We now sell over 6,300 oil seals on our website! Lip seals or rotary shaft seals are vital components for all types of engineering machinery. As a result, we've created a guide our guide to help you choose the correct seal for your application, you can then continue to our new Oil Seal section to make your purchase.
What are they? Oil Seals are used in driveshafts, crankshafts and hydraulic cylinders where a rotating shaft is lubricated by oil or grease. They are metal caps covered in rubber with a garter spring supporting the inner lip.
What is the difference between single and double lips? Double lipped rotary seals provide an extra layer of protection against outside containments such as dust or dirt.
What is the best size? Refer to our Oil Seal Tolerance Guide. Generally, oil seals require a very tight tolerance between the outer diameter and housing. Meanwhile, the garter spring allows a larger tolerance with the rotating shaft to prevent a build-up of friction.
Industry Comparison - Please view our Oil Seal Cross Reference guide to compare the part codes across 24 different industry retailers. The comprehensive list includes Simrit, Trelleborg, Forsheda Stefa, Eriks, Dichtomatic, SKF, Harwal, Garlock, Freudenberg, Gaco, Goetze, ISO, Kaco, NAK, NOK, Paulstra, Pioneer Weston, Simmerwerke, Timken, TCM and Wyko Seals.
Part Code Breakdown
Finally, Polymax part codes follow the same pattern as our O-rings - inner diameter, outer diameter and height. This is different from the industry-standard convention, whereby imperial oil seals follow - outer diameter, inner diameter and height.
1) We sell two lips - Single (21) or Double (23)
2) We sell four types - Type A, B, C & F
3) We sell two materials - Viton or FKM alternative (V) and Nitrile (N)
