A universal apparatus for testing wear and friction characteristics of a material, comprising: a frame that includes a carriage moveable along a vertical plane and a slide moveable along a horizontal plane; a force sensor assembly coupled to said slide; a holder for an upper specimen, said holder being coupled to the force sensor assembly; and a mechanism for causing said upper specimen to exert a predetermined force on a lower specimen; a plurality of modular sample stages (14, 50, 60, 80), each of said stages (14, 50, 60, 80) including a support for said lower specimen and a mechanism for producing a motion of the lower specimen relative to said upper specimen, said motion being rotational around a horizontal axis in one of said stages (14, 50, 60, 80), rotational around a vertical axis in another of said stages (14, 50, 60, 80), and linearly reciprocating along a horizontal direction in yet another of the stages; a base for alternatively supporting one of the stages (14, 50, 60, 80), said base including a locking mechanism (34, 36) for coupling said one of the stages (14, 50, 60, 80) to the base and a rotational drive adapted for engagement of said mechanism for producing a motion of the lower specimen; a motor housed in said frame, said motor being adapted for actuation of said rotational drive; a controller for varying said force exerted on the sample (14, 50, 60, 80); a processor programmed for executing a predetermined set of test operations; and means for identifying said one of the stages (14, 50, 60, 80) coupled to the base and for automatically enabling only a subset of said test operations, said subset corresponding to one of the stages (14, 50, 60, 80) coupled to the base. a frame that includes a carriage moveable along a vertical plane and a slide moveable along a horizontal plane; a force sensor assembly coupled to said slide; a holder for an upper specimen, said holder being coupled to the force sensor assembly; and a mechanism for causing said upper specimen to exert a predetermined force on a lower specimen; a plurality of modular sample stages (14, 50, 60, 80), each of said stages (14, 50, 60, 80) including a support for said lower specimen and a mechanism for producing a motion of the lower specimen relative to said upper specimen, said motion being rotational around a horizontal axis in one of said stages (14, 50, 60, 80), rotational around a vertical axis in another of said stages (14, 50, 60, 80), and linearly reciprocating along a horizontal direction in yet another of the stages; a base for alternatively supporting one of the stages (14, 50, 60, 80), said base including a locking mechanism (34, 36) for coupling said one of the stages (14, 50, 60, 80) to the base and a rotational drive adapted for engagement of said mechanism for producing a motion of the lower specimen; a motor housed in said frame, said motor being adapted for actuation of said rotational drive; a controller for varying said force exerted on the sample (14, 50, 60, 80); a processor programmed for executing a predetermined set of test operations; and means for identifying said one of the stages (14, 50, 60, 80) coupled to the base and for automatically enabling only a subset of said test operations, said subset corresponding to one of the stages (14, 50, 60, 80) coupled to the base.