Ball Screws

Find ball screws including ball screw repair, ballscrews, ball screw systems and more. From ball screw assemblies to screw jacks, you will find the ball screw you need. Use the time-saving Request for Quote tool to submit your inquiry to all the ball screw manufacturers and suppliers you select.

In business for over 50 years, Universal Thread Grinding has been a manufacturer of high-quality lead screws, lead screw assemblies, precision mounting brackets, lead screw cartridges and nut assemblies. We meet your most demanding linear-displacement application needs.
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Established in 2004, GTEN's goal is to produce the highest quality ball screws in the world. With Vertex Controls, the US Master Distributor for GTEN Ball Screw Technology, our team is ready to meet the needs of North American manufacturers with higher quality precision linear components at lower costs.
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A leading industrial automation products manufacturer, Comptrol has the latest technology in ballscrew assemblies, ballnuts, bearing supports, acme screws, slides & thrusters. Our experienced staff will help you mix, match & apply our linear motion components to fit your production assembly.
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Noll Incorporated
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San Luis Obispo, CA
805-543-3602
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Noll Inc. has been manufacturing precision lead screw parts since 1956, emphasizing precision, quality, & design. Specializing in biological, medical, optics & laser industries, our high accuracy lead & acme lead screws, lead nuts & mounts are precision tailored & finished to your industry's needs.
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Premier precision threading manufacturer, Precision Screw Thread, specializes in difficult, close-tolerance thread rolling, actuators, & acme, ball & lead screws. With oversize capacities, we take pride in our innovative precision engineering for aerospace, aviation, medical & agricultural industries.
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Industry Information

Ball screws are used in the conversion of rotary movement to linear movement, which translates torque into thrust. Ball screw assemblies consist of a screw and a nut. A steel ball is encased within the round nut in order to produce a rolling friction between the nut and screw. The nut itself can be made of either plastic or metal. The ball screw assembly is powered by a motor. As the motor generates torque, the rotating screw pushes the nut along the screw shaft, producing linear thrust.
 
There are a few variations of ball screws available for use in industrial settings. Ball screw manufacturers commonly produce ACME, Lead (pronounced leed) and Ground ball screws. They each differ in size and efficiency output on application. Lead screws do not actually use rollers to create movement but are placed in the same category as ball screws because of their similar function and capacities. ACME screws most widely used power screw and are a type of lead screw which creates friction between ball and nut.
 
Numerous industries, including aerospace, computer, electronic, automotive, and medical industries, utilize ball screws in product applications. Ball screw manufacturers can create ball screws that are used in medical equipment, material handling equipment, conveyors, and machine tools, among many other product applications. The most common use for ball screws is in aspects where linear motion is needed. They are often used alongside linear slides and linear actuators to create movement necessary to move parts and devices along a single axis.
 
Ball screws remain beneficial for a variety of reasons. Ball screw assemblies maintain high levels of efficiency, measuring approximately 90%, and maintain low energy consumption levels. In addition, ball screws can be manufactured using a variety of techniques. Common techniques include conventional rolling, milling, and grinding. These advantages remain important considerations when choosing a screw assembly. Length of the screw is the most crucial component in choosing a ball screw for your application. They are classified however by diameter, either in English or metric and often manufacturers have both labels available. When replacing a ball screw assemblies, consider ball screw repair. Many ball screw manufacturers offer repair services as an alternative to the purchase of new ball screw systems.


Ball Screw
Ball Screws and Ball Screw Manufacturers Image Provided by Universal Thread Grinding Company


  • Acme screws are lead screws that create a sliding friction between screw and nut. ACME screws maintain a lower efficiency than ball screws, measuring about 30 %, but are often cost effective. Acme screws are often utilized in applications requiring high levels of accuracy at low speeds.
  • Ground ball screws are produced using a grinding wheel instead of the conventional rolling technique. Ground ball screws offer close tolerances, but may be expensive to produce.
  • Jack screws are frequently used in car jacks.
  • Lead screws consist of a threaded shaft and nut, and create friction through sliding rather than through the rolling friction characteristic of ball screws. The efficiency of lead screws increases with increased lead. Lead screws are advantageous in managing high shock loads.
  • Metric ball screws are designed according to metric system measurements, as opposed to the English system of measurements.
  • Miniature ball screws , which consist of ballscrews measuring as little as three millimeters in diameter, are used in applications in which minute products components are needed, such as industrial applications in the computer, electronic, fiber optics, and semiconductor industries. Miniature ball screws maintain high efficiency levels in spite of their size.
  • Screw jacks are used in lifting jacks.



Backdrive - The conversion of thrust motion back to torque motion. Backdrive can be reduced through a self-locking mechanism.
 
Backlash - The movement of a screw and nut from its initial position. Unlike creep, backlash is not caused from vibration or heavy loads.
 
Creep - The movement of a screw and nut from its initial position due to vibration, shock, or intense loads.
 
Column Strength - When a screw is loaded in compression its limit of flexible stability can be exceeded but may end of failing due to future buckling or bending.
 
Critical Speed - Revolving screw shafts will develop normal frequencies of vibration depending upon their length, size and end shape. The speed at which this vibration occurs is predictable and is called the critical speed.
 
Efficiency - A measurement, expressed as a percentage, representing the comparison of power output to power input of a screw assembly.
 
End Fixity - This refers to the method by which the ends of the screw are supported. There are three basic types of end fixity as follows; free, simple and fixed.
 
Freewheeling - A condition that occurs in ball screw assemblies involving continued screw rotation, but no linear movement.
 
Friction - A screw's and nut's resistance to movement. Different types of friction exist, including sliding friction characteristic of Acme screws and lead screws, and rolling friction characteristic of ball screws.
 
Lead - The measurement of a nut's movement across the screw, measured in inches per revolution (in/rev).
 
Pitch - The axial measurement between threads. Pitch also refers to the number of full rotations a screw makes in order to produce one inch of movement of the nut along the screw.
 
Root Diameter - This is reference to the minor diameter of a screw thread or the major diameter of a nut thread.
 
RPM (Revolutions per minute) - The rotary speed of a ball screw, represented by the number of full rotations of a screw occurring in one minute.
 
Screw Starts - Referring to the number of independent threads found on a screw shaft, usually found in configurations of either 1, 2, or 4.
 
Self-locking - A characteristic of Acme screw and other types of screws in which back drive is prevented by the disallowance of thrust to torque conversion.
 
Shaft - The portion of the screw which contains the threads.
 
Speed - The measurement of the pace of linear movement in ball screw assemblies, expressed in inches per minute. Speed is calculated through the multiplication of screw lead by RPM, or revolutions per minute.
 
Stroke - The measurement, expressed in inches, of a ball screw system's linear motion or thrust.
 
Thread - The raised helical rib going around the shaft of a common screw.
 
Thrust - Linear movement achieved by the torque produced from ball screw assemblies.  
 
Torque - Rotational motion of a ball screw system that translates into linear movement, known as thrust.