Torrington Bearings, sold & sourced by Dalton Bearing Service
Dalton Bearing Service still gets plenty of calls for Torrington bearings, even though the Torrington name has mostly left the box. If you are holding a Torrington radial needle roller bearing, needle roller thrust bearing, drawn cup needle bearing, cam follower or heavy-duty roller bearing, send us the number and we will find what replaces it today.
Where the part comes from now depends on what kind of bearing it is. Torrington needle roller bearings went to JTEKT, the parent of Koyo, at the start of 2010. For a few years they were sold as Koyo-Torrington, and since 2013 they have carried the Koyo name, now moving to JTEKT. Torrington's ball bearings were sold under the Fafnir name, and that line stayed with Timken along with the larger roller bearings. A Torrington ball bearing or housed unit usually crosses to Fafnir or Timken. A Torrington needle bearing usually crosses to Koyo, with INA from Schaeffler as the common alternative.
Many machines in textile and carpet mills, in agriculture and in automotive work were built with Torrington needle bearings, so these numbers still show up on drawings and parts lists. Torrington needle numbers such as B-, BH- and NTA-series codes are widely interchanged, and we can usually give you a direct match.
Send us the number stamped on the bearing, a photo, or the shaft, bore and width. A real person will tell you the current maker and part number and give you a price. If the direct replacement is on backorder, we will say so up front and offer the nearest cross.
Torrington ownership & history
Torrington began in 1866 as the Excelsior Needle Company in Torrington, Connecticut, making sewing machine needles. Its skill at precision needles led it into needle roller bearings, and it grew into a major American bearing maker. Ingersoll-Rand bought Torrington in 1968. In 1985 Ingersoll-Rand bought the Fafnir Bearing division from Textron and merged it into Torrington, which gave Torrington a full ball bearing line.
In February 2003 Ingersoll-Rand sold its Engineered Solutions business to The Timken Company for about $840 million. That business included the Torrington, Fafnir, Kilian, Nadella and IRB brands. It was the largest acquisition in Timken's history. Timken sold the needle roller bearing operations to JTEKT (Koyo) for about $330 million in a deal that closed on December 31, 2009, and JTEKT ran them as Koyo Bearings USA. Timken kept the Fafnir ball bearing line and the heavier roller bearing products.
- 1866 Founded as the Excelsior Needle Company in Torrington, Connecticut
- 1968 Acquired by Ingersoll-Rand
- 1985 Ingersoll-Rand buys Fafnir from Textron and merges it into Torrington
- 2003 Ingersoll-Rand sells Torrington, Fafnir and Kilian to Timken (Feb 18)
- 2004 Timken sells Kilian
- 2009 Timken sells the needle roller bearing business to JTEKT (closed Dec 31)
- 2013 Koyo-Torrington needle bearings rebranded Koyo only
Related brands
TimkenBought Torrington from Ingersoll-Rand in 2003
FafnirMerged into Torrington in 1985; now Timken's ball bearing brand
KoyoTorrington needle bearings went to Koyo (JTEKT) in 2009- KilianFormer sister brand, sold to Timken with Torrington in 2003
INACommon needle roller bearing alternative (Schaeffler)- SchaefflerParent of INA, a frequent needle bearing cross
IKORelated brand
Why buy Torrington Bearings from Dalton Bearing
Dalton Bearing Service has kept plants running from Dalton, Georgia since 1946. We are an independent industrial distributor, not the manufacturer — which means we can quote Torrington Bearings straight from stock or our supplier network and, when a number is backordered or discontinued, offer a checked cross-reference — often from Timken, INA or Fafnir. Send a part number, a photo of the nameplate, or just the dimensions, and a real person gets back to you with price and availability, usually the same day.
Need something besides Torrington Bearings? We source ball bearings, roller bearings, mounted bearings, plain bearings, speed reducers, couplings and more across 160 manufacturer lines — browse every brand or send us your whole list and we will quote it in one go.