Metal Bevel Gear – M0.15 to M2.0, 11 Alloys, AGMA 13

The decision between metal and plastic bevel gears at small module reduces to four engineering criteria. If any one of the following applies, a metal bevel gear is the correct specification.

The standard starting point for metal bevel gears at small module. Normalised or through-hardened C45 delivers adequate tooth strength for moderate-load industrial and automotive auxiliary drives at lower cost than alloy steel. Machines readily to tight tolerances. Not suitable for corrosive environments without surface protection.

General-purpose drives, machine accessories, moderate-load instrument gearheads

The high-performance metal bevel gear material for automotive, military, and high-load industrial drives. Case-hardening grades (20CrMnTi) achieve 58–62 HRC tooth surface hardness with a tough low-carbon core; through-hardening grades (42CrMo) provide uniform hardness for shock-tolerant applications. Tooth load capacity is 5–10 times higher than an equivalent module and size in POM.

Automotive differentials, military drives, high-torque instrument drives, power tool gearheads

Corrosion-resistant metal bevel gears for food, medical, marine, and pharmaceutical applications where rust or metal-ion contamination from carbon steel is not acceptable. 316 adds molybdenum for chloride resistance. Passivation after machining is available with certificate for medical device supplier qualification. Load capacity is moderate — between carbon steel and brass at equivalent module.

Medical devices, food machinery, marine auxiliaries, pharmaceutical equipment, laboratory instruments

Bronze metal bevel gears offer excellent wear resistance against a steel pinion, good corrosion resistance in marine and wet environments, and inherent lubricity that reduces tooth friction. The bronze wheel driven by a hardened steel pinion is a classic pairing in long-life instrument and marine drives where quiet running and low maintenance are priorities. Phosphor bronze provides higher strength than standard tin bronze.

Marine drives, precision clocks and instruments, valve actuators, architectural hardware

Brass metal bevel gears machine to very tight tolerances and run quietly against a steel driver. The material's moderate strength, good corrosion resistance in atmospheric environments, and attractive appearance make it the traditional choice for precision instrument drives, decorative mechanical assemblies, and consumer product gearheads. Brass is non-magnetic and non-sparking — both relevant in sensitive measurement environments.

Precision instruments, clocks, decorative mechanisms, non-magnetic drives, gauges

Pure copper metal bevel gears are specified for their electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and non-sparking property. Used in grounding mechanism drives, EMI-sensitive control gearheads, and potentially explosive atmosphere angle drives where a metallic gear is required but sparking must be excluded. Load capacity is low; copper is not a structural gear material but a functional one where its physical properties matter more than tooth strength.

Electrical grounding drives, EMI-sensitive controls, ATEX-rated equipment, thermal management

Zinc die-cast metal bevel gears bridge the gap between injected plastic and fully machined metal — they are stronger and more dimensionally stable than POM or PA at small module, but produced near-net-shape by die-casting rather than cut from bar, keeping per-unit cost low at high volumes. Used in door mechanism drives, consumer appliance gearheads, and light-duty power tool auxiliary stages where the design load exceeds plastic capacity but full alloy steel precision is not required.

Consumer appliances, power tool accessories, door mechanisms, mid-volume light drives

Aluminium metal bevel gears are the lightest metallic option and machine to excellent dimensional accuracy. Anodising after machining provides hard-coat surface protection and can be colour-coded for ratio identification. Used in UAV and drone drives, motorsport gearheads, lightweight robotic wrist joints, and EV subsystem angle drives where rotating mass is a design parameter. 7075-T6 offers significantly higher strength than 6061 at similar weight.

UAV propulsion, motorsport, lightweight robotics, EV subsystems, satellite mechanisms

Cast iron metal bevel gears are heavy but provide excellent vibration damping and adequate wear resistance at low pitch-line speeds. Used in slow auxiliary drives — water pump angle stages, oil pump bevel drives in industrial equipment — where the gear's damping properties benefit the machine acoustics and the low operating speed does not demand the strength of alloy steel. Ductile iron adds impact resistance to the damping benefit of grey iron.

