N-3A Gun Sight Part Missing

[Sean Curtiss]

Hi All
Don't know if this is the right place to post this, but can anyone identify the part that is missing in the reflector assembly of an N-3A gun sight (see the red rectangle) and where I could buy it?
Cheers,
SC.

[Jungmann]

I have a N-3 head like that with the same flat, drilled plate on it. Pictures I've seen show a rectangular crash pad mounted there--rubber or leather, I'm not sure. Most often see them in cockpit pictures of AAF P-40s. Can't help you finding one--would like one for my sight too.

Jungmann

[airmanual]

Good day,

There is in fact no part missing from your N-3 sighthead. This area of the sighthead was simply used to attach the fixing plate for a gunsight camera.

You can see such a plate in the photo below.

Note: all of this can be found in my (still far from being finished) site : http://www.aircraft-gunsights.com

Laurent

[Fouga23]

Hi Laurent,
You wouldn't have a manual for a GGS MK IV E? I've got a French Sadier-Carpentier license built one that I would like to bring back to life.

[shrike]

Good day,

There is in fact no part missing from your N-3 sighthead. This area of the sighthead was simply used to attach the fixing plate for a gunsight camera.

You can see such a plate in the photo below.

Note: all of this can be found in my (still far from being finished) site : http://www.aircraft-gunsights.com

Laurent

I believe there is currently a gun camera with prism for sight use on ebay.

I'm curious about the two inspection flashlights used to illuminate..what? here

[Taigh Ramey]

Those aren't inspection flashlights but are an early form of cockpit lighting. They contain a fluorescent light tube and you could rotate the outer sleeve in order to vary the output. The light could be moved to also aft as a map light. As I recall there is also a UV filter to illuminate the radium instruments without allowing passing the visible light.

Later versions were smaller more common cockpit lights that had a fluorescent bulb instead of a tube with a similar rotating filter head that did the same thing; allowing variation from full white flood light to UV only for instrument/cockpit illumination.

[Sean Curtiss]

Good day,
There is in fact no part missing from your N-3 sighthead. This area of the sighthead was simply used to attach the fixing plate for a gunsight camera.
You can see such a plate in the photo below.
Note: all of this can be found in my (still far from being finished) site : http://www.aircraft-gunsights.com
Laurent

Hi Laurent,
I searched the Internet for a long, long time and always ended up with the same results, until I found your website. It's fairly new, isn't it? There's a Japanese website (http://www.gunsight.jp/b/english/data/sight-e-aa.htm) that has a lot of information, but your web site is way better, with lots of details, images and information.

I thought two possible things about the missing part: one was the crash pad and the other was the camera. I discarded the camera because how could 4 screws fit in three. STUPID, THERE IS PLATE for the 4 screws to fit in.

So, thank you very much for the information.
Cheers,
SC.