# NO! ABEC 7 Bearings will not make you go "faster"!!!!
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-abec-7-bearings-will-not-make-you-go-faster/98550
**Category:** The BBQ Pit
**Created:** [March 15, 2002, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-abec-7-bearings-will-not-make-you-go-faster/98550 "2002-03-15T23:59:00Z")
**Posts on this page:** 19
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@bernse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bernse)
#### Post date: [March 15, 2002, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-abec-7-bearings-will-not-make-you-go-faster/98550/1 "2002-03-15T23:59:00Z")
I’ll give you a bit of background. I’ve been in the bearing industry for 11 or so years now. No, its not “exciting” but it can be interesting at times and I work with some really good people. I am not a P.Eng but I do know a fair amount about bearings and power transmission items. Far more so than the average schmuck.
So, with that being said, I will now say this:
\*\*NO!!! ABEC 7 BEARINGS WILL _NOT_ MAKE YOUR ROLLERBLADES GO FASTER THAN AN ABEC 1 BEARING!!! \*\*
There! I said it! And yes, its true!! I don’t give a shit what you say!
This is one of those cases were a little bit of knowledge is worse than none. I don’t give a shit if you and your pimply teen-aged face has been selling rollerblades for 2 years. That does not make you an expert in bearings. You have absolutely no fucking clue what you’re talking about… and everytime you try to justify it you make yourself sound even more like an idiot. You are a tool of some rollerblade bullshit marketing machine, and thats it. If you genuinely **DO** notice a difference, its due to one of two things:
- Its in your head and you are trying to justify your purchase to yourself.
- The bearings you use are absolute shit.
Here is a rule of thumb. If it actually says in the bearing what ABEC rating it is, chances are its junk. I have never, ever seen a bearing say what its ABEC rating is actually on it other than possibly coded into the part number (which an average joe blow couldn’t understand, nor would there be a need) or _MAYBE_ written on with an electric pencil. I actually have very serious doubts that one of these “high-performance” rollerblade 608’s would actually be any better (or even comperable) to a standard 608 you would get in any bearing shop. I wouldn’t be suprised if they are actually worse. I wish I had the facilites to test them but I do not, but from what I could tell by looking at them the overall quality of many of them just doesn’t look _right_.
And no, the “good quality” bearings don’t have shields and some mysterious goop in them that “keep out the dirt”. That has fuck all to do with the “quality” of them. And no, if they are made out of “titanium” that is not going to make you go faster either.
So please, save your money and my time. The only factors with a “quality” bearing that is going to have the even the slightest impact on how fast they help you go in rollerblades are this:
- The drag that lubricant has on the rotation of the bearing.
- The drag that the sealing mechanism has on the bearing.
And both of those are minimal.
A true, quality ABEC 1 608 bearing that costs about $3 with comperable grease/oil and seal/shielding will perform just as well as a $35 true ABEC 7. The ABEC rating has absolutely, positively nothing to do with it. End of story.
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### Author:  [@Esprix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Esprix)
#### Post date: [March 16, 2002, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-abec-7-bearings-will-not-make-you-go-faster/98550/2 "2002-03-16T00:13:29Z")
So did you tell Mr. Teenybopper this? Or did he just stare blankly and say, “Want fries with that?”
Esprix
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### Author:  [@False\_God](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/False_God)
#### Post date: [March 16, 2002, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-abec-7-bearings-will-not-make-you-go-faster/98550/3 "2002-03-16T00:24:07Z")
What about the flames and racing stripes?
Or the spoiler?
What about a nitrous boost?
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### Author:  [@Tennessee\_Ben](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tennessee_Ben)
#### Post date: [March 16, 2002, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-abec-7-bearings-will-not-make-you-go-faster/98550/4 "2002-03-16T00:41:19Z")
First, I just want to say that I totally believe you. Your zeal about bearings also makes me a little scared of you, but that’s beside the point.
Now, a question: Is it possible that, within a product line, a manufacturer will pack ABEC 1s in, say, Crisco, while packing ABEC 7s in, say, some full synthetic? Likewise with the sealing mechanism? So that, over time, the rating for the quality of the bearing has also become shorthand for the quality of the package as a whole?
I only ask because putting bearings with an ABEC 5 marking on my skates _did_ make them appreciably faster than they were with the stock bearings. I mean, very appreciably faster. Sometimes terrifyingly faster.
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### Author:  [@Tennessee\_Ben](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tennessee_Ben)
#### Post date: [March 16, 2002, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-abec-7-bearings-will-not-make-you-go-faster/98550/5 "2002-03-16T00:44:38Z")
Or, of course, they could just pack the same bearings in different grades of grease with different grades of seals and adopt the ABEC nomenclature.
