ConsolidatedSS16542RS FGStainless Steel Deep Groove Ball Bearing, 1-1/4 in Bore x 2-1/2 in OD x 5/8 in Wide, Two Rubber Seals, Food-Grade Grease

Product Description

Decoding the designation

SS1654-2RS-FG breaks down into four pieces, and each one is a specification:

SS = 440C-type stainless steel construction, not chrome steel
1654 = the inch 1600-series envelope, 1-1/4 in bore x 2-1/2 in outside diameter x 5/8 in wide
2RS = two seals, one on each side
FG = supplied pre-lubricated with food-grade grease (Consolidated specify Mobil FM222 or equivalent for the FG suffix)

Manufacturer figures (from Consolidated Bearings’ own catalogue entry for SS1654-2RS):

Bore (d): 1.2500 in / 31.75 mm
Outside diameter (D): 2.5000 in / 63.5 mm
Width (B): 0.6250 in / 15.875 mm
Approximate weight: 0.419 lb / 0.190 kg
Inner races, outer races and balls: 440C or equivalent stainless steel, through hardened to 55-57 HRC
Cage: 304 or equivalent stainless steel
Seals: metal core covered with synthetic rubber
Lubricant: Mobil FM222 food-grade grease or equivalent

What these specs mean in practice

This is the trade worth understanding before you specify it. 440C stainless resists corrosion, which is the whole point in a washdown or wet-process environment — a chrome-steel bearing in the same duty will pit and seize. But 440C is a lower-capacity material than 52100 chrome steel, so a stainless bearing of identical dimensions carries less load and runs at a lower limiting speed than its chrome-steel twin. Consolidated do not publish load ratings for this stainless series, so none are quoted here rather than borrowing the chrome-steel figures, which would overstate what this bearing will take. Size the position on the stainless rating from your OEM or derate the chrome-steel figure; do not assume parity.

The two rubber seals are the other trade. Contact seals keep water, cleaning chemicals and product out and grease in, which is exactly what you want on a washdown machine, but they add drag and cap both speed and operating temperature compared with an open or shielded bearing.

Why the food-grade fill matters

An FG bearing arrives filled with a grease formulated for incidental food contact. On a food, beverage, dairy or pharmaceutical line that is not a nice-to-have — a standard lithium-complex grease migrating past a seal into product is a contamination event and an audit finding. Buying the FG suffix means the lubricant question is already answered and you are not relubricating a sealed bearing with the wrong grease on site.

Quantity and configuration

Sold as one complete bearing, ready to fit — inner ring, outer ring, balls, cage, both seals and grease already in place. No shields, seals or lubricant to add.

Interchange guidance

1654-2RS is the chrome-steel bearing in the identical envelope, so anything dimensioned for a 1654 will accept this bearing without machining — you are swapping material, not size. The inch 1600 series is common on conveyor idlers, agitator shafts and light drive shafts, and the 1-1/4 in bore is a straight fit to a nominal 1-1/4 in shaft.

Fitting notes

Press onto the shaft through the inner ring and into the housing through the outer ring; never drive load through the balls, and never heat a sealed bearing above the seal’s rating to fit it.