all from an old SKF plant. Another well known name is the German manufacturer FAG bearings. What many don't know is that most of their ball bearings are now manufactured in Korea by a company called KBC.

Basically, I'm just trying to let you guys know that we are knowledgable about bearings, and only would sell good quality bearings. All our kits use NTN bearings which are on par or better quality than the NSK bearings that actually come stock in the Eatons. They are also C3 fit which is also what come stock. Sorry for the long post but I hope this sheds some light on what's behind bearings.

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2002 GTP - 13.66 @ 102.77

Rolling Performance

Very good information, may have to sticky this for a while or put it somewhere for all to come across when its needed.

So give me some details on those ceramic bearings. Ive been on the fence about those. How much drag/friction can they reduce and what would its overall affect be since you still have to spin the rotors that also sit in bearings that arent ceramic?

Anyway, just trying to learn cause I like to reduce friction where I can.

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Scotty Hall
Bartlesville, OK
2001 Pontiac Grand Prix GTP
It whines a lot, but I like it.

The only limitation you will ever face in life is yourself!

That is some really good info.

German Quality FTW...till I read that.

I had head about SFK thing, but never heard it from another reliable source till now. Thats how it goes now a days...you pay for the name but not the quality.

As for the China made bearings, I do agree they have the machines to make, or should say could make a quality bearing, but the material they make it from is of poor quality. Got to love the recycled ore they buy from America huh? LOL Much like the metal they make their cars from..recycled - recycled ore.

Now I remember what I emailed you guys about years ago.

I'm sending you a PM here in a minute.

~F~

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The ceramic bearings offer 40% less friction and 60% less rotating weight. They were developed with high speed machine tools in mind so they are well suited for our blower application also. As with regular bearings, there are a lot of Chinese ceramics out there so beware. Our ceramic bearings are made with Cerbec balls, made in the USA.
Some good info on their website Cerbec | ceramic bearing balls

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2002 GTP - 13.66 @ 102.77

Rolling Performance

Thats some really good info. Do the ceramic bearings come sealed and lubed or are they lubed from the oil in the supercharger snout itself?

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Scotty Hall
Bartlesville, OK
2001 Pontiac Grand Prix GTP
It whines a lot, but I like it.

The only limitation you will ever face in life is yourself!

I would be more than sure they would have the ends opened and would get its lube from the supercharger oil. You would almost have to.

~F~

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Thats what I was kinda thinking but I wanted to be sure.

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Scotty Hall
Bartlesville, OK
2001 Pontiac Grand Prix GTP
It whines a lot, but I like it.

The only limitation you will ever face in life is yourself!

They are open, just like standard bearings. Bearings have a higher max rpm rating when lubricated with oil like the oil in the supercharger, than when lubricated by grease, such as a sealed bearing. Your standard steel bearing carries a speed limitation of 20000 rpm for the rear bearing and 18000 rpm for the front bearing when oil lubricated. With the ceramic bearings, the rating will increase by 35% and your fatigue life rating increases by over 250% (meaning it will last at least 2.5 times longer than steel bearing)

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2002 GTP - 13.66 @ 102.77

Rolling Performance

You know, Im glad you are here. We need more knowledgeable people like yourself here. I think between you and Farnsworth we ought to have the the M90 snout covered pretty well.

Are there any ceramic bearings for the housing? Those needle bearings?

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Scotty Hall
Bartlesville, OK
2001 Pontiac Grand Prix GTP
It whines a lot, but I like it.

The only limitation you will ever face in life is yourself!

Unfortunately not. There's a company in Germany called Cerobear that makes ceramic needle bearings but they are REALLY expensive. They make a caged needle roller that the NASCAR teams use as a rod bearing but they are really just not affordable right now. Maybe sometime down the line they might get better but as of now it's not an option.

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2002 GTP - 13.66 @ 102.77

Rolling Performance