I have been looking at getting a set of bearings for my O.S. 81 VR-M and,WOW, what a variety of prices. BOCA comes in highest and at the other end is RCBearings.com. I have learned in the past that you usually get what you pay for but have to ask, Has any-one had experience with rcbearings.com. I am looking at getting the ceramic bearings because of the marine app and have heard they are the way to go. Any input??

Ceramics are good in NON-impact applications. I don't like them for anything that might get a prop-strike.
Marine and ducted fan engines are OK. I've used both Boca and RC-Bearings and have been happy with both suppliers.

I have never used ceramic befor but like I said I have been told that for marine it was worth it. Boca wants $77 for the set and RCBearings is $25! I think I might try a set.

I have had nothing but bad luck with ceramics in aero and ducted fan engines. They are fast...for a while. Contact RC Bearings and get stainless if they come with non metallic retainers. If not, get steel bearings with non metallic retainers. In either case, remove the glow plug,cover the hole with a rag and spin the engine with starter while squirting ATF in the carb to flush out the nitro. Yes it's messy, but the bearings last a long long time. On planes I run them a few moments on FAI fuel, not as messy.

Put a new set of steel bearings in my MVVS 49 ... $12.00 for both. Bought off an *bay vendor. Work real well. Very smooth. If I only get a couple of seaons flying I won't mind. I use 50:50 castor/synth lube and corrosion is not an issue.

G'day

I rarely have to replace bearings but the few I have replaced in the last few years have come from RC-Bearings. I did try some ceramics in a Saito 65 but they did not like the engine being rammed into the ground. Now I just use steel bearings with flexible cages.

I use fuel with 5% castor and 15% synthetic and don't seem to have a serious problem with rust. Dirt ingress from sudden and unexpected contact with our rather sandy soil is a far more serious problem.

Mike in Oz

A ball from a ceramic comes apart and it will destroy the innards of your motor on its way out.

I've been buying from RC Bearings for years and heli engines need bearings far more than most other applications (save for maybe cars)

Yup - against medical advice I installed a set of ceramics in my Saito. Didn't take long for a ball to escape and get stuck between the crank throw and the side of the really soft aluminum crank case. One guess as to which bit won.

Stainless from rc-bearings work well - OS, Evo, Saito, YS, ...

I replaced the stock metal retainer bearings in my TT 46 pro with stainless bearings from RCBearings and have no complaints. I believe most engine bearings if not all from RCBearings use phenolic retainers. No issues yet in my low-time 46.

Just go down to the your local bearing store. Take your old bearings and let them get the numbers. Bearings are bearings. Model engine bearings in most cases are off the shelf bearings not special made.

That's a very good suggestion, husker.

Your local store, if they have them in stock will be about 2-4 times the price of RCBearings. I tried to buy them local one time and the bearing was not only 4 times more expesive, but I had to pay for 8.00 for shipping on top of it because they did not have it in stock.

Well I just had to see and for 20 bucks I can't resist. I talked to the rep at RCBearing and for my application I decided to go on and try a set of the ceramics. I appreciate the input and will let you know how they work out for me.

I bought a set of bearings for a 46 FX here in town and I think they were around $20 for the set. W8YE ended up with the engine.

I think you will be happy with what you get from RC Bearings. I have been happy with my purchases from them. As already stated, the bearings we use are pretty standard items. I think price and availability are the most important factors when buying.

I have two Saito FA-91 engines that need bearings. I can get both sets from RCBearings for $20 shipped. Getting one set locally will cost me more Han that.

Sometimes, you may want to price the factory bearings. I got a pair of bearings for a Evolution .455 from Advantage Hobby for about $15 total. These were the Evolution packaged bearings. Anyway, you sometimes save time/money by using other sources. Other times, not.

Try that with OS

Go with Stainless Bearings from RC Bearings. No rust , no issues, no problems.

The first few 46NT engines I bought had bearings that had polymite (plastic) retainers as did the bearings sets on the hook at the LHS. Those inexpensive bearings really held up and they fit most 46/55 engines, a fact of which I took advantage of. That all changed a few years ago in both engines and whats in the packages as they are now steel cages and don't hold up any better or worse than what can be found in any other make engine.

I wouldn't bet anything on the rust claim for any brand.

FF- the bearings I changed were on the original production 46NT. I have 3 46NTs in my shop that are only 2 years old. I need to look at those.

I wouldn't bet anything either, but they seem to last longer.

The the stainless bearings for our planes is an alloy called 440 C. Unlike most other stainless, it is magnetic, hardenable and is less corrosion RESISTANT. 300 series stainless has a much higher resistance, but cant be hard enough, at least for our needs. There are also the "PH" types (Precipitation Hardening) stainless's that can be hardened, but it's not as common in our bearings sizes and can't be made as hard as the 440c type.

Finally, I had a stainless bearing get rough and I'll have a look see at it this weekend.

I would be careful using ceramic bearings in marine engines if you are running a surface drive. Surface drives load and unload the prop which in turn becomes a vibration/ impact type load on the main bearings. They might be just fine, just some food for thought!!! I do know that ceramic bearings dont do so well under impact type conditions.

Can't say all of this is very encouraging being as I jumped at the opportunity to try the ceramics. Couldn't resist at the price of them. On the other hand experience is king and I do have another engine for parts. Really hope theywork out though, I was kinda planning on re-building that spare engine. Just to show you what I was dealing with when I decided to try the ceramics I will show you what I found when I pulled mine down. This engine came from a friend of mine and I do not know the history of it but it did run(believe it or not it ran pretty good) Maybe you can tell me what this mess came from. Retainer in the rear bearing was gone and both were rough.

Eeeeeuuuuwwww Yuuuuuck! Rode hard and put away wet?