Smalley Blog

January 10, 2022	Wave Spring Work Height and Compression What happens if I compress my wave spring below work height? Understanding how and when a wave spring can fail is important for achieving optimal performance in your application. One common reason a wave spring could fail is because of overstressing, otherwise known as over-compression of the spring. How do you overstress a wave spring? Compressing a wave spring below the design work height may... Read More>>
December 17, 2021	Ring in the Holidays with Smalley During this holiday season, we want to share our genuine appreciation for our customers. Smalley wouldn’t be where we are today without you! Thank you for choosing Smalley to be a part of your manufacturing journey through 2021. We wish you a joyful holiday season and a happy New Year. Before we say goodbye to 2021, let's take a look at our year in review! Smalley's 2021 Year in Review... Read More>>
December 14, 2021	What is a Retaining Ring? Smalley's Retaining Ring Overview Nails, screws, nuts, bolts, pins- the list goes on. What do these all have in common? They hold things together. When you staple a piece of paper or hang a painting on a wall, you’re joining two things together through the means of a fastener. So if we have many different types of fasteners, how do I know which one to use? Figuring out which fastener to use goes back to the application. Factors... Read More>>
November 15, 2021	Stop Over-Designing: How to Save Time and Money with a Light-Duty Ring Stop Over-Designing and Over-Paying: How to Save Time and Money With a Light-Duty Ring Light-Duty Retaining Rings for light loads may be a cost-efficient solution in comparison to snap rings. If you've ever had to hold mating components of assemblies in place, you've probably used a retaining ring. Retaining rings are a popular fastening choice, as they are compact and eliminate complex... Read More>>
October 7, 2021	Smalley Releases the Revolutionary Revolox™ Self-Locking Retaining Ring. Safely and Easily Secure Your High-Speed Rotational Needs! Smalley Releases the Revolutionary Revolox™ Self-Locking Retaining Ring. Safely and Easily Secure Your High-Speed Rotational Needs! Rotational capacity requirements for modern applications are higher than ever, especially in electric motors, gearboxes, and automotive transmissions. As the market leader for innovative retaining ring solutions, Smalley has been continually investing in ongoing... Read More>>
September 10, 2021	Smalley Wins GM Supplier Quality Excellence Award for 9th Consecutive Year Lake Zurich, IL, September 10, 2021 - Smalley received the 2020 General Motors Supplier Quality Excellence Award for the 9th consecutive year Out of the thousands of GM suppliers, only a small percentage receive this prestigious honor. The Supplier Quality Excellence Award is presented to suppliers who have met or exceeded a stringent set of criteria ranging from production to delivery. “Despite... Read More>>
July 27, 2021	Top 6 Advantages of a Wave Spring Do you have trouble finding a spring that fits in your application? Coil springs require large travel, making your application design less than optimal. Wave washers, coil springs, disc springs, the list goes on – these are all traditional springs that work well in many engineering applications. But what if you could have a more compact, light-weight design? Whether you have space constraints,... Read More>>
July 14, 2021	How to Control Corrosion: Material Selection for Rings and Springs Welcome back to the Ask the Expert blog. The blog is designed to help educate you on all things retaining rings and wave springs. This week, we talk about what corrosion is and why it’s an important factor to consider when choosing the appropriate material for retaining ring and wave spring design. What is Corrosion and Why Does it Matter for my Application? Corrosion is a naturally... Read More>>
June 8, 2021	Top 4 Advantages of Edgewinding over Stamping in Retaining Ring and Wave Spring Manufacturing Edgewinding, also known as the Smalley No-Tooling-Charges™ process, is the only manufacturing solution Smalley engineers trust to deliver precise yet flexible solutions to meet your retaining ring and wave spring needs. What is Edgewinding? Edgewinding has been the standard Smalley manufacturing process for over 50 years. Edgewinding is a precision forming process that involves coiling flat wire... Read More>>
May 24, 2021	Ask the Expert - Tensile Strength vs. Hardness: Importance for Wave Spring and Retaining Ring Design Welcome back to the Ask the Expert blog. The blog is designed to help educate you on all things retaining rings and wave springs. This week, we talk about tensile strength and why it’s important in wave spring and retaining ring design. To ensure you know how a material will perform in a working environment, several physical properties can be measured to better understand material behavior.... Read More>>