Vesconite,vesconite superlube,vesconite hilube,vesconite plates,vesconite rods,vesconite bushing

Vesconite Sheet Rod Bushing (Standard vesconite - Black) is a specialized thermoplastic made from internally lubricated polymers. Proved since the 1960's as an exceptional bearing material in demanding conditions, Vesconite gives low wear even in dirty or unlubricated conditions. Up to 10 times the life of bronze in dirty conditions. Vesconite has high dimensional stability and does not swell in water, in contrast to most synthetic materials which swell in water. For example, nylon swells up to 3% in water and softens.

Vesconite Tube Rod are produced in Standard 1 meter lengths (39.37 inch = 3.28 feet)

Vesconite Sheet Rod Bushing is available in Hollow bar (Bushing), Solid bar (Rod) and Plate (Sheet) form. It is easily machined and we also provide a fully finished machined bush/component service.

High Load Bearing Strength - VESCONITE has very low creep rates under design loadings of 4,351 psi (30 Mpa). Much higher load capacity than nylon and elastomers.

Dimensional Stability - The thermal expansion factor of VESCONITE is only 2.5 times that of bronze, lower than many of the competitors. hdpe and nylon is 5 and 10 times greater, respectfully.

No Water Swell - Only 0.5% at ambient. Negligible in sizing calculations. Most of the competition is way above this. Nylon has a 9-10% water swell. Elastomers have a 1.3 - 3% water swell. Phenolics are at generally at 1.6 - 2% water swell. Water swell is one of the primary causes leading to shaft seizure.

Low Friction - Dynamically, about half that of bronze and nylon. This allows for greater combinations of loads and speeds. Greasing of VESCONITE further deceases friction, allowing higher speeds and improved performance. Water is also an excellent lubricant for VESCONITE bushings.

Abrasion Resistance - VESCONITE provides outstanding abrasion resistance resulting in many times longer service life, when compared to bronze. It is also outperforms other products in poor lubrication and dirty conditions.

Longer Life of the Mating Surfaces - The wear of metal pins and shafts is reduced by up to 90% when VESCONITE bushings are used. This fact, alone, justifies the use of VESCONITE ΓÇô less maintenance.

Chemical Resistance Vesconite is highly resistant to diluted acids, organic solvents, oils, and petrol. It has limited resistance to strong acids and strong alkalis.

Temperature Resistance -Vesconite can withstand continuous temperatures up to 212°F (100°C) dry and 176°F (80°C) wet, with momentary peaks above this. Above 158°F (70°C) an expansion gap must be incorporated into the bearing design for a proper use.

Over the past six decades, Vesconite has become internationally recognised as a versatile, high-performance replacement for traditional bushing and bearing materials. Offering a unique combination of high load-bearing strength, low friction and low wear, Vesconite does not require manual lubrication, even in harsh and dirty working environments.

Vesconite is tried and tested in literally thousands of applications across a wide range of industries – from general industrial to marine, agriculture and many more industries. Vesconite has impressive dimensional stability, and, unlike many synthetic alternatives, Vesconite retains its strength under wet conditions. It displays negligible creep under high load.

Vesconite is available in a wide range of rods, bushings, plates, and machined custom parts

VESCONITE KEY FEATURES

Internal lubrication

Vesconite has built-in lubricants that translate into low friction and long life, even where no lubrication is applied.

High wear resistance

Vesconite provides outstanding wear resistance, resulting in extended service life compared to bronze bushings. Unlike many traditional materials, Vesconite is less affected by poor lubrication and dirty conditions.

High load bearing strength

Vesconite has very low creep rates and can therefore operate under tight tolerances. It has a much higher load capacity than nylon, and its compressive strength and clearances are not affected by water absorption.

Dimensional stability

Vesconite does not swell when exposed to water or humid conditions, while nylon can swell up to 3% when immersed. In most applications, little allowance needs to be made for moisture changes.

