Planetary Gears And Their Main Components

New Customization Options Now Available Through Matex

Posted By Matex Gears
November 11, 2026 Category: General

For years, if a standard planetary gear didn't quite fit your application, your options were limited - pick the closest standard size and design around it, or go looking for a specialty manufacturer willing to take on a one-off project. That's changing. Matex Gears now offers customers access to the extensive custom and semi-custom design capabilities. This Isn't New to Matex - Just Newly Accessible Our standard catalog of Planetary Gear Modules - 26mm to 200mm in outer diameter, 0.8 Nm to 1,300 Nm in output torque - is really just the starting point for a much broader set of engineering capabilities. Some examples of what that custom design process has produced: A stainless-steel planetary gear reducer engineered for a lunar exploration vehicle, based from the standard LGU75-5MAD model and reworked into an design able to withstand the environment of the lunar surface. EOD (explosive ordnance disposal) robots for defense applications. Parastaltic pumps and other precision components for the medical field. Custom gearing for electric pumps and manufacturing equipment across a range of industries. If a standard model can be adapted into something that survives on the moon, there's a good chance it can be adapted to fit your application too. What Customization Can Mean for Your Project Depending on your requirements, custom work with Matex can include: Material substitution - moving between plastic, sintered metal, and machined steel (or combinations

Plastic vs. Sintered Metal vs. Steel Planetary Gears: Which Material Is Right for Your Application?

Posted By Matex Gears
November 11, 2026 Category: General

One of the most common questions we hear from engineers specifying a planetary gear reducer isn't about ratio or torque — it's simpler than that: what should the gears actually be made of? Material choice affects weight, noise, cost, and how much load the system can handle over its lifetime, so it's worth getting right before you lock in a design. Here's how our three standard material options compare. Plastic Planetary Gears Matex plastic planetary gears use a plastic outer ring gear, with the inner planets and rollers made of sintered metal, and carrier plates typically in ZDC2 (though steel or sintered metal carriers are available for higher loads). This combination is built to cut weight and noise while still holding up under moderate torque. Best for: applications where weight and quiet operation matter more than maximum torque — think handheld tools, small appliances, and consumer-facing devices where a metal gearbox would feel (and sound) like overkill. Trade-off: plastic components have a lower torque ceiling than an all-metal build, so they're not the right choice once loads climb into the higher end of the range. Sintered Metal Planetary Gears Sintered metal gears are formed by compacting metal powder under heat and pressure rather than machining from solid stock. The result is a gear that's more robust than plastic but lighter and often less expensive than a fully machined steel gear, while still holding tight dimensional

Choose the Right Gear with Matex Gears' Ratio Calculator

Posted By Matex Gears
May 28, 2024 Category: Ratio Calculator, Custom Gears

Discover the ideal gear for your project using Matex Gears' easy-to-use online ratio calculator. Get expert guidance and find precise solutions