Or would that be against the law?
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### Author:  [@Una\_Persson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Una_Persson)
#### Post date: [March 16, 2002, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-abec-7-bearings-will-not-make-you-go-faster/98550/6 "2002-03-16T01:14:45Z")
Woo! I just gotta love engineering rants! 🙂
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### Author:  [@Neurotik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neurotik)
#### Post date: [March 16, 2002, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-abec-7-bearings-will-not-make-you-go-faster/98550/7 "2002-03-16T02:16:23Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by False\_God \*
> \*\*What about the flames and racing stripes?
>
> Or the spoiler?
>
> What about a nitrous boost? \*\*
Dude, you put nitrous boosters on your rollerblades?! :eek:
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### Author:  [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)
#### Post date: [March 16, 2002, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-abec-7-bearings-will-not-make-you-go-faster/98550/8 "2002-03-16T02:37:03Z")
OK, so what _is_ an ABEC rating? What’s the difference between ABEC 1 and ABEC 7?
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### Author:  [@Emperor\_Penguin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Emperor_Penguin)
#### Post date: [March 16, 2002, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-abec-7-bearings-will-not-make-you-go-faster/98550/9 "2002-03-16T03:20:36Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by Finagle \*
> \*\* What’s the difference between ABEC 1 and ABEC 7? \*\*
About six I’d say… 😃
(Sorry, couldn’t resist)
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### Author:  [@Billy\_Rubin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Billy_Rubin)
#### Post date: [March 16, 2002, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-abec-7-bearings-will-not-make-you-go-faster/98550/10 "2002-03-16T03:33:33Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by Finagle \*
> \*\*OK, so what _is_ an ABEC rating? What’s the difference between ABEC 1 and ABEC 7? \*\*
Tolerances and balance of the bearing. Abec 6 rated bearings are often used in high speed spindles(30-50,000 rpm), and if you have an unshielded bearing at about Abec 7 and take it out of the clean room where it should be handled, it becomes an Abec 1 pretty quickly.
B.
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### Author:  [@bernse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bernse)
#### Post date: [March 16, 2002, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-abec-7-bearings-will-not-make-you-go-faster/98550/11 "2002-03-16T05:25:49Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by Tennessee Ben \*
> \*\*First, I just want to say that I totally believe you. Your zeal about bearings also makes me a little scared of you, but that’s beside the point.
>
> Now, a question: Is it possible that, within a product line, a manufacturer will pack ABEC 1s in, say, Crisco, while packing ABEC 7s in, say, some full synthetic? Likewise with the sealing mechanism? So that, over time, the rating for the quality of the bearing has also become shorthand for the quality of the package as a whole?
>
> I only ask because putting bearings with an ABEC 5 marking on my skates _did_ make them appreciably faster than they were with the stock bearings. I mean, very appreciably faster. Sometimes terrifyingly faster. \*\*
Fair question.
Short answer: No. The type of grease really doesn’t have anything to do with an ABEC rating, nor does the seal (well, not really). Its entirely possible that the same grease/shield could be in a 1 and 7.
My guess why your “5’s” seemed or where faster than the ones:
- Superior lubricant
- You original ones were crap and/or shot
BTW, just because a grease is “synthetic” doesn’t mean its autmoatically better.
> [@](#):
>
> OK, so what is an ABEC rating? What’s the difference between ABEC 1 and ABEC 7?
ABEC - Annular Bearing Engineers Council… or something like that. I’m going from memory.
Whats the difference between them? Interestingly enough, the biggest difference is that the ID and OD of the higher ABEC rating is closer to the true ID/OD that the bearing is supposed to be… measured in the single micrometers. I would have to check the specs on a 608 to tell you what the exact difference is. I can safely say that the wheel and axle are not nearly made precisely enough to make even the slightest bit of difference as to what the bearing is… even if there where (which they aren’t) by the time you install it and put it under your feet all is lost anyway.
Did you know that if a conrad ball bearing is dropped (which a 608 is), be it an ABEC 1 or 9, it _should_ be scrapped as it may have been damaged? Now, imagine the shock that the little suckers take underneath your feet? Getting pounded away when your walking on your skates, with them rolling sometimes and othertimes not.
> [@](#):
>
> Tolerances and balance of the bearing. Abec 6 rated bearings are often used in high speed spindles(30-50,000 rpm), and if you have an unshielded bearing at about Abec 7 and take it out of the clean room where it should be handled, it becomes an Abec 1 pretty quickly.
