Warbird Information Exchange

i'm no metallurgist , but i'd question the structural integrity of that gear if used operationally. static display is another matter.

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tom d. friedman - hey!!! those fokkers were messerschmitts!! * without ammunition, the usaf would be just another flying club!!! * better to have piece of mind than piece of tail!!

Hmmmm,

as far as them being "junk". I would feel that they are exactly worth what they say they are. Good enough for a "static" display aircraft only. But I say this based on not knowing what the true condition really is. For example, is the rust and corrosion on the exterior as bad as it looks ? And, are the inner cylinders corroded as well ? I've only had one set of Thunderbolt gear apart during an annual inspection of the Planes of Fame P-47D "Big Chief", and that was quite some time ago. At the time we were replacing the gear leg seals during the annual. But I have had several other Warbird landing gear apart, more notably a couple of AT-6G models and if the chrome was in tact and didn't show much wear...then it was just a mattewr of re-sealing and re-packing the gear.

Just my .02 cents worth

Paul

I saw those as well; same conclusion.

For me they beg the question: Can anyone tell by sight if they're for the "D/G" series, or are they for an "N" ?

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It was a good idea, it just didn't work.

Those might be the ones that were listed on warbird-parts.com a couple months ago. He was selling a pair of P-47 main gear legs that were "recovered from a lake in Florida around 1988." If they are the same, they were listed as static only.

Don't know if that helps.

Chris

These gear were not recovered from a lake in Florida, but from a scrap yard in Macon. They have sat outside for a good long time, and are just as advertised... static only, but there maybe useful parts in them. I've seen them myself numerous times, and can attest to this. Kevin Smith's a great guy, and won't make any bogus statements as to condition. They are as advertised.

Hope this helps.

Cheers,
Richard

The Tenessee Museum of Aviation, has a least a set or two that were donated to them. They look to be about the same condition. The ones they have don't fit the D model Thunderbolt, of which they have two.. Seems like they go to a B model (?) Anyway someone supposedly found a small cache of these in Mississippi and there are more, so the story goes.

Clean them up, do a good nondestructive testing on them and they could be re-used. The airline I work for has a landing gear shop that rebuilds gear that looks worse. They can re-plate the gear, re-machine it to new standards, etc.