The Ryder gear test has been widely used to define the antiwear characteristics of lubricating oils intended for w e i n aviation gear boxes. However, a n accelerated procedure is required, particularly for the screening and development of new lubricants, due to the cost and compkxity of the Ryder test. The present study is a development of previous work that evaluated the suitability of a number of apparat w . Initial screening work indicated that a ball-on-rotating ~ylinder contact geomet? had the potential to effectively predict the results of the Ryder gear test. The present work desmibes the development ofthe test procedure and confirms that similar wear mechanism exist i n both instances. Indeed, the calculated contact jlesh temperature i n both the Ryder and ball-on-cylinder contacts was almost identical at the onset of scu.ng. A simpb model was developed to predict the effects of lubricant viscosity on the gear contact. Excellent correlation was observed between the model and the measured effects of hydrc~ dynamic lubrication i n the full-scab Ryder gear test. As a result, the Gear Oil Scuff Test (GOST) procedure considers both chemical and physical lubricant characteristics. A correlation coeficient of 0.92 was obtained between the laboratmy and full-scab test procedures for a matrix of 27 oils of widely v a~i n g quality.