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ISO 286 · shaft tolerance · IT11

c11 Tolerance — Shaft Limits by Nominal Size

A 25 mm c11 shaft runs 24.760 to 24.890 mm — deviations of -240 to -110 µm on a tolerance band 130 µm wide. The c sets where the band sits (loose running clearance) and IT11 sets how wide it is. Loose running shaft for wide commercial tolerances and hot-running assemblies. All values apply at 20 °C.

Feature
shaft
Letter
c
Grade
IT11
Sizes
13
Standard
ISO 286-1:2010

c11 shaft at Ø25 mm · deviation, µm

-110 / -240

Max Ø
24.890mm
Min Ø
24.760mm
Band
130µm

Deviations from the 25 mm nominal size, at 20 °C. Every other verified size is in the table below.

Source
ISO 286-1:2010, ISO 286-2:2010
Formula
max Ø = nominal + es min Ø = nominal + ei
Assumptions
Ø25 mm nominal, 18–30 mm size step, plain cylindrical feature, 20 °C. Deviations are tabulated in the standard and compiled here; the limits are those deviations added to the nominal size.
Verified
August 1, 2026

c11 Shaft Limits at Every Verified Nominal Size

Deviations in micrometres and finished limits in millimetres. These are the thirteen nominal sizes with verified demand; the deviation pattern continues across the full ISO 286 size range.

c11 shaft tolerance — deviations and limits by nominal size
PropertyDeviation, µmLimits, mmProperty
Nominal ØUpperLowerMinMaxTolerance band, µm
5 mm-70-1454.8554.93075
6 mm-70-1455.8555.93075
8 mm-80-1707.8307.92090
10 mm-80-1709.8309.92090
12 mm-95-20511.79511.905110
16 mm-95-20515.79515.905110
20 mm-110-24019.76019.890130
25 mm-110-24024.76024.890130
30 mm-110-24029.76029.890130
40 mm-120-28039.72039.880160
50 mm-130-29049.71049.870160
80 mm-150-34079.66079.850190
100 mm-170-39099.61099.830220

Deviations are relative to the nominal size: positive is above it, negative below. Limits assume the ISO 286 reference temperature of 20 °C.

The IT11 Tolerance Grade in c11, Across ISO 286 Size Bands

The number in c11 is the IT grade, and it sets how wide the tolerance band is. The band widens with size — that is the whole point of a graded tolerance system.

IT11 standard tolerance by nominal size band
Nominal size bandTolerance, µmTolerance, mm
over 0 to 3 mm600.060
over 3 to 6 mm750.075
over 6 to 10 mm900.090
over 10 to 18 mm1100.110
over 18 to 30 mm1300.130
over 30 to 50 mm1600.160
over 50 to 80 mm1900.190
over 80 to 120 mm2200.220
over 120 to 180 mm2500.250
over 180 to 250 mm2900.290
over 250 to 315 mm3200.320
over 315 to 400 mm3600.360
over 400 to 500 mm4000.400

Bands are open at the bottom and closed at the top: 'over 18 to 30 mm' includes 30 mm and excludes 18 mm.

Fundamental Deviation of the c shaft Tolerance in c11

The letter in c11 sets where the tolerance band sits relative to the nominal size: loose running clearance. The grade then adds the band width to that starting point.

Fundamental deviation of c (shaft) by nominal size band
Nominal size bandFundamental deviation, µmWhich limit it sets
over 0 to 3 mm-60upper (es / ES)
over 3 to 6 mm-70upper (es / ES)
over 6 to 10 mm-80upper (es / ES)
over 10 to 14 mm-95upper (es / ES)
over 14 to 18 mm-95upper (es / ES)
over 18 to 24 mm-110upper (es / ES)
over 24 to 30 mm-110upper (es / ES)
over 30 to 40 mm-120upper (es / ES)
over 40 to 50 mm-130upper (es / ES)
over 50 to 65 mm-140upper (es / ES)
over 65 to 80 mm-150upper (es / ES)
over 80 to 100 mm-170upper (es / ES)
over 100 to 120 mm-180upper (es / ES)
over 120 to 140 mm-200upper (es / ES)
over 140 to 160 mm-210upper (es / ES)
over 160 to 180 mm-230upper (es / ES)
over 180 to 200 mm-240upper (es / ES)
over 200 to 225 mm-260upper (es / ES)
over 225 to 250 mm-280upper (es / ES)
over 250 to 280 mm-300upper (es / ES)
over 280 to 315 mm-330upper (es / ES)
over 315 to 355 mm-360upper (es / ES)
over 355 to 400 mm-400upper (es / ES)
over 400 to 450 mm-440upper (es / ES)
over 450 to 500 mm-480upper (es / ES)

The fundamental deviation is the limit nearest the nominal size. For a hole it is the lower limit for letters A–H and the upper limit above that; the other limit follows from the IT grade.

