Date: Tue, 2 Dec 2014 20:55:45 -0600
Reply-To: Tom Hargrave <thargrav@HIWAAY.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Tom Hargrave <thargrav@HIWAAY.NET>
Subject: Re: German, Chinese and American Parts
In-Reply-To: <CAEwp_cT0JOtOh-a9FqyzQhR_bUzhJV1cWZwuNPfnCp+CrP+XuA@mail.gmail.com>
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I know about Timken, they would be my second choice. I've owned a few VW's and all had Japanese wheel bearings.
Thanks, Tom Hargrave
www.kegkits.com
www.stir-plate.com
www.towercooler.com
www.grow-sun.com
www.raspberryproject.com
http://goo.gl/niRzVw
-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM] On Behalf Of Marc Perdue
Sent: Tuesday, December 2, 2014 7:24 PM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Re: German, Chinese and American Parts
Tapered roller bearings are usually made by Timken, which is an Ohio-based company. Whether they still have them made in Ohio or farm them out to China or Japan, I don't know. But I do have an interesting (well, to me anyway) story about tapered roller bearings. One of my ancestors, last name of Tipton, used to repair windmills. Remember them? One thing that he invented to build/repair windmills was a large, tapered roller bearing made out of wood. Timken actually visited him and got the idea for the metal tapered roller bearings from my ancestor's wooden windmill bearings. Being as my family have never been very good about patenting their ideas or anything, and being as they're very generous with their ideas, well, the rest, as they say, is history, and my ancestors never got to share in the wealth. Timken is now something like a 12 billion dollar company, with their roller bearings gracing pretty much every wheel of every car that uses tapered roller bearings.
History is fun stuff.
Marc Perdue
On Tue, Dec 2, 2014 at 7:39 PM, Tom Hargrave <thargrav@hiwaay.net> wrote:
> I noticed from the Rock Auto thread that some believe most parts are
> made in China? For modern production car glass that might be true but
> I bet that Vanagon replacement glass is probably made here in the USA.
> Actually, a lot of things are made here - we still do more manufacturing than China today.
> All of the high volume low cost comes from China.
>
>
>
> Oh, and on the German Parts comment? You'd be surprised at how little
> of your Vanagon is German! And for proof, pull one of your front wheel
> bearings. If it's original it will be stamped "Made in Japan".
>
>
>
> Thanks, Tom Hargrave
>
> www.kegkits.com <http://www.kegkits.com/>
>
> www.stir-plate.com <http://www.stir-plate.com/>
>
> www.towercooler.com <http://www.towercooler.com/>
>
> www.grow-sun.com <http://www.grow-sun.com/>
>
> www.raspberryproject.com <http://www.raspberryproject.com/>
>
> http://goo.gl/niRzVw
-----
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