You have to have a good plan for assembly to get TWO interference fits together (and apart) on one bearing.

Right now I have an interference fit of about.0023 which may be a tad tight.

Being that close Im reluctant to make another pass as I definitely dont want to go over.

This bearing supports one end of the main tiller shaft so the loading is fairly heavy.

What RKLOPP said is correct for applications where the shaft rotates.

Yes the shaft rotates but the customer wants an interference fit.

This is the second time that the bearing has spun in the housing and he does not want it to happen again.

You can use it with a press fit, or slight slip, clean the surfaces carefully for best effect.

Then you can go for a lower interference fit, which eases installation.

But.0023 for a 5 low precision bearing sounds acceptable to me, especially if the housing is aluminum.

Have you played with the replacement bearings Deep groove, yes Any thought on how much play there is when you move the innerouter races relative to each other.

One of several reasons why I never even look at such stuff, much less actually take on the job.

Good idea to check bearing internal clearance before fitting.

If race thickness and housing tickness are about the same, bearing will close up about as much as housing will stretch.but cast iron is not as stiff as steel.

The rule cited that bearings are slip fit in the stationary part is generally good, unless there is significant shock or vibration Then press fits are common on both parts, but then clearance needs to be considered.

Howard Rotovator used to be the standard of the industry.Howard appears to be no more, but these folks may know somethinbg about the problem you describe Howard Rotavator Spares Models Manuals.

Theres a big difference between running a repair and maintenance oriented shop in a rural area and a CNC production facility.

There were times in the past when I wouldnt have had much work if I didnt have my farmer customers.

And yes, I know there are definitely farmers out there who can screw up anything they touch but a lot of ag machinery operates in pretty tough conditions.

I have no idea what the original fit was because the old one was wallowed out when it came to me but Im betting it wasnt a sliding fit.

The tables in the bearing catalogues clearly show that the range of fits goes from loose to heavy interference--I just couldnt figure out how much.

Thanks for the link but it seems to deal only with the powered walk-behind rotovators that Howard made.

There is no way that a ball bearing can get enough traction between the balls and the race to spin the race until the bearing has already packed it in anyways, or, perhaps the housing gets distorted from a severe blow like hitting a rock (if the housing was inadequate for the purpose from day 1).

Which Spinfits Fit The Bvg Dmg