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Thread: Control Shaft Bearing Fix

  1. #1
    Senior Member
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    Nov 2019
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    Default Control Shaft Bearing Fix

    First and foremost this was NOT my idea. Dan Yocum (Yocum137) came up with this and posted it in his build threat (One Lucky Fox - post #35). It was one of those hidden gems that are all over this forum but can be easy to miss. One of the things you don't have to read very far in many of the build logs is how tightening the bolts on the control shaft mount bearing cause it to deform. After having spent time sanding it so that its operation is smooth, it's a pain when the bearing deforms and I think it's probably the number one thing that causes the controls to be hard to get dialed in so that they are smooth and don't bind. So along comes Dan with this idea and it looked great to me so I tried it. I think it's a winner and wanted to make it a little more visible. I bought the same piece of tubing that Dan suggests on his post. You have to drill it out to 3/16" ID so that it passes the bolt. I did that after sizing the length of the tube (literally to within .002) so that it was the same length as the height of the bearing, drilled out a piece of wood to 5/16" (the OD of the tube) on the drill press, inserted the tube into the wood and drilled the 3/16". I have not drilled the other side of the bearing or mounted it in the fuselage yet cause I haven't reached that step in the instructions but it has to be a huge improvement over just squeezing the bearing with the bolts. I will report back when I get it installed but here's some pics of what it looks like.

    Thank you Dan!!!

    G

    Bearing 2.jpgBearing 6.jpgBearing 3.jpgBearing 5.jpg
    Gary (Geek) Phenning
    Leavenworth (Not the Prison), WA
    Kitfox STi in Building Stage

  2. #2
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    Default Re: Control Shaft Bearing Fix

    Said I would report back once I got this in. It worked great. The trick was to make sure the height of the bearing and the length of the insert are the same. Sand the bearing so that the shaft rotates smoothly and when you tighten it down, there is hardly any increase in the force required to rotate the shaft. Little more sanding and it was dialed in.

    Bearing Inserts.jpg
    Gary (Geek) Phenning
    Leavenworth (Not the Prison), WA
    Kitfox STi in Building Stage

  3. #3
    Senior Member Delta Whisky's Avatar
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    Default Re: Control Shaft Bearing Fix

    I sure wish you had posted this about 3 years ago; a great idea I sure could have used. Another example (just one of thousands) of "Why didn't I think of that?". (Please, be responsible and don't answer the question. )

  4. #4
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    Default Re: Control Shaft Bearing Fix

    Quote Originally Posted by Delta Whisky View Post
    I sure wish you had posted this about 3 years ago; a great idea I sure could have used. Another example (just one of thousands) of "Why didn't I think of that?". (Please, be responsible and don't answer the question. )
    Yeah I get that. Wish I could say it was my idea and I thought of it but grateful that Dan had posted the clue in his build. Sure made that step so much easier.

    G
    Gary (Geek) Phenning
    Leavenworth (Not the Prison), WA
    Kitfox STi in Building Stage

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