During World War II, New Departure bearings produced ultra precision instrument bearings that were used in the Norden Bombsight, one of the U.S. Air Forces most powerful weapons. In the 1950s, New Departure invented the Roller Clutch used in automatic transmissions, allowing for smoother shifting.

Having acquired the former New Departure bearings Hyatt wheel hub unit and bearing operations in Sandusky, Ohio, KBI continues the rich tradition and NDH heritage of ball bearing manufacturing that dates back to the late 1800's. KBI is a full service supplier with complete design, engineering, and testing and validation capability.

All Logan lathes had spindles supported on grease-packed ball-races , with the preload set by the bearing manufacturers. Although the headstocks of the 9", 10" and 11" machines were of very similar appearance and design, the 11" model appears to have been fitted with the heavier, larger-bore spindle from its bigger brothers but with a single-row bearing at both front and rear.  The 12" and 14" lathes both had more massive headstocks in line with their much heavier-duty capacity. The precision bearings were manufactured by "New Departure" and allowed Logan to claim, for these models, a total run-out of within 0.0005" twelve inches from the skf bearing.

Back in the late 1950s and early 1960s General Electric released a series of ads hyping their line of "New Departure bearings" In the ads, potential products of the near future were made possible by New Departure. The future was a utopia of easy to use products/services that made "modern" life a breeze.

It could well be that in less than a decade a compact new appliance for the home will clean and press a suit, coat or dress in seconds.

Of course, such a machine is yet to be developed. But one solid fact: when the “Valet-Mat” does arrive it will probably be new departure ball bearings that keep it operating smoothly and efficiently.

When this futuristic “stock-chaser” takes shape, its intricate moving parts will turn on New Departure ntn bearings preferred throughout industry for their accuracy, dependability, and service-free performance.