Thanks all for the help so far.

As a follow up, the elevator pushrod, if twisted while pulling and pushing back and forth, becomes very easy to slide. So I have a feeling that the pushrod is stiffer the way it is installed than it is if turned a little bit. This doesn't seem like a good situation. It also leads me to believe that maybe there is just too much friction inside the tube.

I haven't heard of Sullivan "golden rods" but will look them up.

I might try sanding to reduce the rod's diameter. That seems like it would help.<br type="_moz" />