I watched the “Bearings” episode of the Secret Life of Components. The history was interesting- it makes sense that wood was used for a long time, but surprising to hear that the hardness plus the oil made tropic hardwoods like Ligum vitae a good choice and used up until the 1960s, even in submarines. He also reviews bearings made of brass, different types of plastic, and steel.
Interesting to learn about oil filled bronze and the process for making it- how did someone come up with that?
His demonstration of different levels of friction and friction reduction with ball races and roller bearings was neat. I had not known how a draw slide worked until I watched this.