Patent ID: 6961212

Claim:
A spindle motor for a disk drive, comprising: a spindle motor base; a shaft coupled to the spindle motor base, the shaft defining a longitudinal axis; a first bearing, the first bearing including: a first inner race attached to the shaft; a first outer race; a first ball set between the first inner race and the first outer race; a second bearing spaced-apart from the first bearing along the longitudinal axis, the second bearing including: a second inner race attached to the shaft; a second outer race; a second ball set between the second inner race and the second outer race; and a one-piece rotary hub surrounding the shaft, the rotary hub defining a hub extension that is disposed between the first and second bearings and that extends away from the rotary hub toward the longitudinal axis, the hub extension of the rotary hub being configured to reach beyond the first and second outer races and between the first and second inner races.