Electroplated steel balls begin as a solid carbon steel core that is drawn, cut and rounded, then polished before a thin metal layer is applied over the whole surface. That layer — gold, silver, nickel, zinc, copper or a colour — is what you see and handle, and it is what keeps the carbon steel balls underneath from dulling or spotting in normal indoor service. The line runs from 0.8 mm to 38 mm at grade G1000, with a surface hardness of roughly HRC27.
The product sits between two worlds, and that is deliberate. Dimensionally, each one is an ordinary ball bearing ball: round, sorted by size, consistent enough to drop into a drilled seat. But they are finished for appearance and light corrosion duty rather than for carrying load at speed, so the plating is the feature being bought, not an afterthought bolted onto a commodity part.
That makes solid steel balls like these a practical answer wherever the ball is visible or handled — knobs, fittings, decorative hardware, display pieces, the visible ends of small mechanisms — and a sensible low-cost element inside light linkages where a plain unplated ball would rust long before the part wears out. Because one line covers both jobs, a 1 mm ball for a small fitting and a 38 mm ball for a furniture foot can travel in the same consignment with matching tone and matching surface quality.
| Material | Carbon steel core with electroplated surface |
| Plating options | Gold, silver, nickel, zinc, copper, colour |
| Size range | 0.8 mm – 38 mm |
| Precision grade | G1000 |
| Hardness | Approx. HRC27, varying slightly with plating type |
| Standards | DIN, AISI, GB |
| Surface | Polished before plating, glossy plated finish |
| Certification | ISO, RoHS |
| Brand | Condar |
| Model | cd1198 |
| Construction | Solid steel balls, no cavity |
| Applications | Machinery, hardware, decoration — supplied to building materials stores, production workshops, repair shops, energy and mining companies and hardware parts suppliers |
| Country of origin | Shandong, China |
| Packaging | Drum; 20 kg carton in woven bags; carton on pallet; drum on pallet |
A finished surface, not a bare one. Every ball is polished and then plated, so the colour sits on a smooth base and reads evenly from the first piece in the drum to the last. On visible hardware that evenness is the difference between a part that looks plated and one that looks painted.
One line from 0.8 mm to 38 mm. A cabinet fitting and a furniture foot can be ordered in the same finish from the same production line, which keeps tone and surface quality matched across a product family. Ordering bearing balls across a wide size spread from one source also means one inspection standard instead of three, and one tone to approve instead of three.
Grade held at G1000. Consistency at a stated grade is what lets you write the size onto a drawing and reorder against it. Where a drawing genuinely calls for precision steel balls at G10 or G100, we make those as well and will tell you at enquiry which grade the material can actually hold.
Plating chosen for the job. Nickel for handling, zinc for internal parts, gold or silver where the ball is seen, colour where it has to match a finished product. The finish is specified to the application rather than picked from whatever is in stock.
The unplated equivalents come from the same factory. When a design moves from a decorative ball to a loaded one, the switch to bearing steel balls at HRC60–66, or to a stainless grade where moisture is the problem, does not mean qualifying a new supplier. As a ball bearing manufacturer we run the plated and unplated lines side by side, so the comparison can be made on one set of samples and one conversation.
Plated balls are a finish-led product, and it is worth being clear about where the finish stops earning its keep. The core is carbon steel at roughly HRC27 and the grade is G1000, so the ball is round and consistent — but it is not a hardened rolling element. Where a ball runs against a hardened race under load, at speed, or through a very large number of cycles, the plated layer is the first thing to wear, and once it is through, the carbon steel underneath is exposed and begins to corrode.
We make the correct part for that duty as well: bearing steel balls in GCr15 / AISI 52100 / SUJ2 / 100Cr6 at HRC60–66, and stainless grades where moisture is the main threat rather than load. Comparing the two at enquiry is normal and costs nothing but a question.