I’ve never heard of an ABEC 6, I was under the impression they were all odd-numbered. Why? I can’t remember. A “clean room” won’t have an effect on the rating as long as it isn’t mishandled… if it gets badly mishandled it’ll just become junk, be it an ABEC 1 or 9. As for the speed capabilites, there may be a difference between the ABEC ratings but it shouldn’t be very great. The steel can only have so much centrifigual force on it before it fails anyhow.
What do I think are best for rollerbladers? Glad you asked! 😃
Firstly, I strongly do **NOT** recomend shielded ones. That is what almost everyone buys and what I have seen for sale at sports shops. Sealed are far better (contact seals the best) but the _hardcore_:rolleyes: skaters think they have too much drag, even though it is so minimal I can’t see it making a difference… but what do I know? So, I would probably recomend a non-contact seal. NSK markets them with a VV suffix, Koyo a 2RU and NTN a VV. I cannot remember anyone elses nomenclature from the top of my head. Low drag \ but still keep out the crap far better than shielded, or ZZ/2Z types.
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### Author:  [@bernse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bernse)
#### Post date: [March 16, 2002, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-abec-7-bearings-will-not-make-you-go-faster/98550/12 "2002-03-16T05:33:14Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by Esprix \*
> \*\*So did you tell Mr. Teenybopper this? Or did he just stare blankly and say, “Want fries with that?”
>
> Esprix \*\*
I tried, god knows I even try not to swear at them ;). I imagine all of them tell their little skater buddies that I _obviously_ have no idea what I’m talking about… _everyone_ that knows rollerblading knows that ABEC1s are shit and ABEC7’s are **THE** shit. :rolleyes:
Better for me that way anyhow… I have better things to do at work then waste my time (even _try_ to educate) these morons.
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### Author:  [@Billy\_Rubin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Billy_Rubin)
#### Post date: [March 16, 2002, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-abec-7-bearings-will-not-make-you-go-faster/98550/13 "2002-03-16T13:30:53Z")
Got a set of three matched and balanced bearings on my desk from NTN marked “Abec 6” on the box. This could as easily be a problem with translation.
The cleanliness of these bearings is important enough that I will never open the box except in a clean room environment, and then only after carefully wiping the box free of all contaminants.
In my career as a CNC technician I have changed something like 300 sets of spindle bearings. and if they are not kept clean during installation they fail quickly. Spending high cash on a set of precision bearings and then placing them on the ground, essentially, is just goofiness. Aside from which, unless the bearings are installed in sets, and the matchmarks lined up properly, and the shafts they rest on and the bores they sit in are ground to fairly high tolerances, and the bearings accurately preloaded, it defeats the purpose anyway.
And at the speeds I use these bearings, the only safe lube is a sub-micronic oil mist. Grease of any kind at 30,000 rpm is like the bearings hitting a brick wall- and the purity of the grease becomes an issue as well. On the lower speed bearings, we use Kluber-NBU-15, probably one of the highest purity lubricants on earth, and it still won’t work at high speeds.
You’re probably fighting a losing battle, Bernse. Best thing is to see if you can make some money off their stupidity. They’ll eventually grow up to become pathetic ricers who put stickers on their cars so they’ll be faster.
b.
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### Author:  [@bernse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bernse)
#### Post date: [March 16, 2002, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-abec-7-bearings-will-not-make-you-go-faster/98550/14 "2002-03-16T15:38:21Z")
I agree with you, cleanliness is extremely important regardless of how good they are.
Mind if I ask you what the spindle bearings are that you are using? I am guessing some kind of angular contact set? When I go back to the office on Monday your going to make me look into this ABEC 6 thing now for NTN, you realize that? 🙂
And you are of course correct with using oil spray at speeds anywhere near where you are using them.
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### Author:  [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)
#### Post date: [March 16, 2002, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-abec-7-bearings-will-not-make-you-go-faster/98550/15 "2002-03-16T15:51:12Z")
Well not all skateboarders are idiots…
[A Bunch of Excrementitious Crap](http://www.skateboard.com/frontside/skatelife/features/ABEC/default.asp)
> [@](#):
>
> ABEC is a term that has been around long before skateboarding. It stands for Annular Bearing Engineers’ Committee, a committee that is responsible for the standardization and rating of bearings. The numbers (1,3,5,7,9) refer to the tolerances to which the bearing is produced. A 608 size bearing (the size used in skateboarding) has a bore of 8mm, an outer diameter of 22mm, and a width of 7mm. The accuracy to which the bearing is produced (measured in tiny units called microns) determines the ABEC rating, 9 being the most accurate. An ABEC-9 bearing will be the closest to the above, ideal, measurements. What this means is that an ABEC-9 bearing will perform more effectively than one with a lesser rating, but not until it is put under extremely high-speed circumstances. I’m talking faster than Chris Senn. Unless you are skating at hundreds of miles per hour, ABEC doesn’t mean shit.