Standard Fits That Use the c11 Tolerance

A tolerance on its own is half a fit. These are the standard ISO 286 pairs c11 appears in, with what each one is used for.

Standard ISO 286 fits that use c11
FitTypeBasisWhat it is for
H11/c11clearancehole basisLoose running. Wide commercial tolerances, large clearance for dirt, paint and thermal growth.

Clearance, transition and interference are properties of the pair, not of either tolerance alone.

Sources and Method for the c11 Tolerance Data

c11 limitscomputed

limits computed from the compiled ISO 286 tables: ISO 286-1 IT grades and ISO 286-2 fundamental deviations, compiled from saucecode/ISO286 (LGPL-2.1) and parkergreene/isofits (MIT), cross-checked cell-for-cell

Verified against parkergreene/isofits ISO 286-2 limit tables (MIT); ISO 286-1 formula harness — 2067 checks passed

Computed from the standard's formulas, then checked against published tables.

IT11 tolerance gradecompiled

ISO 286-1 IT grades and ISO 286-2 fundamental deviations, compiled from saucecode/ISO286 (LGPL-2.1) and parkergreene/isofits (MIT), cross-checked cell-for-cell

Verified against parkergreene/isofits ISO 286-2 limit tables (MIT); ISO 286-1 formula harness — 2067 checks passed. Formula per ISO 286-1 standard tolerance factor and fundamental deviation formulas, used as a validation harness only per docs/research/data-sourcing.md §3.6

Compiled from independent public sources that agree cell-for-cell.

c fundamental deviationcompiled

ISO 286-1 IT grades and ISO 286-2 fundamental deviations, compiled from saucecode/ISO286 (LGPL-2.1) and parkergreene/isofits (MIT), cross-checked cell-for-cell

Verified against parkergreene/isofits ISO 286-2 limit tables (MIT); ISO 286-1 formula harness — 2067 checks passed

Compiled from independent public sources that agree cell-for-cell.

Formula

Limits from the deviations, shaft tolerance

max Ø  =  nominal + es
min Ø  =  nominal + ei

  es = upper deviation (µm)
  ei = lower deviation (µm)

The deviations are tabulated in ISO 286-2 and compiled here; the limits are those deviations added to the nominal size, which is why both columns are shown.

Assumptions
  • Values apply at the ISO 286 reference temperature of 20 °C.
  • Limits are for a plain cylindrical feature. A tolerance letter says nothing about surface finish, form or roundness — those need their own callouts.
  • Dataset scope: COMPILED not computed: the ISO 286-1 formula deviates up to 13.26% from the table and is used only as a harness (warn >5%, fail >15%). EXCLUDED: shaft/hole letters s, t, u and the fits H7/s6, H7/t6, H7/u6 — no free source and an undetermined step constant in the formula.
Data last verified
August 1, 2026
How this data is built and checked →

How to Cite This c11 Tolerance Reference

Citation

ShopMath. "c11 Tolerance — Shaft Limits by Nominal Size." ShopMath, verified August 1, 2026, https://shopmath.org/fits/c11

BibTeX

@misc{shopmath-fits-c11,
  title        = {c11 Tolerance — Shaft Limits by Nominal Size},
  author       = {{ShopMath}},
  year         = {2026},
  howpublished = {\url{https://shopmath.org/fits/c11}},
  note         = {Data verified 2026-08-01}
}

Permanent URL

https://shopmath.org/fits/c11

Common Questions About the c11 Tolerance

What is the tolerance of a 25 mm c11 shaft?

A 25 mm c11 shaft runs 24.760 to 24.890 mm — deviations of -240 to -110 µm, a tolerance band 130 µm wide.

What does c11 mean?

c11 is an ISO 286 shaft tolerance. The c sets the fundamental deviation — loose running clearance — and the 11 is the IT11 tolerance grade, which sets how wide the band is. Loose running shaft for wide commercial tolerances and hot-running assemblies.

How wide is the IT11 tolerance band?

IT11 is 130 µm wide for nominal sizes over 18 up to 30 mm, and widens with size — the full band table is on this page.

Which fits use c11?

c11 appears in 1 standard ISO 286 fits: H11/c11 (clearance).

Every ISO 286 designation and fit · ISO 286 tolerance chart