, so I’ll repost from memory and photos off my phone. I picked up an 8.5’ AirFlow a few years back. According to the seller, he purchased it in the early 1990s and it had been laying down since his purchase. A cedar tree had grown up through the assembled wheel, which was laying on the ground. It had at least a 30’ Stover tower and was mostly complete, but for it had a Star 24 vane with it as opposed to the Airflow (or Champion variant) vane. A couple of the blades needed replaced and the wheel arms needed attention. The bonnet had a “top hat” as the top of the bonnet had some rust through/damage and thus a top hat was placed on the bonnet by a prior owner.
I rebuilt it, replacing the two Timken roller bearings and packed them with grease. I welded up the worn bottom of the mast pipe at the true center and had the brake pads replaced. The gearbox was one of the easiest rebuilds that I have encountered.
Dan B helped with the vane and a few blades and Steve Adams helped with a few parts. Paul’s photos of his AirFlow helped me visualize the furling system.
I’ll post some photos of the rebuild and the completed install. I put the wheel on it this morning.
