This paper presents a mixed lubrication model for cold rolling of metals. It considers both hydrodynamic lubrication and asperity contact between the roll and the metal. The calculated results show the essential characteristics of friction and the pressure distribution in the roll bite, which indicate that a constant coefficient of friction is a poor assumption. A weighting factor for the contribution of asperity contact is obtained, and the Hitchcock formula is found adequate for representing roll deformation in calculating the inlet lubricant film thickness.Presented as an American Society of Lubrication Engineers paper at the ASLE/ASNE Lubrication Conference held in Miami Beach, Florida, October 21–23, 1975