52206 bearing: complete specifications & equivalents

Specification table

Source: catalog reference (SKF PUB BU/P1 17000/1 EN (Oct 2018)) · extracted 2026-09-28

Parameters extracted from the official SKF Rolling Bearings catalogue (SKF PUB BU/P1 17000/1 EN (Oct 2018)); SKF® and SKF Explorer® are trademarks of AB SKF, used here for identification only — mpnbase is not an authorized SKF distributor. Boundary dimensions are ISO 15 interchangeable; current production values may differ, verify at skf.com.

Cross references & equivalents

Interchange levels: full standard interchange · partial verify parameters · verify manual confirmation required. Links resolve to the equivalent model's specification page where available.

How the 52206 model number is decoded

52206 is SKF's 25 mm-bore double-direction thrust ball bearing in the 52200 series to the ISO 104 dimension plan, with a flat housing seating surface, measuring 25×52×29 mm. The unit stacks one central shaft washer (ground bore, tight on the shaft), two outward-facing housing washers and two ball-cage assemblies, reacting axial force in both directions. double-direction 52/54 numbering does NOT decode the bore by the usual single-direction ×5 code — read the 25 mm bore from the dimension table; codes recur across the 522/523/524 sections and systematically trail the 51/53 code values. with no cage suffix this is the standard execution with a stamped sheet-steel ball-cage assembly (pressed cage) — the light, quiet and economical cage for small and medium thrust-ball sizes. Envelope 25×52×29 mm (0.984×2.047×1.142 in), 13.5 mm radial section, C 25.1 kN, C0 51 kN, Pu 1.86 kN. reference speed 3,600 r/min (thermal) and limiting speed 5,000 r/min (mechanical), catalogue mass 250 g. Speed band width for this size is 1,400 r/min between reference and limiting (1.39× ratio); lubrication, preload and heat removal decide where inside that band 52206 can actually run. Speed-ratio note for this exact unit: the reference speed is 3,600 r/min against a 5,000 r/min limiting speed, a reference-to-limit ratio of 0.72. Light-load floor: Pu = 1.86 kN is the equivalent-load threshold below which the SKF adjusted-life equation credits very long life for 52206; the number is 7 % of the 25.1 kN dynamic rating. Pitch-diameter arithmetic: dm = (25+52)/2 = 38.5 mm; at the 5,000 r/min limiting speed that corresponds to roughly 193k mm·r/min, the figure used when comparing cage speed demand across the thrust-ball series. Imperial cross-check for procurement drawings: 0.984 in bore, 2.047 in OD, 1.142 in height, and the 250 g catalogue mass converts to 0.250 kg (8.8 oz). Double-direction order-number note: the unit is built around one central shaft washer with a ground bore and tracks on both faces, flanked by two housing washers and two independent ball-cage assemblies; observe the assembly orientation (the two housing washers face outwards) and note that a 52-series unit replaces a mirrored pair of 51-series bearings only after the stack height and seat drawings are re-checked. Life accounting for 52206 is done separately per direction: if duty applies 25.1 kN C predominantly one way, the idle side's skid risk — not the loaded side's L10 — usually sets the relubrication and preload interval.

Typical equipment & failure modes

Selection pitfalls — read before you substitute

• Torque the cover to leave the catalogue axial freedom, never solid: a clamped double-direction stack cannot float to its thermal position, and at 5,000 r/min even a small thermal thrust preload smears the hottest track.
• Service both cage sets together: replacing only the noisy side while leaving the worn 51 kN opposite track in place reproduces the failure within weeks — inspect both shaft-washer faces and both loose washers at removal.
• Where shaft and housing cannot be kept square, the sphered 54-series execution of the same bore with two U seat washers is the self-aligning counterpart; the flat 52200 unit has no alignment capacity.
• Do not replace a 52206 with two single-direction 51-series bearings without re-checking the arrangement: envelope heights, seat details and catalogue ratings differ, even at the same 25×52 mm bore and OD.
• The 25.1/51 kN figures belong to 52206 specifically (the double flat pressed steel execution of 52206); suffixed, sphered and counterpart-series order numbers are separate articles, so write the complete designation on the order and the maintenance record.