>
> Perhaps the reason it is still used in skateboard applications is because us stupid humans want easy and upfront answers; Which bearing is best? Must be the ABEC 7. Sorry pal, but it just aint so. Truth is, that’s why top bearing manufacturers such as Bones or Pig opt not to rate their highest performance bearing. What’s more, ABEC ratings were intended for bearings that, not only travel at extremely high speeds, but that are put under very different circumstances than a skateboard bearing would be. The stress of most bearings, used in machinery applications, is placed perpendicular to the axle in which it sits on. In other words, the bearing spins forward, the bearing spins backward, and that’s all it does. In skateboarding, the bearings (much like our bodies) are tweaked and squashed and put under much more arbitrary stresses. A good bearing is not only accurately and precisely produced, it is strong and well lubricated. Lubrication, in fact, is the biggest factor in the speed of your skateboard bearings.
>
> So, next time you want an easy answer as to the best bearings, try finding an easy answer to “What’s the best board?” or “What’s the best truck?” Trial and error is the only way to go, so get out there and skate.
etc etc
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### Author:  [@Billy\_Rubin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Billy_Rubin)
#### Post date: [March 16, 2002, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-abec-7-bearings-will-not-make-you-go-faster/98550/16 "2002-03-16T18:12:39Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by bernse \*
> \*\*I agree with you, cleanliness is extremely important regardless of how good they are.
>
> Mind if I ask you what the spindle bearings are that you are using? I am guessing some kind of angular contact set? When I go back to the office on Monday your going to make me look into this ABEC 6 thing now for NTN, you realize that? 🙂
>
> And you are of course correct with using oil spray at speeds anywhere near where you are using them. \*\*
We’re using a back to back pair with a spring loaded “trailer” bearing. the idea is the “nose” of the spindle needs to be rigid to maintain tolerances, while the “tail” of the spindle just needs to stay in place. The spindle and housing are of dissimilar materials so the “tail” bearing instead of having a mechanical preload has springs to preload the bearing, compensating for the difference in thermal expansion of the two dissimilar materials.
These bearings are sold in matched and balanced sets of three. I spoke with my old Master, retired now some twenty years, and he seemed to think that the 6 number had something to do with the way the bearings were matched. Whatever the case, it’s a japanese configuration and not from NTN Elgin or NTN USA. (both my customers, by the way!) He said that the bearings by themselves were ABEC 5.
I know if you didn’t have the “vee” etched on the outer race and the “stars” on the inner race lined up, it would fail nearly twice as fast as if you didn’t, and it was invariably louder.
Nice to meet you, by the way, and if you come up with any more accurate information, or if you find that this is a load of hooey, let me know… These bearings come from Japan, so if you can’t find anything out, let me know that also, I’ll write them and see what I can learn.
b.
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### Author:  [@red\_dragon60](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/red_dragon60)
#### Post date: [March 16, 2002, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-abec-7-bearings-will-not-make-you-go-faster/98550/17 "2002-03-16T19:52:23Z")
I think I have ABEC 3s in my skateboard. I know people who swear by 5s and above, but I don’t really know the validity in that. Companies that make high end bearings make a superior product compared to lesser ones, regardless of the ABEC rating. I think it has a lot more to do with the lubricant than the ABEC, but I am no engineer.
off-topic- Congratulate me! I convinced someone not to use WD40 on their bearings and instead choose one made for bearings. WD40 is crap as far as lubrication is concerned. It dissolves out the grease and then evaporates away, leaving you with a healthy feeling of ‘screwed’. I am going to the local board shop today to pick up grease.
Also, one question. If high ABEC rated bearings do not make you go faster, what are they good for, skateboard-wise? Thanks!
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### Author:  [@Kamandi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamandi)
#### Post date: [March 16, 2002, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-abec-7-bearings-will-not-make-you-go-faster/98550/18 "2002-03-16T23:08:10Z")
I’m with Anthracite on this one. All this geek talk is makin’ me so HOT!
Pass the lubricant!
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### Author:  [@KarmaComa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarmaComa)
#### Post date: [March 17, 2002, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-abec-7-bearings-will-not-make-you-go-faster/98550/19 "2002-03-17T01:10:47Z")
I use WD40 to clean my bearings (as I tend to get salt and mud in them… stupid Canada…), and I easily believe that it’s bad for your bearings.
Are there bearing lubes that I can get in there without going through the intense pain in the ass of taking apart my skateboard? These are shielded bearings.