RHF4/55 Bi-Metallic Thrust Washer Comparison

 

Lower Quality Sample (RHF4)

• No controlled scratches to create surface tension;
• Badly de-burred;
• Blackened colour;
• Pitted surface and edges – pitting can score the other thrust components and lead to premature failure;
• Doubts over the material quality?

Melett Sample (RHF4)

• Nice clean sharp bearing surface;
• Material is smooth, with controlled scratches on the surface;
• The surface is not scorched or pitted.

OEM Sample (RHF55)

• Clean, sharp edges, similar to the Melett sample;
• Controlled scratches on the surface.

Tooling – RHF4 Bi-Metallic Thrust Washer (1450-040-321) tool

Melett invests heavily in our own tooling to ensure each part is precision manufactured to the correct tolerances and specification.

• The tool for the RHF4 Bi-metallic thrust washer is a very intricate tool;
• Made in Japan, the multi-stage press tool – starts with a strip of bi-metallic material (copper and steel), which then goes through 9 different stages to create the finished product;
• Producing the correct tooling requires significant investment and usually cost tens of thousands of pounds.