Quality Machinery Bushings Are a Crucial Component for Today’s Metal Stamping Manufacturers

Today’s precision industrial tools, machinery, and equipment demands the highest quality wear parts and replacement components. That’s especially true when it comes to bearings, bearing surfaces, and spacers – a slight misalignment or an off-axis mating can easily wreak havoc on the machine’s performance and reliability.

Master Products is a leading manufacturer of custom machinery bushings made in the USA.

What Are Machinery Bushings?

Machinery bushings are precision-formed shims of which feature specific diameters and thicknesses. Their general function is to provide accurate spacing on rotating shafts, while reducing wear between other moving parts installed on the shaft.

Also commonly known as plain bearings, machine bushings and shims generally feature an oversized outer diameter (OD) to create a larger bearing surface. The larger surface area promotes reduced wear between moving parts. At Master Products, we offer ample experience in manufacturing a wide range of machinery bushings in various gauges as well as different inside/outside diameters (ID/OD).

Machinery Bushing Types

Master Products commonly produces numerous unique configurations of machinery bushings for various custom metal stamping projects. The most common differentiator in machinery bushing types is the rim size specification, which allows the bushing to accommodate different sized machine components with narrow and wide faces:

Narrow-Rim Machinery Bushings

Plain bearings for narrow-face applications, with a rim that is generally less than 1” wide. Narrow-rim machinery bushings are commonly used small precision machinery and other equipment that utilizes miniature/micro bearings with tight spatial constraints.

Wide-Rim Machinery Bushings

Larger plain bearings with a rim that is generally greater than 1” wide. Wide-rim machinery bushings are common in many industrial equipment applications which utilize large bearing surfaces for increased stability, durability, and reliability.

Common Applications for Custom Machinery Bushings

Machinery bushings are precision stamped washers designed for use as quick, accurate spacing on shafts. The high-strength steel makeup reduces wear and marring between moving parts. Machine bushings are available in wide and narrow rim types for applications that require bushings with wide or narrow faces.

• Mechanical Stamping Press Bushings

• Hydraulic Stamping Press Bushings

• Bushings for Material Handling Systems and Loading/Unloading Equipment

• Production Line Machinery Bushings

• Various Other Industrial Manufacturing Equipment Applications

An Experienced Machinery Bushing Manufacturer Based in Cleveland, Ohio

Master Products is one of the Midwest’s leading metal stamping companies providing custom machinery bushings along with a wide range of other stamped products. Our superior quality machinery bushings are made in the USA — manufactured in-house in Cleveland, Ohio, backed by more than 100 years of metal stamping excellence.

The Common Metal Stamping Operations Explained and Compared

In today’s metal stamping industry, there are numerous different stamping methods available to manufacturers. Each unique stamping process manipulates sheet metal in a different way, such that each method is optimized for the production of different product types, part configurations, or geometries.

The Master Products metal stamping facility in Cleveland, Ohio.

Below we discuss the basic processes behind the most common metal stamping operations used throughout the industry today.

An Overview of the Common Metal Stamping Operations:

• Piercing (Punching) – Piercing, also referred to as metal punching, uses a press and die to create precisely located holes within the sheet metal workpiece. The punched-out material is scrap metal.

• Blanking – Blanking is extremely similar to the punching process, except that the punched parts are the product and the remaining sheet metal workpiece is scrap.

• Drawing – For drawn metal stampings, a die is precisely positioned beneath the sheet metal workpiece. The punch forces the sheet metal down onto the die. The metal is deformed around the die to create custom cross-sectional shapes which can feature complex geometries.

• Embossing – The embossing process stamps a single side of the workpiece which creates raised or indented shapes within the sheet metal. Common embossed features include numbers and lettering, figures, or other custom designs.

• Coining – Similar to the embossing process, except in coining the workpiece is stamped on both sides to create raised or indented words, patterns, and figures – such as how currency coins are commonly stamped.

• Bending – A press brake applies extreme force to the metal workpiece, bending it at an angle about a specific axis to create custom V- or U-shaped components.

• Flanging – In the flanging process, edges throughout the workpiece around punched holes are bent at a 90° angle from the sheet. Flanging creates a smooth rim around each hole, as opposed to a sharp edge.

Quality-Backed American Metal Stamping Services Since 1919

Master Products is here to assist with your project and recommend the most efficient metal stamping process possible. Backed by well over a century of quality contract manufacturing services, Master Products has grown into the leading metal stamping company for the greater Midwest and beyond. Located in Cleveland, Ohio, we offer unmatched experience in serving commercial and industrial stamping customers throughout a diverse range of industries and product categories.

Compound Dies vs. Progressive Die Stamping: Advantages and Applications

Compound dies and progressive dies are both widely used throughout the modern metal stamping industry. These different stamping methods each offer some unique advantages while being optimized for different types of industrial manufacturing projects.

To some up the differences: progressive dies generally require more than one stroke to create a custom stamping. This is because progressive dies pass the metal strip through multiple stations, with each stroke adding a different press feature. In contrast, compound dies perform the stamping operation in a single stroke, generally for the production of simpler products.

Master Products builds custom tooling for our progressive metal stamping services in-house.

Essentially, compound dies are optimized for the high-volume production of simple metal parts. Progressive dies are ideal for the mass production of larger precision stampings with complex geometries.

The Benefits of Progressive Die Stamping

Progressive die stamping saves time and money by performing multiple operations simultaneously. Some of the notable advantages of progressive die stamping are that it has:

• Reduced setup time.

• Lower overall labor costs.

• Less scrap and wasted material.

• Can accommodate complex stampings with difficult geometries.

• Can produce large quantities of small parts with tight tolerances in a short period.

The Benefits of Compound Metal Stamping

Compound die stamping is used to produce simple flat parts like washers. A metal strip is fed through the compound die, but unlike progressive or transfer die stamping, compound stamping tooling performs multiple cuts, punches, and bends in a single stroke rather than multiple strokes. For medium- to high-volume production runs, this can be cost-effective.

Speed is an important factor in compound die-stamping; however, speed is also affected by the size of the part. Large components take longer to exit the die, whereas small components exit faster. Manufacturers benefit from compound die stamping in a variety of ways.

• Custom tooling is less expensive to develop than complex progressive die tooling.

• Production of simple small parts is quick and efficient..

• High degree of repeatability for single-die cases.

• Streamlined single-stroke production for flat, relatively simple parts.

Quality Metal Stamping Services for Cleveland, Ohio and Beyond

Since 1919, Master Products has delivered world-class metal stamping solutions from our hometown facility in Cleveland, Ohio. We proudly serve commercial die stamping customers throughout the greater Midwest and beyond through our flexible and responsive contract manufacturing services.