ORIGINAL: shleprock
At the suggestion of my instructor, I dropped my nose gear on my alpha 60 a little to gain a bit of prop clearence. When I tightend the socket head screw back up the threads were stripped. Of course I didn't realise this untill I tried to taxi. The nose gear turned 90 degrees and that was the end of the night for me. I wanted to buy a new and improved gear, so I started to remove the stock one. The problem is the screws that hold the gear mount to the plane all turn in the blind nuts but will not back out. I believe the factory threadlock worked too well. All 4 screws will turn but will not come out. I removed the tank to see if the nuts were turning also, no luck. Here is the question. Will it be alright to fly like this with a new steering arm and set screw or do I have to start cutting wood to gain access to the blind nuts? If you kind folks have a simpler method I would love to read it. BTW I was to solo that night untill the gear gave up on me. Thanks for your time!
[:@]
I have an Alpha60 and have had trouble with the nose gear. I replaced mine with a Goldberg set that is stronger. Have you also noticed that on the stock gear the flat for the steering arm puts the arm close enough to the firewall to restrict it's travel? The Goldberg gear came with no flat cut on the strut so I could position it where I wanted to.
I also had blind nut problems and ended up drilling them out completely, drilling a 5/16 hole where each of the four were, epoxying in some 5/16 dowel stock and starting from scratch. I ended up using old fashioned nuts, bolts and lock washers to fasten the new guide to the firewall. I have a couple of long 1/4 inch drive extensions, and could reach the inside of the firewall to hold the nuts in place while tightening the bolts from the front. A little locktite and I haven't had to touch 'em since.
My landing technique has improved exponentially, so I'm no longer putting the stress on the nose gear that I was initially, but the new installation is more solid than the old. I've probably got close to 100 landings on the gear and it hasn't loosened the first bit.
Another tip is to find a steering arm with a hardened steel thread rather than brass. It will allow you to increase the torque on the setscrew without stripping out.
Good luck. It's a great flying plane......especially after getting comfortable enough with it to ditch the three blade prop. I'm using a Master Screw 12x7 (12x6?) and it really wakes the plane up.