Slow industrial auxiliaries, pump drives, damping-sensitive machine drives

Small-module metal bevel gears can be produced by three distinct manufacturing routes, each with different implications for dimensional accuracy, surface finish, material options, and cost at volume.

Automotive

Differential ring-and-pinion sets, power steering angle drives, throttle position actuators, and window regulator drives that exceed the load capacity of plastic gears. Alloy steel for high-load stages; stainless for corrosion-sensitive auxiliaries; zinc for mid-volume lightly loaded mechanisms.

Military

Targeting and sighting drives where dimensional stability over temperature and humidity cycles is non-negotiable. Brass and stainless metal bevel gears at AGMA 13 / JGMA 1 are specified for non-magnetic requirements. Alloy steel for high-torque vehicle drives that must survive shock loading from weapons or terrain.

Aircraft

Flight instrument drives, cockpit control surface feedback gearheads, and avionics cooling fan angle stages. Aluminium or titanium for weight-critical applications; steel for high-load flight control stages. Temperature range from −55°C (high altitude) to +150°C (near engine) requires metallic gears — no plastic meets this range.

Industrial & Mechanical

Machine tool angle heads, servo drive direction-change stages, encoder coupling drives, and process control actuators. Steel or alloy steel for load-bearing stages; brass for quiet precision drives; stainless for chemical or food-adjacent environments.

Medical

Surgical robotic wrist drives requiring autoclave sterilisation (316L stainless with passivation), diagnostic imaging gantry drives (dimensional stability over service life), and implantable device drives (titanium alloy, biocompatibility-validated materials). Metal bevel gears are the only option where PEEK plastic cannot meet the combined temperature, chemical, and biocompatibility specification.

Hazardous Atmospheres

Petrochemical, mining, and chemical plant drives in potentially explosive atmospheres require ATEX-rated equipment. Non-sparking metal bevel gears in bronze, brass, or copper eliminate the ignition risk from metal-on-metal sparking that carbon steel or iron gears would present. The metallic material is necessary here — the drive load exceeds plastic capacity, but the material must not spark.

What is the IPR protection policy and how does it work in practice?

Korea Ever-Power applies a strict intellectual property protection policy to all OEM and ODM programmes. Customer drawings, design files, geometry data, and proprietary specifications are stored in a restricted-access system accessible only to personnel directly involved in that customer's production. They are not shared with other customers, not used as reference for similar designs, and not retained beyond the duration of the customer relationship unless the customer explicitly requests otherwise. Non-disclosure agreements (NDA) are available for customers who require a contractual IPR commitment in addition to the policy undertaking. When you submit a drawing to Ever-Power, the design remains your property; we are producing it as your contracted manufacturer only.

How do I choose between a machined, die-cast, or sintered metal bevel gear for my application?

The choice depends on annual production volume, required accuracy, and material. For any volume below approximately 5,000 pieces per year and for any application requiring AGMA 12 accuracy or better, CNC machining is the correct route — no tooling investment is required, all metallic materials are available, and accuracy is not constrained by die shrinkage. For volumes above 50,000 pieces per year in zinc or aluminium at accuracy requirements of AGMA 9 or below, die casting reduces per-unit cost significantly once tooling is amortised. Sintering suits very high volumes of steel or iron bevel gears at AGMA 7–9 in sealed consumer or appliance products where the porous structure's oil retention is also an advantage. Korea Ever-Power's engineering team will recommend the appropriate route for your specific volume, accuracy, and material combination at the quotation stage.

Can metal bevel gears run without lubrication the way plastic gears can?

Generally, no — metal bevel gears at significant load require lubrication to maintain a hydrodynamic film between tooth flanks and prevent adhesive wear. The exception is the brass-on-steel pairing, where the brass gear transfers a thin solid-film lubricant to the steel flank during running, allowing low-load, low-speed operation without applied oil or grease. Bronze similarly has some inherent lubricity. For very light-load instrument drives at very low speed, an initial oil application followed by sealed-for-life operation is sometimes acceptable. In all other cases, a lubricant — grease for enclosed sealed units, oil for splash-lubricated gearboxes, or open-gear grease for exposed drives — should be specified with the gear set.

