Why should you use genuine rather than non-genuine spare parts for axles?
There are an ever increasing number of copy parts available on the market for almost any off-highway machine. Ultimately it comes down to personal choice, however there are some things you should consider as you weigh up the pros and cons.
Globally renowned Agricultural machinery manufacturers invest millions of pound every year in research and development in their products.
Every component undergoes exhaustive testing in both laboratory and field based trials to ensure the materials, manufacturing processes and quality control are of the highest possible standard.
Copy parts have not been tested to the same exacting standards, the parts might look the same, but their origin and quality is unknown.
If a copy component is being installed into larger product group, a planetary set for example, there is no guarantee that the component, which may have invisible microscopic differences, will run within an original gear set indefinitely. Any failure of the copy part will involve consequential damage to connected components resulting extensive damage and associated costs.
When choosing between an original component and a corresponding copy product, it is necessary for you to assess the applicable costs and risks. These costs are not only those related to the individual part, but also include the labour for the interruption to service and the machine downtime.
One of the most sensitive areas for the reliability of an axle is the differential or the bevel gear. Here two different bevel gears are compared: a Carraro original and a copy product.
So what are the differences?
•Design:
The original Carraro pinion is the result of several years of experience and it is properly calculated, designed and tested to meet application parameters. The non-original pinion is the result of reverse engineering that that does not have the same depth of knowledge as Carraro.
•Material:
The Carraro original pinion is made with special controlled Jominy ?steel sheets, which provide a constant heat treatment, in relation to hardness, depth and deformation. These objectives certainly cannot be achieved by the non-genuine copies which do not have the volumes to be able to request customization of the raw material.
The combination of these factors has produced a substantial difference in durability in benchmarking tests of approximately 12 times lower than the standard.
After 500 hours in the laboratory (equivalent to 10,000 hours in field) the Carraro original pinion reached the target without rupture, while the non-original broke in just 40 hours!]
Any difference in cost does not compensate the significant contrast in terms of durability between the original component and the copy part. When choosing between an original component and a corresponding copy product, it is necessary for you to assess the costs/risks, where the costs are not only those related to the individual part, but also include the labour for the interruption to service and the machine downtime.
As the UK’s official distributors for Carraro, the team at HES Tractec are experts at the benefits of choosing genuine axle parts. If you would like more information on Carraro and their axle components please email tractec@grouphes.com or call 01452 733 106 today.
