As I promised yesterday night, I'm on the road to Toledo and I'm sitting at the airport waiting to board my first flight. So it's a good time to sit and work on this thread some more. In the last post we go the aileron servo installed in the wing, so next we're going to work on setting up and installing the hardware for the ailerons.

With the servo installed we now need to get the torque rods setup and installed. The first thing that we need to so it install the install the two connectors on to the threaded portion of the torque rods. Installing them is pretty straight forward in that all you need to do is screw them onto the threaded portion of the rods (pictures #1 and #2). You will need to be a little cautious as you screw these on because they are a soft nylon and it's possible to cross thread them if you try to put them on at an angle as you start to turn them. The manual tells us to screw them on until they are 1/8” from the top of the torque rods (picture #3 and #4). Try to make sure the both connectors are the same distance from the bottom of the rods. Yes, I said the bottom of the rods. The reason for that is because sometimes the actual length of the threaded portion of the rods can be a little different. If you measure from the top of the rod when installing them you can wind up with a little bit different geometry in the throw for these rods, which can cause the ailerons to move a little bit differently from each other. If you make sure that the distance of the actual throw is the same for each rod then both servos will move the same amount as each other. While these kinds of measurements aren't absolutely necessary to fly the plane, taking a few extra minutes to make sure details such as this are correct can save you tons of time if you ever have to troubleshoot problems in the way the plane flies. I sound a bit like my drill sergeant that I had in basic training but the saying “attention to detail” really does pay off in the long run. If you spend the extra time to ensure that your plane is properly set up you will be rewarded with a better flying plane in the long run, and on the other hand if you rush through your setup and miss details such as this you will have a plane that has “quirky” flying habits. In picture #5 you can see the stock connecting rods that come with the LT-40 kit. We'll use these to construct our connecting rods for the ailerons. You'll notice that one end of the rods is already threaded while the other end of the rod is not. We'll use threaded end of the rod to screw on a nylon clevis which will be attached to the connectors we just installed on the aileron torque rods. The other end of the rods isn't threaded which leaves us several options for how we can connect it to the aileron servo. As I said in an earlier post I don't like to use EZ Connectors on a critical control surface such as the ailerons. These leaves us 3 possibilities of connectors which are Z-bends, L-bends, and a solder clevis. Probably the most common would be to put a Z-bend in the rod and connect that to the servo. This type of connection is probably the most used and can be the best all around type to use. The reason for that is because it's fairly easy to make a Z-bend and unless the servo control arm breaks there is no possible way that it can disconnect from the control arm. The next type of connection would be an L-bend. These are still pretty secure, but I don't really like to use them because I feel that it's possible for the nylon retaining clip to come off. I know that it's not likely to happen, but I'm entitled to my demented ramblings occasionally right?? The last type, solder clevis, is the type I do prefer to use and it's what is provided in the hardware of this kit. While solder clevises are the most difficult to install (it does take some practice to get a good solder joint) they are my choice for connecting to the control surfaces. They are easy to install in that you don't have to remove the servo control arm in order to connect them, and there in no chance that they can come off control arm in flight.We're going to use the solder clevises because they are what was provided with this kit.

One thing to note here, whenever you install a clevis on a control surface or a servo you want to make sure you also install a piece of fuel tubing that will go around the clevis once it's installed on the plane. The purpose of this piece of tubing is the keep the clevis closed so that it can't “pop” off the control arm in flight. A good habit to get into is to check the condition of all of the tubing on all of your clevises while you are cleaning your plane after flying it. If you notice that a piece of the tubing has started to rip, tear, or is missing you will want to replace it before you fly again. Once again, it's this kind fo attention to detail that could well save your plane from crashing. I like to use the time that I clean my planes to give them a good going over and check out anything that has happened during that day of flying. If I find anything I will put that plane on the bench and repair the damage before I fly the plane again. I can't even begin to count how many times I've caught things during these inspections that could have caused a crash during my next flight.

Let's move on to setting up our control rods. In pictures #6, #7, and #8 you can see the fuel tubing being cut into two small lengths that we'll use to secure our clevises. You'll only need about a 1/4” or so piece for each clevis. You'll notice that I have cut two pieces of tubing, each control rod will have two pieces of tubing on it since there is a clevis at each end of the rod. Trust me, it's a lot easier if you to put this tubing on now than to try and put it on after you have assembled the control rod. In picture #9 you can see where I have slipped a piece of tubing over the end of each nylon clevis. You don't have to do it this way but it's an easy way to make sure that you don't forget to put them on as you assemble the rod. Picture #10 is of a tool that is made to help screw a clevis onto the rod. It's one of those weird tools that you really don't need, but once you use one it's a tool that you can't live without. As you can see in picture #11 you slip the tool over the end of the clevis in order to turn it as you put the clevis on the control rod. If you don't have this tool there are a couple of pointers that I'm put out here. Before you start screwing on the clevis make sure that you snap the clevis closed before you start to turn it. If you don't you stand a chance of the two arms of the clevis being twisted out of shape or even snapping off. Another tip would be to fold up a piece of paper towel and put it over the clevis as you screw the clevis onto the rod, doing this can help save your fingers and make it a bit easier to screw the clevis on. The instructions tell you to turn the clevis several turns as you put it on, but I prefer to give it a bit more. If you look at picture #12 you can see that I have screwed on the clevis enough so that it's just protruding through the threaded area of the clevis. By doing this you assure yourself that you have enough “room” to be able to turn the clevis in either direction as you adjust your plane, yet still have enough of the threads so that it's still firmly secured.

Since I've run out of picture space again I'll go ahead and wrap up this post and continue in the next post.


Pictures
1. Thread the nylon connectors onto the threaded portion of the torque rods
2. Thread the nylon connectors onto the threaded portion of the torque rods
3. Screw the connectors down approximately 1/8”
4. Installed nylon connectors
5. Pre-threaded connector rods
6. Fuel tubing to be used to secure clevises.
7. Cut approximately 1/4” of tubing for each clevis
8. Two pieces of tubing will be needed for each connecting rod
9. Slipping the tubing onto each clevis will make it easier to install later
10. Tool used to screw and unscrew a clevis. This can turn out to be “must have”
11. Install the nylon clevis onto the threaded portion of each control rod.
12. Thread the clevis until you see threads protruding through the clevis

Until next time

Ken