[Bell Historians] Taylor's 1895

[David Bryant]

> I'm not sure that I blame them either. Bells on well engineered, 
> well maintained plain bearings go superbly well and, often, are not 
> subject to the 'suck and blow' that you sometimes get with ball 
> bearings. 

Yes, they're fine where they are a) in good condition and b) regularly oiled. However, the majority of plain bearings left now are getting pretty knackered and given that a large proportion of ringers don't know what's above the ceiling boss then ball bearings, which don't require regular oiling, are perhaps a better option.

I understand that plain bearings are useful where there is a lot of tower movement, as the intertia of ball bearings can make the tower movement affect the bells more than if the bells were on plain bearings. I noticed a few years ago that the front three at St Mary's, Warwick, as still on plain bearings. Given that this is a tower which moves a lot, I wonder whether this is the reason?

David

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