7 inch Flat Swivel

This review is about how to make it spin much easier. This review is about what all the other reviews don't mention. I do not want to be redundant and tell you the same stuff everyone else is mentioning. I did find the majority of the other reviews to be correct, so here is the missing pieces.I didn't use this for a bar stool as most buyers do. I wanted a strong bearing and mount to build a rotating welding table with. I wanted the bearing mount to be high enough that the screws in the top and bottom would not hit each other if I used bolt heads on my screws.I was happy. It gave me the clearance I needed and it worked well enough.Thanks to reading the reviews before I bought, I was forewarned it would be very stiff rotating until it was properly broken in. So I was ready.I needed a bearing that rotated with only minor resistance but not too easy as to allow unimpeded coasting.When it arrived it would not turn by hand at all. So as per the included instructions I put it on the floor and stood on it rotating it with my body weight as I stood in a corner and used my hands on the walls going round and round and round and round feeling about as mature as a kindergärtner. I couldn't believe I was actually doing this. But I took relief in the fact it seemed to be the smart thing to do even if it felt real dumb. I guess looking back it was a little fun. I smile when I think of when I did it.15 rotations definitely loosened it up but it was still far from the turning ease that I needed. So then I added another 30 rotations. That helped further a little but was still a long ways from what I needed. So I added 90 more rotations and gained some more improvement but was still a long ways from the easy turning I needed.By now I was dizzy and although I recognized the pattern for loosening it up, I realized I needed a more efficient technique as this one appeared it would take 1,500 rotations to loosen it up to the point I needed out of it. I had taken this technique as far as was efficient to go. It was time to change my game plan.For 1,500 plus rotations, it was time to hook this bearing up to an electric drill and gain some real efficiency. I screwed the bearing bottom to my wooden work table. I screwed a 10" wooden plate to the bearing top. I screwed a 2" metal plate to the top of the wooden plate(centered). I welded a hexagon nut to the metal plate(again centered).So Now I had a nut centered in the bearing mounted to its top while its bottom was mounted to my work bench. In theory a drill could rotate the nut and the whole bearing would spin. So I added a socket to my electric 1/2" drill that turns at 650 RPM's.Time for testing. I pulled the trigger and off we went. I was glad I put in so much effort to make sure the nut was mounted in the bearings center because even with all my work it was a little off center and wobbled some. But it was tolerable. I sure wouldn't want to be off any further than what I was.I chose my 1/2" drill over my 3/8" drill because it had more torque power and spun slower which was a very safe decision. My 1/2" rpm's were 650 and my 3/8 rpm's would have been over 3,000. That would have been way too fast to hold a drill mounted to a nut thats slightly off center. If you use a drill aim for 500 rpms if you can. Be very careful to center your drive nut.So here I was off and spinning. After 15 seconds I stopped and rotated it by hand to see if there was any improvements. The improvements in its ease of rotation justified all this work, but it was still a long way from the super easy rotation I wanted. By my standards it was still too stiff for what I wanted it to do.So now I spun it for two minutes and checked its improvements again. Now the improvement was very small, almost not noticeable. I was still a long ways from the ease of rotation I was after out of a heavy duty bearing.So now I spun 5 minutes more with my drill and checked again. Maybe a little gain but I was now sure I was into diminishing returns and pursuing this technique further did not appear as if it was going to produce the results I was after.Now it was time to ponder/search for another technique, if there was one. I unscrewed everything from the bearing and examined it closely in my hands. There was definitely major improvements, but just not enough of them.The bearing was very warm and its center was hot, almost hot enough I couldn't hold my fingers against its center. The heat surprised me. I would not expect a ball bearing roller bearing to get hot with that little rotation and no strain load. But it was. Why? I wondered?I began looking for the friction point that created the heat and resistance. I discovered it was the very large rivet that held the two bearing plates together with the ball bearings trapped between the roller surfaces. This is the round rivet right in the dead center of the upper and lower plate.The rivet was permanently mounted into one plate but allowed to spin against the other plate. It was a metal to metal point of contact with both surfaces rubbing hard against each other. The plate rubbed hard against the rivet as it rotated around the rivet. Dry metal against dry metal and much binding together tension created lots of resistance and friction which was the source of my heat.I had just assumed because the bearing came with 56 round ball bearings, that the mounting plates would not have a bear metal to metal contact point under tension. But I was so wrong.Now that I identified its other weakness, it was time to add some good old fashioned oil to the dry metal rubbing pieces. I had (ATF) automatic transmission fluid laying around in a syringe. I keep it handy because it makes a good penetrating oil and its dirt cheap in large quantities.So I added about 15 drops of ATF to the rivets edge and the plate it rubs on. Now that the rivet edge was souped in oil all the way around, I began turning it by hand. Each rotation got easier very quickly. Within 5 hand rotations I had gained a 50% improvement in only 30 seconds. This was by far my biggest gain out of everything I had tried.Now I hooked it all back up to my drill so I could spin it in its oil bath. I spun it for about 3 minutes in its oil batch and rechecked to identify if I had gained any more improvements. I gained about 10% more improvement in its ease of rotation. Maybe 20%.I still wanted more improvement so I sat there considering the whole situation. The rivet and plate it spun against were under very much tension, high contact pressure. Then I realized gear oil is specifically for teeth, metal contact under very much pressure. Would this help any? Was my ATF too light duty of an oil for this situation? It had definitely helped and penetrated well, but maybe it just ran out of high pressure lubri-ocity to go any further?To my ATF puddle surrounding the rivet, I added some 90 weight gear oil and began spinning it by hand searching for further improvements. Within a dozen rotations I had gained another 30% improvement. So now I hooked it up to the drill to spin it in the gear oil puddle mixed with ATF. Within 3 minutes of spinning it with the drill, my further improvements was another 20%.I had done it. Now it spun very easily. I had finally gotten to the point I was seeking. I was very happy. I built my welding table and mounted the bearing underneath so the oil bath side was up, so gravity would drive the oil puddle into the rivets point of contact. The contact was so tight the oil puddle stays on top and does not run out. The contact is so good it acts like a seal keeping the oil puddle all on one side except for the bit of oil film the two metal surfaces slide/rotate upon/around.My welding table is 15" X 15". It takes about 1.5 pounds of pressure to make it rotate when I want to turn it. It has just enough resistance that bumping up against it accidentally, wont cause it to run off rotating by itself as it coasts. It has NO free coasting ability, but its very easy and fast to turn it as much or as little as I want with no hassles.Perfect. Just the way I wanted it. For a long time I didn't believe I would actually achieve this result, but desperation and refusal to quit drove me.Now I write this review as I come back here to buy two more of these bearings for other projects. It will definitely hold the 400 lbs claimed in the description. I believe I would be willing to load it with 700 lbs if the weight was centered and not all on one edge.If you want your bearing to turn much easier, take a magic marker and draw a line across the top of the bearing and out onto the plate. Then stand on the bearing and make it spin. If the line never breaks up and rotates, then your working on the side of the rivet that is permanently mounted and you need to turn the bearing upside down to get to the rivet side that is free to spin against the plate. Both sides of the rivet looked identical so without a marked line and a spin test, you wont know which side to apply a puddle of oil to. Apply oil to the wrong side and you wasted your time.Depending on how much improvement you want, ought to determine how you mix and match the techniques I have discovered. If this helps. leave a comment and I will read them all.have a great one.Chris

