New Old Baldor Buffer

[SteveHGraham]

These things were listed as sealed in the Ebay ad. I didn't bother checking until now. Apparently, they are "double shielded," whatever that means.

Grit will have to work pretty hard to get into them. The grinder has tight-fitting end caps and big felt washers behind them. The original bearings were shielded, not sealed. They didn't appear to be gritty. Just worn out.

[Howard Gorin]

Grit gets into everything. Double shielded bearings are used to reduce friction. My super expensive Swiss drill sharpener used them.
They failed in about eighteen months. The experts pronounced the drill sharpener unrepairable. New sealed bearings solved the problem.
No problems and the drill sharpener has worked for six years. The price of two new bearings, less then ten dollars. Your experience may be different.

[SteveHGraham]

I certainly hope so, because I'm not taking these bearings out until they fail.