I asked earlier about shimming of the control column because I believed that was what was causing drag on the control column assembly. I troubleshot the problem more and found that it is actually the bearing in the flange that is binding up. The column wont just drop under its own weight. Van's seems to really think I should consider leaving it the way it is. I just put a torque wrench on the unit and it has a drag of 5 inch pounds while moving in the pitch up direction (about 2ish inch pounds moving towards pitch down). My gut tells me that it would be better to leave it as is rather than damaging pieces trying to take out and reinstall the bracket and bearing. I was really contemplating taking out the bracket until I just got that number. It seems incredibly low to me but I wanted to see what you guys thought. I am sure I am over thinking this but I'd just like some other opinions to put my mind at ease. So long story short... Should I leave the bearing alone with it having a 5 inch pound drag on it.
I posted this to the general forum and they didn't want to touch it apparently.
I bumped into the same problem. I figured it was because I used a "C" frame to set the rivets which caused the bracket to bend slightly. I checked with a A&P Mechanic who said that as long as you can move the bearing with your fingers then it was acceptable. I elected to re-do the bracket as it wasn't installed in the fuselage. Second time around I used a hand squeezer and the binding disappeared. If it was installed I would have built on as per the A&P's recommendation.
I assume this is the bearing you're talking about ...
That is the bearing in question. The frustrating part is I remember calling Van's about the bearing becoming stiffer after riveting bearing in place. I wish I would have corrected the issue back then. Thank you for your guys' input.
This is a problem area. I had the same issue with a tight bearing that I had to sort out. I am more concerned about long term maintenance. How are we going to replace that bearing in the future. I know that these things last many years but if there are a few out there that are slightly tight then the service life may be less.
This installation would be a lot better if the parts that capture the bearing were still riveted together but then bolted to the support rib. This would allow you to remove the bearing assembly for service. As it is, repairing this bearing is going to be a tough job on a finished aircraft. I wish that I had fastened my assembly in place with appropriate machine screws or bolts. perhaps the engineers could take a look at this and see if there is an easy retrofit that could be done.
This is a problem area. I had the same issue with a tight bearing that I had to sort out. I am more concerned about long term maintenance. How are we going to replace that bearing in the future. I know that these things last many years but if there are a few out there that are slightly tight then the service life may be less.
This installation would be a lot better if the parts that capture the bearing were still riveted together but then bolted to the support rib. This would allow you to remove the bearing assembly for service. As it is, repairing this bearing is going to be a tough job on a finished aircraft. I wish that I had fastened my assembly in place with appropriate machine screws or bolts. perhaps the engineers could take a look at this and see if there is an easy retrofit that could be done.
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This is an excellent suggestion! It would be great to address potential long-term maintenance issues while options are available.
