Partial part ID - "hard drive hubs"

[kiwidoc]

Hi folks, there are three of these on the 2005 console - one below the demat control lever thing, one on the metal panel with the compass and another above the variable resistor.  



For a long time we've thought (based on a good idea by a member here) that they may be hard drive housings from old, pre-personal, computers but I've never located anything similar by looking for such items.    By chance I saw a video on youtube yesterday showing someone taking an electric motor apart and to begin they unscrewed and removed the top/cover/lid of the motor and you won't believe what it looked like...  







Googling "diecast electric motor cover" brings up a range of items, many of which that look quite like our parts in size and general construction and it's very easy to see how Bobs Bits could have had items like this in stock, by simply having pulled apart some old motors.   The tricky thing would be IDing the right model/s to ever find more of them.   I'm kicking myself about the old motors I threw away when cleaning out my Dad's house last year, but maybe someone on here might have the piece of knowledge we're missing?  Or a large collection of motors they feel like pulling apart?  

The design makes sense to me, it accounts for the screw holes all round, the central hole where the motor extends out to attach a pulley or whatever, there even seem to be magnets or something to help line up the spinning centre visible in the central well on our console pieces.

Any thoughts?   And/or better search terminology (Endshield appears to be a useful term too)?

[galacticprobe]

That definitely looks like a very close match, and I think you're right about finding the correct model to get the exact part. And don't feel bad about all those old motors you chucked. I've been kicking myself for destroying all of the failed hard drives from the ship's command and control system and then chucking them ("local disposal authorized"), when I could have pulled the motors and disc platters (and their spacers) out of them. I would have had enough for that stack of discs on that one cracked ice panel (I think it's the one to the right of the rheostat rib). But I keep telling myself, that was before the New Series premiered, and I couldn't have known better. But I still keep kicking myself over it.

At least in this case, motor covers should be easier to find than hard drive disc platters and those spacers that go between them, and you only need three. I've managed to find a few disc platters (with some help from a friend), but no spacers yet, and I'm still short by quite a few. But this find is a really great one! Good eyes, and a great catch, Glen!

Dino.