The year was 1994, and CBR founder Charlie Rowlett was an employee at a Honda-Yamaha motorcycle shop. During his time employed at the motorcycle shop, he noticed that many of the expensive OEM replacement bearings they were selling to their customers were simply standard sized bearings and nothing particularly special. He was intrigued by this and spent a considerable amount of time researching the sizes and applications of these bearings and recording them in a detailed spreadsheet. After … [Read more...]
Major American Electric Motor Manufacturer Chooses CBR for Ceramic Hybrid Bearings
As a small specialty ceramic hybrid bearing manufacturer (small, at least in comparison to the industry giants), it can be difficult to grab the attention of some of the major electric motor manufacturers. The large bearing companies have marketing budgets and sales teams that dwarf our staff here at CBR. However, recently, CBR caught the attention of a major new client! We got a call from the largest, and one of the most respected manufacturers of electric motors in the country. This company … [Read more...]
Why Choose CBR Over More Well-Known Manufacturers of Ceramic Hybrid Bearings?
Bearing manufacturers are plentiful. There is even a healthy amount of competition in the ceramic hybrid bearing market. And through the internet, those in need of bearings can order them from companies all over the world. Some of the largest players in the ceramic hybrid bearing manufacturing industry include companies like Boca Bearings, NSK, and SKF. These companies have thousands of employees and some have revenues in the billions. So, why should you choose a boutique bearing manufacturer … [Read more...]
Need Bearing Refurbishment? We Do That!
As a manufacturer of ceramic hybrid ball bearings, you might not think to call us about bearing refurbishment. And honestly, up until recently, this wasn’t a service we advertised to the general public, but was something we just did for existing customers that requested it. However, we had a recent experience with a customer that made us realize that bearing refurbishment is something we should offer to the general public. Bearing Refurbishment for Expensive, Hard-to-Find Bearings One of our n … [Read more...]
Don’t Buy Just Any Ceramic Hybrid Ball Bearings
We talk a lot about the advantages of ceramic hybrid ball bearings on our website and on this blog. Those benefits aren’t exaggerated. Ball bearings with ceramic balls really are a better choice than ball bearings with steel balls for so many reasons, especially in industrial electric motor applications. Just to name a few of their benefits: ceramic hybrid ball bearings eliminate the risk of electrical arcing, they last up to ten times longer, and they perform with less friction, which results i … [Read more...]
CBR Featured on San Diego Business Website as a Top Manufacturer of Ceramic Hybrid Bearings
As a company that manufactures a specialty product like ceramic hybrid bearings, we don’t often get a lot of press. Our products are only needed by very specific types of users, such as mechanics who work on large industrial electric motors and those in the motorcycle and kart racing scenes. As such, the general public doesn’t usually hear about companies like ours. Many have never even heard of ceramic hybrid ball bearings. However, recently we were approached by MySanDiego.com, an online San … [Read more...]
Educating the Industry on the Benefits of Ceramic Hybrid Bearings
Sometimes old habits die hard. Industrial electric motor mechanics who have used the same steel ball bearings for years are often reluctant to try ceramic hybrid ball bearings. Maybe they think the steel ball bearings they’ve always used are working just fine (the old “if it ain’t broke, why fix it?” mentality), or perhaps they think ceramic hybrid ball bearings are too expensive, or maybe they’ve just never looked into the benefits of ceramic hybrid ball bearings. Whatever the reason, we know th … [Read more...]
From Wood to Ceramic: The History of Ball Bearings
If you sit down and really think about it, ball bearings are a fascinating invention! They are one of the integral parts that make so many of the machines we use every day work efficiently. The use of ball bearings goes back to as early as 40 B.C. where they were discovered to have been used on a Roman ship. Of course, they weren’t the steel ball bearings or ceramic hybrid ball bearings that we know today. They were rudimentary parts made from wood. But the concept was there! The first patent … [Read more...]
Customer Story Highlights the Service You’ll Receive from CBR Bearings
We talk a lot on our website and on this blog about how we deliver top-quality ceramic hybrid bearings at affordable prices and with quick turnaround times, but sometimes it’s helpful to hear about an actual experience that a customer had when they called CBR for bearings. Because we’re a specialty bearing company, a lot of people still don’t know about us. Those in need of bearings for their industrial electric motors will often go through a bearing distributor or to a larger company with a m … [Read more...]
World Record Holder for Motorcycle Speed Uses Ceramic Hybrid Bearings from CBR
Back in August, a group of motorcycle racers headed to the Andes Mountains in Bolivia for the Top 1 Top of the World Speed trials, with the hopes of breaking the world record for the fastest partially-streamlined motorcycle. Despite the challenges of the thin air at 12,000 feet above sea level, the low temperatures, and limited daylight, racer Ralph Hudson and his turbocharged Suzuki motorcycle broke the record with an average speed of 284.361mph on the salt flats of Lake Uyani. The record was … [Read more...]
