Swan 38 Bearings of wheel pedestal
Dear all,
As we are going to make a refit of the wheel pedestal of Carissima (No. 69/1976) we like to get information about the dimensions and material of the bearings of the steering wheel (2x) and brake (1x)? Are these bearings industrial standard fittings or custom made?
Thank´s for your kind help,

Klaus Andrews

Dear Klaus
The bearings are custom made. It is suggested you contact
spareparts@nautors-swan.com and ask if they are still available.
Kind regards
Lars

Dear Klaus,

we did this job on 47/013 VERA 1976. A turning workshop made new bearings for us using DELRIN, as Nylon tends to swell when wet. We had to give them the main (tapered) axis and the old bearings for that.

The brake is obviously made from TUFNOL (http://www.tufnol.com/tufnol/default.asp?id=24) or a very similar material, but we decided to repair the brake by cutting a slightly wider slot into the main body in order to allow for a tighter squeeze. Additionally we shortened the brake adjustment screw a few millimeter + cut two additional threats, in order to get more way into the brake. There is a bronce sleeve roughed up (but now almost polished by years of wear) around the outside surface that we cleaned carefully from Tufnol dust, but left as is otherwise. This could eventually be roughed up again, using a sharp file, but we did not bother. With some silicon grease around the screw threat, the whole system works very smooth now and adjusting it feels like a treat.

I hope this is clear enough explained. Some photos below might help.

Best regards, Britta and Michael 47/013 VERA

Michael,
great job and thank you for the pictures and the very clear explanation.
Just a question: what is the use of the screw whose head appears to be on the upper side of the tufnol clamp assembly?

Daniel, 411/004

Daniel,
the hole you see in the brake material is just an access hole to the slotted bronce screw. The bronce screw sits in the bronce sleeve that is keyed onto the main axis and holds it there, once the brake is properly aligned. When you turn the wheel, the screw turns away and disappears under the Tufnol block. Put it in with a little Loctite and don‘t overtighten, as the bronce is kind of soft.
Best regards, Michael

Michael,
smart and very clear. Now that you explained it I can see a little sign in the inner part of the keyed ring, opposed the key itself, that reveals the presence of the hole for the grub screw.
Thank you again, your description is of great help.

Daniel, 411/004

Dear Lars, dear all,
Thank you very much for your kind help about the bearings.
Spareparts@nautors-swan.com are unfortunately not able to deliver these bearings anymore. So I searched the web and found two companies who are selling industrial standard bearings from polyamid 6.6, packed by 100 pieces, good for an other millenium of sailing.
The dimensions are metric:
Steering wheel aft: 36,0 – 45,0 mm, L= 36 mm
Steering wheel front: 40,0 – 50,0 mm, L= 36 mm
Brake outside: 25,0 – 30,0 mm, L= 33 mm
Brake inside: 12,0 – 15,0 mm, L= 15 mm
The companies:
www.emico.de - delivering the small ones
www.duboschweitzer.de - delivering the bigger ones

Dear Klaus
Sorry to interfere, but polyamid is not suitable for these bearings, it swells due to moisture absorbtion, and will make steering stiffer and stiffer. A proper material is named POM, one trade name is Delrin.
Kind regards
Lars

Dear Lars,
thank´s for your information about the material. I will do an other research on bearing of POM.
Hope to get some.

Best regards,
Klaus