Is selecting the right lubricant vital? It seems that bearings fail for other reasons- not from picking the wrong oil or grease?
Ans: Bearings do fail for many reasons, but improper lubrication is right at the top of the list. The breakdown why bearings fail would go something like this: 43 per cent due to improper lubrication; 27 percent due to improper mounting; 21percent due to other causes and 9 percent to reaching the fatigue limit of the metal. Reasons for lubrication failure include: 1) Incorrect selection of the grease base for a particular application. 2)Use of grease when condition dictate use of static or circulating oil. 3)Insufficent lubrication either in quantity or required viscosity. 4)Deterioratin of prolonged service without proper relube intervals. 5)Contamination of the lubricant and the bearing with foreign materials.
