tech talk
Learn more at www.igus.com/info/industries-agriculture
Designing a
Legacy Designs
Unlike true maintenance-free designs, legacy
designs require substantial downtime. Thus, legacy
designs aren't typically considered ideal. Legacy
designs are composed of:
• Metallic bushing with grease grooves
• Steel housing with grease zerks
• Steel pin, sometimes hardened depending on the
application
True Maintenance-free Pivot
Engineers working in the agricultural industry can benefit greatly from implementing true maintenance-
free pivots within their machinery. Maintenance-free pivots have several benefits that can help significantly
increase efficiency within the agricultural field. Here, we will compare true maintenance-free designs with
alternative designs, as well as go into the requirements for creating a true maintenance-free pivot.
Disadvantages:
a. Continuous maintenance (sometimes daily) for the end user
b. The cost of grease and replacement parts if not performed regularly is very expensive, i.e.: the pin,bushing,
or housing
c. External lubrication is required, which attracts dirt and debris from the surrounding environment and
creates a sand paper effect on the bushing and pin
Traditional Maintenance-Free Designs
Traditional maintenance-free designs are a better alternative than legacy designs, but they are not as effective
as true maintenance-free designs. The traditional maintenance-free design is not a true maintenance-free
design because only one critical aspect of a maintenance-free pivot, the bushing, is utilized. Traditional
maintenance-free designs are composed of:
• Dry running, self-lubricating bushing, i.e.: igus
®
iglide
®
(polymer), rolled metallic with Teflon lining, or fiber
wound
• Steel housing without grease zerk
• Steel pin, sometimes hardened depending on the application, as well as a thin layer of a corrosion
inhibiting substance (zinc, nickel or hard chrome)
