This page was created with information contained from several posts to various yo-yo webboards by Jim Pankey (`5). Thanks to Jimbo for going to the effort to compile the information and for giving me permission to post it here.
After wondering what ABEC was and being asked a couple of times I went looking for an answer. I found out first what ABEC stands for.
Annual Bearing Engineers Committee
What is that?
"Precision ball bearings are manufactured to standards established by the Annual Bearing Engineers Committee (ABEC) of the Antifriction Bearing Manufacturers Association (AFBMA). They have been accepted by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and conform essentially with the standards set by the International Standards Organization (ISO). "
Maybe that will help... maybe not, but it gives a slight idea as to what the ABEC means when you see it. Basically ABEC is a grading set up to identify and set dimension tolerences in the manufacturing of bearings.
I also discovered what ABEC does not cover:
"ABEC and ISO Standards do not cover the following factors: Radial Play, Raceway Curvature, Roundness or Surface Finish, Material, Ball Complement, Number, Size or Precision Level, Lubrication, Cleanliness at Assembly or Packaging, Retainer Design. "
Where did I find this?
http://www.dynaroll.com/index.html
The company is Dynaroll and they make:
"Miniature and instrument grade ball bearings (ISC Micro Precision), High precision subassemblies (computer peripheral, medical, aerospace, etc.),
Analytical test equipment for torque, runout and other mechanical properties"
Some questions addressed...
Is there a lower grade than ABEC 1 ?
There is no GRADE lower than ABEC 1, but that doesn't mean that a
manufacturer has to meet ABEC standards. And yes, there are bearing
manufacturers that don't publish any information regarding their
manufacturing specifications. Yo-yo Manufacturers are not Bearing
Manufacturers. Some well known Yo-yo Manufacturers may be buying
their bearings from the cheapest, least quality conscious bearing
manufacturer. If you plan to purchase bearings elsewhere then buy
your bearings on the reputation of the Bearing Manufacturer.
Some friends have bought ABEC 9 bearings and they tell me that
it definitely increases their sleep times. Could this be true?
Maybe, but likely not. Consider the following. If you had just
paid $20.00 for a bearing, wouldn't you want to think that it was
better than what came in your yo-yo? If you really believe that an
expensive bearing will make your yo-yo sleep longer, it just might
(it's all in the mind).
What features of a bearing are covered by the ABEC ratings?
ABEC ratings only cover the tolerances of the measurable
dimensions of the bearing (except the radii). ABEC standards do not
cover Running Noise, Starting Torque, Lubricants or Clearance.
Why is there so much hype at the moment about ABEC precision ?
Call it marketing. Most of the ABEC information that has been
spread around the internet comes from a misunderstanding of what the
ratings are about. In many cases a higher ABEC rating will permit a
higher rpm, but that doesn't necessarily relate to a yo-yo's sleep
time. All it means is that bearing with a higher ABEC rating can be
spun at a higher rate of speed with fewer problems than a similar
bearing with lower rating.
What are the grades of bearings available in order. How
different are the grades ?
I'll answer this, but there is really no reason to use anything
higher than ABEC 1 or ABEC 3 for yoyoing. Keep in mind that an ABEC
rating only tells how close the bearing is to the stated size. There
are many other factors relating to the quality of a bearing.
There are five ABEC ratings: 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9. The tolerances in an ABEC 1 rating are very precise and as the rating goes up so does the precision. Example: in an ABEC 1 bearing the maximum eccentricity (out of roundness) allowable is 0.0075 mm; 0.005 mm (0.000197") for ABEC 3; 0.0035 mm (0.000138") for ABEC 5; for ABEC 7; and 0.0012 mm (0.000047") for ABEC 9. As you can see, in high speed machinery these tolerances may make a difference, but for yo-yoing we don't need such precision; often the higher precision bearings don't spin as freely as the lower rated bearings.
(Information gathered from - http://www.minibearings.com.au/skate.htm )