Low friction

Vesconite has outstanding dynamic friction, with a friction coefficient (0.13 – 0.18) of less than half that of bronze or nylon. This allows for a higher PV ratio (load x speed).

Temperature limits

Vesconite is suitable for continuous use at 100º – 120°C (212º – 248°F) in dry conditions and 60° – 70°C (140° – 158°F) in wet conditions.

Shaft friendly

With Vesconite, the wear rate of corresponding metal pins and shafts can be reduced by as much as 90%. The resultant cost-saving benefits can alone justify a switch to Vesconite in many applications.

Chemical resistance

Vesconite is resistant to dilute and moderate acids, organic solvents, oils and petroleum. It has limited resistance to strong acids and alkalis.

Easy to machine – easy to fit

Vesconite machines easily on standard wood- and metal-working equipment, such as lathes, milling machines, bandsaws, drilling machines, planers, spindle molders and routers. As many of our customers around the world will testify, Vesconite is a both a pleasure to machine and fit.

Cost saving

Combining an exceptionally low wear rate and shaft-friendly features, Vesconite and its corresponding parts require little maintenance – resulting in significant cost savings.

Vesconite Hilube is our flagship thermopolymer, designed for particularly difficult operating environments. Vesconite Hilube is specifically recommended for moist and underwater applications. These include the pump and marine industry, where regular maintenance is not practically feasible or cost-effective. Displaying superior wear life, especially in poorly lubricated and dirty conditions, Vesconite Hilube has been shown to offer up to ten times the life of bronze bushings.

Vesconite Hilube incorporates an internal lubricant that translates into an exceptionally low friction coefficient. Combined with excellent dimensional stability, low wear rates and a high load-bearing capacity. Vesconite Hilube has a PV rating (pressure x velocity) four times that of nylon bushings.

Vesconite is available in a wide range of rods, bushings, plates, and machined custom parts.

KEY FEATURES

No water swell

Fully saturated, Vesconite Hilube has a negligible moisture absorption rate (0.5%). Its linear swell rate of 0.07% allows for fine clearances in the majority of applications. By way of contrast, nylons absorb moisture by as much as 9% of total mass – resulting in high swell rates and critical loss of clearance, which can lead to seizures.

Superior performance

Vesconite Hilube overcomes the limitations of conventional bearing materials. Its load-bearing capacity is higher than white metal, its wear life in poorly lubricated or dirty conditions more than ten-fold that of bronze. Its self- lubricating properties are far superior to nylon, and unlike nylon-based materials, Vesconite Hilube does not swell in water or humid conditions.

Extended wear life

Vesconite grew out of an identified industry need to reduce maintenance and downtime across a multitude of applications. The resultant product was a huge improvement on conventional nylon, bronze and white metal. Vesconite Hilube takes this a technological step further, offering up to five times the wear life of Vesconite in many applications and superior performance under water.

Low friction

Vesconite Hilube`s friction coefficient (0.08 – 0.12) is approximately half that of bronze and nylon. This allows for a higher PV factor (load x speed). Adding external lubrication or water to the equation will lower friction even further, and the resultant PV factor.

High load-bearing strength

Vesconite Hilube has a much higher load capacity compared to nylon, rubber and elastomer bearings. Unlike nylon, Vesconite Hilube maintains its strength under wet conditions and shows very little creep under heavy load. It has proved particularly superior in higher load applications.

Dimensional stability

An issue common to most synthetic bearing materials, Vesconite Hilube`s coefficient of thermal expansion is comparatively low – approximately one third less than nylon and Acetal. but four times that of bronze. As such, Vesconite Hilube requires slightly more clearance when replacing metal parts. No allowance is required for moisture changes – an important benefit, as the most common reason for polymer bearing failure is thermal expansion and water swell.

Temperature limits

Vesconite Hilube may be used continuously at 100ºC (212ºF) in dry applications, and for short periods at higher temperatures. Load limits should be reduced by half when operating above 80ºC (176ºF).