I have a living room type chair which is very nice construction and it's been rattling and tilting for the last couple of years. I thought about just getting rid of it, but took the bottom apart and found that the "swivel plate" was totally worn out. I made some measurements, then found this excellent replacement on Amazon. If you go to the Trendler web site (the company that makes this product), you can download a schematic of part 100107 - this exact part. It was an perfect fit for my chair, so I ordered it. Once it arrived via Amazon Prime, it took me less than 15 minutes to install it in the same predrilled holes and hardware on the chair. The result: the chair now swivels perfectly without any wobble or tilt. The steel plates look very solid and should give me years of additional use. It was a little stiff to move the plates apart for the installation, but the chair works great now and no difficulty at all in rotating in the chair when I'm sitting in it.

These are perfect. I wasn't sure if the size would work when I ordered them, but the elongated holes have good range and I didn't need to drill new ones or grind them out larger, which would've been my alternative plan. We have 4 identical steel-frame stools with nice thick pads but it's always been an irritation that they didn't turn and this has caused stress on the frames when people move around on the seat, so I was regularly tightening the screws.Installation was a snap after I figured out just the right hardware needed: 1-1/2" x 1/4" bolts and fiber locknuts & washers to bolt the turntable to the frames, and 1" or 3/4" x #10 or #12 sheet metal screws for screwing into the seat bottom. I did have to drill new holes in the frame to fit the turntable, so first I marked thru the oval hole onto the frame, dimpled it slightly with a punch, drilled a 1/8" pilot hole, and then finished off with a good sharp 1/4" drill bit. Then I bolted the turntable to the frame after twisting it 45 degrees so that all the holes were exposed. Snug the bolts, then tighten them in a cross-pattern like you do when mounting your spare tire, and DON'T overtighten or you'll distort the frame's steel tubes.I tore off the flimsy fabric on the seat bottom, marked a big "X" across the existing holes to help center the turntable and then marked the oval holes. A quick drilling in the middle of the oval with the 1/8" bit made for an easy attachment of the seat to the turntable. You put the seat on your bench, then flip the frame up onto it and put in the screws. I used a 6" #2 Phillips bit to run them in and then did the final tightening by hand.

When I unpacked this I was very disappointed to find I had a new swivel that didn’t turn. No matter what I did, I could get it to barely move. I was not happy, but this piece was very well made & I was sure the company would not sell a non-turning swivel. I kept working at it & finally took it out to the garage, laid a rug down in the corner, put the swivel on the rug & stood on it, then propelled myself around & around on the swivel until it loosened up. Attached it to my chair with machine screws & it is a high-quality component.

These Trendler swivels are sturdy and easy to install. Good strong product.

This Swivel Plate that I ordered for my bar stool, has been the best item that I ever seen. Is american made which is the most beautiful hand craftier I ever seen. I felt more american any time I see " Made in USA". The material and desing as well, has been solid and perfect. I strongly recommend to the all people without any doubt.

Good quality and good fit however they are very very stiff. Used on bar stools and can hardly turn them after several months of use. Was thinking they would loosen up some after a while but not yet. If they get better I will update review.9/1/22- updateSwivel never did loosen up. Will not rotate at all.