Single row, angular contact ball bearings are especially designed to carry combination radial and single direction thrust loads. These bearings are frequently mounted in duplex pairs with the contact angles opposed. This allows them to carry thrust loads from opposing directions. Angular contact bearings can be mounted in a variety of ways like “Face to Face” and “Tandem”.

The maximum permissible speed is somewhat lower than that of deep groove ball bearings. A slight angular deflection is still possible with the single bearing. However, if bearings are mounted in pairs, rigidity greatly increases together with the ability to prevent misalignment.