Grade follows the same logic. G1000 is generous enough for decorative fittings, knobs, covers and light linkages; where a drawing specifies precision steel balls at G10 or G100, the plated line is not the right place to look, and we would rather say so than quote a band the process cannot hold.
Three questions settle it in practice. Is the ball seen, or is it loaded? Does it run on a hardened surface? Is it exposed to water, cleaning chemicals or outdoor air? A plated ball wins clearly on the first, loses on the second, and on the third it is only the cheaper answer when the exposure is mild and the plating stays intact. If two of the three point the other way, take the unplated ball — a surface finish is not worth a premature failure in a part your customer will return.
Monthly capacity on this line is 150,000 pieces. In practice that covers a plating run plus the polishing and sorting on either side of it, which is why the plated line is scheduled as runs rather than ball by ball: keeping a colour inside one run is what stops the tone drifting between the first drum and the last.
For a buyer with a regular requirement, the number that matters is not the monthly total but the smallest quantity we can plate in a single run at your colour and size. Tell us your monthly draw and the size split, and we will tell you whether it fits inside one run or has to be spread across two — a split run is where colour variation between shipments usually starts.
Mixed orders are normal. Where a requirement covers several diameters and finishes, the set can be scheduled together so it arrives as one consignment with one set of documents, and where the design also needs an unplated grade or precision steel balls at a tighter band, those can travel with the plated goods to save a second freight charge.
Colour matching follows its own step. Because a colour is built rather than selected from a chart, approval happens before production: send a physical sample or the component the ball will sit next to, and the shade is signed off before the main run starts. Ask your sales contact about sample availability and timing, and about the current schedule for the size you need, before you plan a launch date around it.
Yuncheng Kangda Steelball Co., Ltd., the factory behind the Condar brand, has been producing precision balls in Shandong, China since 2014 with a team of 80. Two factories handle production, while a 2,000 m² warehouse inside the Liaocheng logistics park keeps common sizes in stock so ordered sizes can leave quickly. More than a hundred sets of production and inspection equipment work to GB/T308.1-2013, backed by ISO documentation and RoHS/REACH material statements. Customised or made-to-order items can be quoted case by case.
Every ball in this range begins as one of our carbon steel balls — a solid steel sphere with a plated surface. The gold, silver, nickel, zinc and copper versions differ only in the layer that goes on top, so the ball should be treated as a steel component with a decorative, corrosion-resistant skin, not as a precious-metal part.
Nickel is the hardest-wearing of the finishes we apply and is the usual answer for hardware handled daily; zinc is the lower-cost choice for internal, non-visible parts. For anything stored wet or used outside, describe the environment in your enquiry and we will tell you which finish we would put on it — and when an unplated ball would serve you better.
Not as a long-term solution. At G1000 and around HRC27 the surface is finished to look right and resist dulling rather than to take repeated contact stress, and the plating is the first thing to wear once the ball runs against a hardened race. If you are specifying bearing balls for a loaded assembly we make the hardened unplated equivalents, and a plated ball bearing ball is the right choice for the light, visible or lightly loaded positions instead.
Measure the diameter with a micrometer on the smaller sizes and a vernier caliper on the large steel balls, and check several pieces from different parts of the drum rather than one. Roundness is confirmed on a roundness meter, which traces the ball and plots the path instead of relying on a visual check. If a batch reads outside what you ordered, send us the size, the reading and the batch and we will look at it with you.
Yes — the plating adds a thin layer over the polished core, so a ball measured across the finished surface can sit slightly above the nominal core size. If the plated diameter is the one your assembly sees, tell us the finished size you need and say whether the figure you are quoting is before or after plating, so the size is set correctly before production rather than corrected afterwards.
Colour plating is built to a reference rather than picked from a standard metal tone, so matching is part of the order. Send a physical sample or the component the ball will be assembled with, and the shade is approved on a sample before the main run. That approval step is also when to raise any handling or cleaning the finished part will see, since it affects which finish we would recommend.
