> This is an I wonder why question...how come the trunions are made of brass?
> There had to be a reason to engineer softer metal at that critical place.
The hard/soft metal forms a very long wearing and rugged bearing. Not as high
tech as a ball or roller bearing perhaps, but stronger (for their size) and easy
(cheap) to make. The same principle is found in many bearings in a car
(frequently called bushings), such as the rod & main bearings, wrist pin
bearings, etc.
> Are all trunions made of brass?
The term "trunnion" just refers to the type of joint, so no, not all trunnions
are made with brass. Here's one made of wood !
http://www.machinecnc.com/trunnion.html
Randall
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