SKF6211-2RS1Deep Groove Ball Bearing, Contact Seals Both Sides, 55 x 100 x 21 mm — Greased for Life

Product Description

What this part is

An SKF deep groove ball bearing, the most widely used bearing type there is: 55 mm bore, 100 mm outside diameter, 21 mm wide, with rubber contact seals on both faces. One row of balls in deep circumferential grooves, carrying radial load and moderate thrust in both directions from a single bearing. It is the default choice for electric motors, pumps, fans, gearboxes, conveyor idlers and general machinery, and the 6200/6300 series numbering is understood by every maintenance department in the world.

Decoding the designation — 2RS1 is a seal, not a shield:
62 — deep groove ball bearing, 62 dimension series.11 — bore code, 55 mm.2RS1 — in SKF’s scheme, contact seals on both sides. RS denotes a rubbing (contact) seal; the 1 identifies the seal design; the leading 2 means both sides. The single-seal version is RS1.
The distinction that matters is 2RS1 versus 2Z. A 2Z bearing has sheet-metal shields: they run with a small clearance to the inner ring and never touch it. A 2RS1 bearing has contact seals: the rubber lip rubs on the inner ring land.

Sealed or shielded — the decision that actually matters here:
This is the choice that determines whether the bearing survives in your application, and the two builds share the same part number apart from the suffix.

Contact seals (this bearing) genuinely exclude water, fine dust, coolant mist and washdown spray, and they retain grease under pressure. Nothing gets in and the grease does not get out. In a wet, dusty, food-plant or outdoor position, a sealed bearing lasts and a shielded one does not. Because the seal is a positive barrier, the bearing is greased for life and needs no lubrication port in the housing at all — which is a real simplification when you are designing or repairing a bearing housing.

The cost is friction and speed. The rubbing lip generates drag and heat, so a 2RS1 bearing runs measurably slower and hotter than the 2Z equivalent. On a high-speed motor shaft that penalty is significant; on a conveyor idler or a fan hub it is irrelevant.

The corollary to know: do not pump grease into a housing expecting it to reach a 2RS1 bearing. It will not. The seal is doing its job. Where a relubrication schedule exists, an open or shielded bearing is the correct specification and a sealed one silently defeats the whole maintenance regime.

Published dimensions and what we have not stated

Bore (d): 55 mmOutside diameter (D): 100 mmWidth (B): 21 mmClosure: contact seals both sides (2RS1)Bore type: straight (cylindrical)Internal clearance: normal (the looser build is 6211-2RS1/C3)Number of rows: 1Rolling elements: steel balls, single rowRelubrication: none — greased for life
We have not published a dynamic or static load rating or a limiting speed on this page. SKF’s own product page for 6211-2RS1 was not directly retrievable and the distributor mirrors we reached carry dimensions and closure type but not certified ratings. Rather than post a figure lifted from the open 6211 — which has a different speed limit because it has no seal drag, and is a genuinely different number — we have left the cells blank. SKF publishes the full data for 6211-2RS1 on its own product catalogue against the exact designation, and it takes a moment to look up. An honest gap beats a borrowed number on the specification a buyer is most likely to calculate with.

Quantity, configuration and fitting notes

Two bearings in stock, sold individually. A pair is the natural quantity: most shafts run two deep groove bearings, one at each end, and replacing both together avoids leaving a new bearing to share a shaft with a worn one.

Mount by press or heat onto the shaft seat, pressing only on the ring being fitted. Never let mounting force travel through the balls from one ring to the other — that is how a new bearing arrives brinelled and fails within weeks. Do not press on the seals. Because it is sealed and pre-greased, do not wash it out in solvent before fitting.

Interchange guidance

Search forms include 6211-2RS1, 6211-2RS, 62112RS1, 6211 2RS1, 6211RS, 6211-2RSR, 6211-2RS1/C3, 6211. Related SKF builds at the same envelope: 6211-2Z (shields both sides — different closure, faster, not weatherproof), 6211 (open), 6211-2RS1/C3 (C3 clearance), 6211-RS1 (one seal). The legacy designations 211 and 211 PP describe the same 55 × 100 × 21 mm envelope and appear on older drawings. Same-envelope equivalents: FAG 6211-2RSR, NSK 6211DDU, NTN 6211LLU, Koyo 6211-2RS, Nachi 6211-2NSE. The 6311-2RS1 is a different bearing — also 55 mm bore, but 120 mm outside diameter and 29 mm wide. Check the outside diameter, not just the bore.