Did you know there is still an old time war surplus store/museum operating for profit in Southern California? It's run by its 96 year old founder and his family. Earlier this year, Libravet Stan Bucklien sent me a copy of an LA Times article describing the place, which was then celebrating its 50th anniversary. Click here to read the very interesting story (less photos) that Stan found.
According to the newspaper article, one of the items in the museum's collection is a Librascope B-17 Balance Computer from WWII. If you'd like to visit, Oxman's is located at:
14128 E. Rosecrans Ave.
Santa Fe Springs, CA 90670
1-562-921-1106
1-888-569-6257
Hours, etc. are posted on Oxman's website at - click here.
Welcome to the "Librascope Memories - News Blog", a companion site to Librascope Memories (www.librascopememories.com). News items posted on this Blog are limited to current events of interest to Librascope's former employees (aka Libravets) since the Company's Glendale, CA facility was closed on June 30, 2000. Report your news to Georgine Archer, Don Tubbs, or myself (Carl Sorensen) for prompt posting. Your comments on any of the posts below are always welcome. Enjoy!
Showing posts with label B-17. Show all posts
Showing posts with label B-17. Show all posts
Thursday, May 10, 2012
Monday, November 15, 2010
#11) W.W.II Librascope Balance Computer sold for $312.00 on e-Bay!
Bidding has ended on this item. Bidding increased by almost $200 in the closing seconds!
Item number: 260690001921
 | WWII “Librascope Balance Computor for Boeing B-17” | |
| Item condition: | Used | |
| Ended: | Nov 15, 201014:09:14 PST | |
| Winning bid: |
US $312.00 [ 24 bids ]
| |
| Shipping: |
Varies based on location and shipping method
| |
| Seller: | ||
) 
Friday, November 12, 2010
#10) W.W.II "Librascope Balance Computer for Boeing B-17" on e-Bay - HURRY if you are interested.
This unusual piece of equipment was donated to the Oregon Air & Space Museum, and has been deemed surplus and thus is being offered for sale. The current bid is only $10.49, but bids close this Monday (November 15, 2010) at 14:09:14 PST. The owner's description, from the e-Bay web-site, follows:
Mounted in a simulated black leather covered case, the device measures 16” x 11” x 3”. Manufactured by “Librascope Incorporated, Burbank, California, U.S.A. (Does Lockheed come to mind?... for it was one of the companies Boeing authorized to build B-17s.)... and bears patent number 2179822. It is completely mechanical (no electricity required), the “balancing” exercises being applied by turning the dials. These in turn move systems of interconnected lever-arms and cables, ultimately arriving at two principal measurements... (1) “Total Weight” in pounds, and (2) “Center of Gravity Position” as a percent of Mean Wing Chord. There are dials to insert such info as gallons of oil, fuel in gallons, bombs in pounds, etc. Other dials can be turned to record the weights of personnel, gear, equipment, etc.... in the nose, control area (cockpit & adj. area), entrance, rear gunner area and tail section. Finally there are large screws at the LL and LR corners... these being for “weight adjustment” and “balance adjustment. I have tilted the “computor” (sic) panel forward so I could view the works, and they all seem to be fully inter-connected and in working order. Testing the dials, each causes one of the two main indicators to swing... seemingly effortlessly... that in itself, if you saw the works hidden behind the panel, is amazing. On top of that, this is the first either I or the curator of the museum have ever run into!
More details are available at:
http://cgi.ebay.com/WWII-Librascope-Balance-Computor-Boeing-B-17-/260690001921
Please post a comment here if you win!
Mounted in a simulated black leather covered case, the device measures 16” x 11” x 3”. Manufactured by “Librascope Incorporated, Burbank, California, U.S.A. (Does Lockheed come to mind?... for it was one of the companies Boeing authorized to build B-17s.)... and bears patent number 2179822. It is completely mechanical (no electricity required), the “balancing” exercises being applied by turning the dials. These in turn move systems of interconnected lever-arms and cables, ultimately arriving at two principal measurements... (1) “Total Weight” in pounds, and (2) “Center of Gravity Position” as a percent of Mean Wing Chord. There are dials to insert such info as gallons of oil, fuel in gallons, bombs in pounds, etc. Other dials can be turned to record the weights of personnel, gear, equipment, etc.... in the nose, control area (cockpit & adj. area), entrance, rear gunner area and tail section. Finally there are large screws at the LL and LR corners... these being for “weight adjustment” and “balance adjustment. I have tilted the “computor” (sic) panel forward so I could view the works, and they all seem to be fully inter-connected and in working order. Testing the dials, each causes one of the two main indicators to swing... seemingly effortlessly... that in itself, if you saw the works hidden behind the panel, is amazing. On top of that, this is the first either I or the curator of the museum have ever run into!
More details are available at:
http://cgi.ebay.com/WWII-Librascope-Balance-Computor-Boeing-B-17-/260690001921
Please post a comment here if you win!
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