Shaft friendly

The wear of metal pins and shafts is reduced by as much as 90% when Vesconite Hilube bushings are used. An extremely valuable benefit in terms of cost-saving and maintenance downtime.

Chemical resistance

Vesconite Hilube is resistant to dilute and moderate acids, organic solvents, oils and petroleum. It has limited resistance to strong acids and alkalis.

Vesconite Superlube is a bearing material with one of the lowest coefficients of friction of any bearing material available. It has a coefficient of friction lower than virgin PTFE (Polytetrafluoroethylene).

Vesconite Supelube is exceptional in that coupled with this low friction are excellent load-carrying capabilities with ultra-low wear rates. We keep stock of rod, hollow bar, plate and, using our 80 CNC machines, machine to your drawings.

KEY FEATURES

Low friction

Vesconite Superlube has a friction coefficient of 0.05 to 0.08 under typical loads of 3 to 10MPa when tested dry against steel in long-term tests. The friction is lower than any other plain bearing material tested in long-term tests without external lubrication. The friction is similar to virgin PTFE, except that virgin PTFE cannot sustain a long-term test under any realistic loading as it wears away too quickly, for example when loaded to ≥ 1 MPa.

High load bearing strength

Vesconite Superlube is ideal for long-term bearing loads of up to 10MPa where an exceptional wear life is required.

Hard wearing

Vesconite Superlube is extremely hard wearing, with low wear as a function of the load and velocity.

No water swell

VESCONITE IN AGRICULTURE

Agriculture is a tough environment for bearings – ask any farmer. Traditional bronze and steel bearings have a particularly hard time of it, given the host environment of grit, mud and water. More often than not, the result is rapid wear to both bearing and shaft, and eventual failure and costly downtime. Not so with Vesconite. A unique blend of self-lubrication, low abrasion and high load-bearing strength makes Vesconite the ideal choice for a variety of agricultural applications.

VESCONITE AUTOMOTIVE

Automotive bushings require regular maintenance and greasing and are prone to wear especially in wet or dirty conditions. Self-lubricating Vesconite and Vesconite Hilube eliminate the need for continual greasing and at the same time increases bushing life. Vesconite and Vesconite Hilube are tough and durable and perform well under the mechanical stress that occurs on vehicle suspension systems.

VESCONITE EARTHMOVING

The dirt, abrasion and loads associated with earthmoving equipment create notoriously harsh operating conditions for moving parts. Despite these conditions – more often than not combining dirt and water – Vesconite performs well, and is the ideal material for bushings operating under slow speeds or oscillating movements under high load. With its lubrication-free qualities, Vesconite can save machine operators considerable lubrication downtime, not to mention reduced wear on costly counter moving parts.

VESCONITE HYDRO

The environmentally sensitive hydro-power industry requires components that last longer in the absence of contaminating lubricants. These two factors alone make Vesconite Hilube the ideal bushing and bearing material in these demanding conditions. Water serves as a natural lubricant for Vesconite Hilube, which in turn, ensures a clean and grease-free operating environment. Unlike many traditional materials, Vesconite Hilube does not swell in water, nor does it distort or creep under load within wet hydro-power settings. Therefore not only does Vesconite last longer, so do its metal counterparts.

VESCONITE MARINE

Vesconite is ideal for many marine applications. First tested as a stern tube bearing in 1977, it is suited to both dry and immersed applications – in fact water is an excellent coolant and lubricant.

Vesconite is extensively used for rudder and stern tube bearings. Vesconite`s internal lubricants make it eminently suited to upper rudder bearing applications where there are long periods between greasing or no greasing at all, or where water lubrication cannot be ensured when operating with light ballasts.

The hundreds of vessels equipped with Vesconite during the last 39 years – ranging from pleasure boats to tankers – testify to the desirability of long life, low maintenance Vesconite in marine applications.

