NU205 bearing: complete specifications & equivalents

Specification table

Source: catalog reference (SKF PUB BU/P1 17000/1 EN (Oct 2018), ch. 6.1 single-row cylindrical roller bearings) · extracted 2026-09-26

Parameters extracted from the official SKF Rolling Bearings catalogue (SKF PUB BU/P1 17000/1 EN (Oct 2018), ch. 6.1 single-row cylindrical roller bearings); 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 NU205 model number is decoded

Ordering number NU 205 ECP in SKF catalogue PUB BU/P1 17000 denotes a single-row cylindrical roller bearing for a 25 mm shaft, standard section, with an open polymer-cage execution and separable inner ring assembly. Reading the designation: the leading NU marks a single-row cylindrical roller bearing with separable inner ring, the 2 is the ISO 15 diameter/width series (standard), and the last two digits encode the 25 mm bore; the 52 mm OD and 15 mm width follow the ISO 15 general plan. The SKF catalogue adds the ECP suffix for the standard glass-fibre reinforced polyamide cage; ECJ (pressed steel) and ECM (machined brass) are alternative executions with different speed and temperature ratings. The 3.35 kN Pu figure feeds the adjusted-life equation at contaminated or partial-film conditions, and the 0.83 C0/C balance shows this execution is tuned to heavy radial loads rather than mixed radial-plus-axial duty. The outer ring has no ribs and cannot locate the shaft axially; pair NU205 with a locating bearing (e.g. deep-groove ball or angular contact) or use an NJ/NUP variant if one-direction location is required.

Typical equipment & failure modes

Selection pitfalls — read before you substitute

• At a 25 mm bore the thin roller and raceway are sensitive to misalignment; keep shaft deflection within the 3–4 minute alignment limit and check seat runout (target Ra ≤ 0.8 µm) — a tilted NU205 develops edge loading and early spalling.
• The NU200 series at 25 mm bore (52×15 mm) is the standard-section cylindrical roller envelope; stepping to a wide-section 22/23 variant changes OD, width and heat generation — it is not a drop-in swap when the housing and speed are fixed.
• Shaft and housing fillets must clear the bearing chamfer so the 15 mm-wide outer ring seats square; use an undercut or withdrawal groove rather than an oversized radius that locks on the ring face.
• Catalogue reference speed and limiting speed are different limits: the 15,000 r/min reference is a thermal criterion under load, while the 16,000 r/min limiting value is the mechanical ceiling — observe both.
• The 32.5/27 kN ratings are SKF catalogue 17000 values for the ECP polymer-cage execution; SKF can revise internal geometry without changing the order number, so keep the catalogue version (PUB BU/P1 17000/1 EN, 2018) with the specification and re-verify for critical drives.
• SKF lists several executions of NU205 (ECP polymer cage, ECJ pressed steel, ECM machined brass); they are not interchangeable order numbers — quote the full NU 205 ECP designation when purchasing and match the execution to the speed and temperature requirements.