What software do you use for custom metal bevel gear design, and what file formats do you accept?

Korea Ever-Power uses AutoCAD and SolidWorks for drawing preparation and 3D modelling. Customer drawings are accepted in PDF, DWG, DXF, STEP, and IGES formats. For a new custom programme, the customer provides the drawing; our team converts it to production documentation and returns a dimensioned first-article drawing for approval before production begins. If the customer has only a sample part rather than a drawing, we can reverse-engineer the sample, produce a production drawing for customer approval, and then manufacture to that drawing. The customer receives and approves the production drawing before any machining begins, ensuring the manufactured part matches the customer's original intent.

How is equipment failure handled during the warranty period?

If a metal bevel gear fails during the warranty period, email us with photographs or a short video showing the failure mode and the context of how the gear was installed and operating. Our engineering team reviews the failure evidence and determines whether the root cause is a manufacturing defect or an operating condition outside the gear's specified limits. For manufacturing defects — material non-conformance, dimensional error, incorrect heat treatment — replacement parts are sent at no charge. For failures caused by operating conditions beyond the specification (overload, wrong lubrication, installation error), we will advise on the corrective action required and can re-quote replacement parts at commercial terms with any specification upgrade recommended by the failure analysis.

Can I order a single sample metal bevel gear before committing to a production quantity?

Yes. Korea Ever-Power provides samples before production batch approval as standard practice. A sample order typically covers 3 to 10 pieces machined to the customer-approved production drawing. The sample is accompanied by a dimensional inspection report and material certificate so the customer can verify conformance before approving production. Sample express shipping is via DHL or UPS; the customer is responsible for express freight costs unless otherwise agreed. Once the sample is approved and the production order confirmed, the sample cost is credited against the first production invoice on orders above a minimum agreed value. Contact our team with your drawing or sample part to begin the qualification process.

"We design precision laboratory instruments and needed M0.8 brass bevel gears at AGMA 12 for a pH meter angle drive. The brass material was essential — the gear runs near an ion-sensitive electrode and any magnetic or ferrous material was excluded. Ever-Power produced to spec with tight dimensional control and the gears have run for 24 months in the field without measurable backlash change."

Yoo Min-seo  |  Instrument Design Engineer, Seoul Analytical Instruments  ·  Q2 2025

"We switched from POM to 316L stainless metal bevel gears in an infusion pump angle drive after the POM version showed dimensional drift in high-humidity hospital environments. The stainless gears have held their bore tolerance after 18 months of operation through multiple sterilisation cycles. The passivation certificate from Ever-Power satisfied our medical QMS documentation requirement immediately."

Choi Jun-il  |  Medical Device Engineer, Daejeon Medical Systems  ·  Q4 2025

"We needed M1.5 bronze metal bevel gears for a marine valve actuator on a ferry. The stainless option was evaluated but the bronze provides better lubricity against the hardened steel driver shaft, which runs dry. Ever-Power produced with phosphor bronze, confirmed the tooth geometry from our worn sample, and delivered with dimensional report. The actuator has completed 18 months of sea service without gear failure."

Im Sang-jun  |  Marine Engineer, Busan Ferry Operations  ·  Q1 2026

"We manufacture UAV propulsion systems and specified M1.0 7075 aluminium bevel gears at AGMA 12 for a weight-critical propeller angle drive. Every-Power delivered anodised, within the drawing tolerance, and with a dimensional report. Weight per pair matched the material specification calculation. The drive has completed over 400 flight hours in testing with no sign of wear on the anodised tooth surfaces."

Han Ji-soo  |  Systems Engineer, Gyeonggi UAV Technologies  ·  Q3 2025

"We produce power tool gearheads and had a POM bevel gear set failing under the peak torque during bit-jam conditions. The metal replacement — M1.5 alloy steel 20CrMnTi carburised — handles the jam torque without tooth fracture. Ever-Power produced from our SolidWorks model directly, provided the production drawing for approval, and manufactured within three weeks. The IPR undertaking in writing before production gave our engineering team confidence about design confidentiality."

Kang Tae-young  |  Product Engineer, Incheon Power Tool Manufacturing  ·  Q2 2026