Self-Lubricating Friction Plates

Self-lubrication in a Metagliss plate relies on a two-phase structure. The load-bearing skeleton is a porous sintered metal matrix — characteristically a bronze-based sinter with an interconnected pore network on the order of a fifth of the volume — while a soft solid-lubricant phase is dispersed through and held within that porosity. As the mating steel surface slides across the plate, micro-asperity contact shears a thin film of lubricant from the composite and transfers it onto the counterface. Once this transfer film is established it becomes the true running interface, so metal-to-metal contact and the friction, heat and wear that accompany it are kept low.

Where the porous matrix is additionally oil-impregnated, the same capillary mechanism that governs sintered self-lubricating bushings applies: frictional heating causes the entrapped oil to expand and weep to the sliding face, and on cooling it is drawn back into the pores, sustaining a boundary film over long service intervals with no external replenishment. The lubricant reservoir is finite but distributed throughout the plate section, which is one reason a thicker variant such as the 20 mm M10.20 offers a longer wear reserve than the 4 mm M90.4 before the effective lubricated layer is consumed.

Treat each 375 × 375 mm plate as a blank. Lay out and cut the finished wear components from it, keeping cutting speeds moderate so the solid-lubricant phase is not smeared over the working surface; a light final skim or fine grind restores a clean, flat bearing face. Mount each part on a rigid, flat, fully supported seat — a plate that bridges an unsupported gap will flex and wear unevenly.

• Provide continuous backing behind the plate; the mounting surface should be machined flat and clean before fitting.
• Fix with countersunk screws or dowels set below the sliding surface so no fastener head can contact the counterface.
• Run against a hardened, finely ground steel mating surface for the longest transfer-film life.
• Allow a short, lightly loaded break-in period so the lubricant transfer film can establish before full-duty loading.
• Keep the interface free of hard, abrasive debris; where contamination is unavoidable, provide relief grooves or pockets to collect swarf.
• For adjustable gibs, set the clearance to a light sliding fit — over-tightening raises friction and local heating.

Choose a friction plate rather than a cylindrical bushing when the motion is linear or oscillating and the bearing surface is flat — slideways, gibs, die guides and mould faces. Within this Metagliss range the decision is driven mainly by thickness: the thin 4 mm variant (M90.4) suits low-profile wear liners and facings where space is tight and the plate essentially resurfaces an existing guide, while the 20 mm variant (M10.20) provides the section needed for a structural, load-carrying gib or guide plate with a longer wear reserve and more material for tapping and countersinking. Intermediate thicknesses across the 33 variants let you match the plate to pocket depth, screw grip and expected wear life for the specific slide. Where the same self-lubricating principle is needed in rotary or shaft-supported service, a sintered self-lubricating bush from the Bushingo bearing range is the correct counterpart.