In the use of rocket-propelled track vehicles, the wear of the slid¬ing bearing (slipper) which is the contact between the vehicle and the track has sometimes led to component failures. Methods of reducing this wear include the use of track coatings and wear-resistant slipper mate-rials. Four metal coatings (aluminum, lead, zinc, and tin babbitt) were tested with stainless steel and molybdenum sliders on the AFMDC track (Holloman Air Force Base) at 2500 ft/sec for 2000 ft. Of these coatings, zinc was the most effective and reduced the wear rate of the slipper material to approximately one-fifth that observed on the bare rail, a reduction well within the problem specification. Two nonmetallic coat¬ings, molybdenum disulfide and calcium hydroxide, were tested on a limited basis, with calcium hydroxide showing appreciable usefulness in wear re¬duction. The usefulness of molybdenum disulfide as a wear inhibitor can¬not be determined until problems of adherence to the track are solved.
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