The Siren Board

Those rotator parts are from my first Thunderbolt! I could recognize the god awful paint job I laid down on it years ago from a mile away. I'm glad the parts are going to a good home and an even more worthy cause.

Wow, that is pretty wild!

Took apart the gear reducer. Good news is I have a full shop at my disposal, however was hoping to avoid doing a full tear down. Seems inevitable at this point.
Would anyone know where I can find replacement gaskets? I kinda suspect I will need to make them myself.

So that's what it looks like on the inside - neat! The bearings look a bit rusty and could probably benefit from a replacement. This would probably be a good time to do it.

As for the gaskets, I'd either make paper gaskets or use an appropriate RTV. Does the gear reducer use only grease for lubricant?

HDN wrote: ↑

Wed May 21, 2025 1:24 am

So that's what it looks like on the inside - neat! The bearings look a bit rusty and could probably benefit from a replacement. This would probably be a good time to do it.

As for the gaskets, I'd either make paper gaskets or use an appropriate RTV. Does the gear reducer use only grease for lubricant?

The problem I am facing with replacing the bearings is I have no idea how to do it without breaking it. I tried pressing them out with a bearing press, ended up giving the main case a hairline crack on the bottom of it, which is discouraging me to continue.

So far everyone I talked with had left the bearings alone and just replaced the seals... So I have no idea if there is a specific way to get them out without damaging the worm gear, or damaging the case even further.

I was going to use gear oil once everything is back together. I heard RTV has the potential to mess with the gears, supposedly it requires specific clearances to work properly. I might be missing some shims, hopefully not.

tachi88 wrote: ↑

Wed May 21, 2025 3:18 am

The problem I am facing with replacing the bearings is I have no idea how to do it without breaking it. I tried pressing them out with a bearing press, ended up giving the main case a hairline crack on the bottom of it, which is discouraging me to continue.

So far everyone I talked with had left the bearings alone and just replaced the seals... So I have no idea if there is a specific way to get them out without damaging the worm gear, or damaging the case even further.

I was going to use gear oil once everything is back together. I heard RTV has the potential to mess with the gears, supposedly it requires specific clearances to work properly. I might be missing some shims, hopefully not.

YIKES! Yeah I'd stop trying to get the bearings out too. That's too bad the bearing press didn't cut it - it's a nice tool to have for stuff like this. I hope the crack isn't a big deal. They seem to be really stuck in there! Maybe they're rusted to the case and need a little heat.

The gears don't spin too fast, do they? Maybe a little bearing grease and new seals would be just fine for the bearings. And if they ever self-destruct, maybe they'll be easier to remove then

Is the concern with RTV that there wouldn't be enough clearance between the inside of the case cover and that big gear in the middle? That would be pretty tight if that's the case.

HDN wrote: ↑

Thu May 22, 2025 12:42 am

tachi88 wrote: ↑

Wed May 21, 2025 3:18 am

The problem I am facing with replacing the bearings is I have no idea how to do it without breaking it. I tried pressing them out with a bearing press, ended up giving the main case a hairline crack on the bottom of it, which is discouraging me to continue.

So far everyone I talked with had left the bearings alone and just replaced the seals... So I have no idea if there is a specific way to get them out without damaging the worm gear, or damaging the case even further.

I was going to use gear oil once everything is back together. I heard RTV has the potential to mess with the gears, supposedly it requires specific clearances to work properly. I might be missing some shims, hopefully not.

YIKES! Yeah I'd stop trying to get the bearings out too. That's too bad the bearing press didn't cut it - it's a nice tool to have for stuff like this. I hope the crack isn't a big deal. They seem to be really stuck in there! Maybe they're rusted to the case and need a little heat.

The gears don't spin too fast, do they? Maybe a little bearing grease and new seals would be just fine for the bearings. And if they ever self-destruct, maybe they'll be easier to remove then

Is the concern with RTV that there wouldn't be enough clearance between the inside of the case cover and that big gear in the middle? That would be pretty tight if that's the case.

What's crazy, the bearing was moving when it happened, so not sure if I was going the wrong way about it? Or if the metal was that brittle. I am reaching out to a professional for help on it, plus repairing the crack since it will likely leak

With the help of a experienced machinist, was able to get the gear reducer completely disassembled and it was worse than originally thought. In addition to the seized bearings, one of them was seized against the drive shaft, and after removing it we discovered that both the drive shaft and the worm gear shaft were out of run. The worm gear I am going to clean up and "send it" since it isn't too bad (about 0.004"), plus the cost and the complication of having a new one made isn't, in my opinion, worth the hassle. The drive gear is too far gone with the rust and overall condition of it, currently having a replacement made.

Additionally, I put a coat of primer on the standpipe and primed / applied the first coat of paint onto the projector.

Great progress there! I'm glad you were able to get the gear reducer completely disassembled with professional help. What did they do to get the bearings out?