Needle Bearing Locks are A relatively new innovation that attempts to address some of the short-comings of the standard straight lock design, specifically initial engagement.

The single point radial contact provides a non-binding lift to align a sagging mold, which is an effective alignment method. Needle bearing locks provide some early engagement protection, but will fall short of molder expectations when trying to overcome injection melt pressure in final lock-up with single point contact. Simply put, the strength is not there.