Friday, August 12, 2011

U.S. Navy 12G30 Searchlight Restovation: Getting My Bearings

The searchlight body sits in a yoke that permits up and down motion.  I was surprised to to find this accomplished via a set of ball bearings. 

Below left is the new bearing (Nice) and to the right, one of the two old ones; the one that survived intact..  One can clearly see written on it, "Hoffman," Made in England" and "ULS SE".  I was amazed to find that these numbers could still be cross-referenced to a modern replacement pair. 



The bearing mounted in its hub with a new nut retaining it.



The hub cap installed.  I used acorn nuts; they are more decorative and also cover what would otherwise be an exposed bolt end.  I can't recall what was in the center of the hub (I think either nothing or just a bolt), but I added the grease fitting