VESCONITE IN MINING

Vesconite`s origins lie in the gold mining industry, a notoriously harsh working environment. The product was developed as a maintenance-free alternative to bronze bushings traditionally used in mining equipment. Unlike bronze, Vesconite eliminates three key issues: The need for regular lubrication; the effects of dirt and grit on costly components; the damage caused by water to traditional bushing materials. Vesconite offers up to 10 times the lifespan of traditional bushes in these harsh conditions and saves hours of downtime caused by machines requiring frequent lubrication.

VESCONITE IN PUMPS

Vesconite has been used for decades in a wide range of specialized pump bushing applications.

The material thrives in water and exhibits excellent dimensional stability, with zero delamination. The result is low downtime and associated hassle factor.

Its friction coefficient range of 0.1 – 0.2 allows for dry starting – an issue commonly associated with high wear rates in traditional bushing materials. Corrosion of the bushing is entirely eliminated with Vesconite.

Vesconite Hilube is recommended for many pump applications.

VESCONITE RAIL

Our Vesconite rail polymers have over several decades been successfully used in a number of railway applications. The materials` self-lubricating properties make them well suited to railway components that are prone to metal on metal wear and require regular greasing. Not only will a switch to these bushings and wear components avoid long periods of downtime, the noise and squeal issues commonly associated with rolling stock will be significantly reduced. With a resultant reduction in rolling resistance, considerable power savings have been noted with the use of Vesconite rail polymer components.

VESCONITE RENEWABLE ENERGY

With the drive for clean energy, a multitude of specialised material requirements have emerged, including a requirement for low friction, environmentally-friendly and low to zero maintenance bearings, bushings, and wear components. Vesconite is the ideal solution for this requirement.

Bushings and bearings in the Renewable Energy Industry are characterised by requirements for very long bearing life (20+ years) and low maintenance due to very limited accessibility. In many applications, such as in hydro turbines, pumps, and wave and tidal devices, the bearings are constantly exposed to or submerged in water as well. Loads are typically very large and speeds low, for which Vesconite is ideal. Vesconite and Vesconite Hilube are ideal for such applications due to the low friction and long wear life characteristics of the material. Vesconite is internally lubricated and therefore eliminates the need for greasing. It also exhibits no water swell, which prevents shaft seizure and allows machining to closer tolerances, resulting in slower wear and more efficient operation.

VESCONITE 3D PRINTER BUSHINGS

3D printer users report a phenomena called [dimpling and pimpling" when a rod becomes
nonuniform. This phenomena is caused by the rod slightly lifting on one side and slightly
tilting on the other side as the extruder head moves from one side to the other. This is typically a result of wear to the rod.

3D printer users report that this phenomena is eliminated when Vesconite Hilube bushings are introduced. Vesconite Hilube is a highly advanced thermopolymer in the Vesconite range, particularly suited to operating in wet conditions, including pump and marine applications. Combining low friction and low wear properties, Vesconite Hilube performs exceptionally well under difficult operating conditions.

VESCONITE IN FORKLIFTS

A forklift can operate for up to 24 hours each day in various environments. Vesconite is ideal for forklifts used in harsh conditions. The wear parts used in these forklifts need high wear resistance – yet they carry heavy loads. Traditional materials need regular greasing to maintain their wear life. Vesconite`s self-lubricating properties give exceptional wear life at the same time as reducing maintenance and downtime. Vesconite has tried and tested solutions to keep your forklifts running smoothly for longer.

VESCONITE FOOD AND BEVERAGE

Extracting, filtering, milling, purifying, mincing, liquefying, emulsifying, cooking, pickling, pasteurising, canning, slicing, dicing and drying are some of the many physical and chemical means through which raw food ingredients are transformed into other forms.

Plain bearings and wear parts involved in these processes are required to be hard-wearing, hygienic and resistant to food and cleaning chemicals. They are also required to be non-toxic and colour free, in the case of direct food contact.