Timken's Motor Suspension Unit (MSU) tubes deliver outstanding performance. Benefits include increased product reliability, reduced radial clearance and maintenance costs and low starting torque. And because our MSU tubes run on grease lubrication, there are no oil levels to maintain.

Applications

• Railroad - North American freight line locomotives, suspension

Design Attributes

• Increases reliability
• Reduces radial clearance and maintenance costs
• Low starting torque
• Grease lubrication; no oil levels to maintain

The team at Timken can help locomotive owners specify tapered bearings that can help improve motor suspension unit (MSU) performance and life.  These bearings accomodate MSU environmental factors including:

• Thermal expansions
• Bearing load distribution
• Intermittent thrust loading
• Vibration
• Axial deflections
• Housing eccentricity
• Shock loading

MSU tube and bearing assemblies ease maintenance -- no additional maintenance of bearings or wheel sets is required when the traction motor is separated from the MSU assembly for repairs.

Tapered bearings in MSU operations offer proven longer life and reliability than friction or cylindrical bearings.  In fact, bearing replacement is estimated at 1 million miles and recommended inspections are extended to 250,000-mile intervals.

Tapered MSU bearings also:

• Enhance thrust capacity
• Minimize relubrications - only at wheel set change
• Reduce motor vibrations
• Improve bearing load zones
• Conserve energy