loose alieron

1quick46 · Post by **1quick46** » Sun Mar 09, 2008 11:55

On my chief the left alieron on the outer hinges has side to side movement. I believe that is normal to some extent on this plane?? can someone point me in the direction of where I may find literature on this? this is a completely different world than a c-152, lol.

Nathan K. Hammond · Post by **Nathan K. Hammond** » Sun Mar 09, 2008 13:26

Page 6 of the 7A Service Manual:

Notice: Flexability of Aileron Hindge Brackets
Aileron floating action is perfectly normal and allowances have been incorporated in the design of the wing to compensate for it. Due to the length of the hinge bracket and narrow base attachment on the spar, it is possible to move the hinge point up or down and the movement is absorbed in the rear spar itself........
_____________________________________________________

nkh

Post by **joea** » Sun Mar 09, 2008 13:38

Nathan is correct here. If you are concerned, look inside and confirm that everything is secure but some movement is normal in this area.

1quick46 · Post by **1quick46** » Sun Mar 09, 2008 14:54

Thanks, I do not own a manual, or even a poh at this point, I am going to order them monday. my a&p supervisor basicly picked this plane apart and gave me a list of things that concerned him..he thinks I lost my mind giving up a cessna for a chief!!

Post by **joea** » Sun Mar 09, 2008 15:04

There is no POH for the Chief or Champ, and the factory service manual is located here: http://www.aeroncapilots.com/NAAStore.htm.

More on the POH later, can send you one but have to run, flying in an hour and have to get going!

Joe

skyking3286 · Post by **skyking3286** » Sun Mar 09, 2008 22:54

If you are loose side to side, not vertical, try putting some washers in the bearing-bracket tolerance to take it out. I had it loose and about two washers on each bracket made it much tighter without restricting movement. You may have to play with the thick or thin type of washer to take out the
movement.

The loose aileron feel is usually vertical more than side to side and it's just a feeling that it's not tied down tight, not that it's flopping around loose. You can move it, but it's not a free movement.

1quick46 · Post by **1quick46** » Mon Mar 10, 2008 10:01

To make things more clear, the middle and outer hinges, have side to side movement from inside the wing very little up and down. is this normal?

skyking3286 · Post by **skyking3286** » Sun Mar 16, 2008 01:48

Do you mean at the wing spar or on the ends. If on the ends, try using the washers to take out the space and then see if they are still loose. You might just have too much play on the bearing and aileron.

1quick46 · Post by **1quick46** » Sun Mar 16, 2008 15:12

It seems to be the entire bracket that the aileron attaches to has about 1/4 inch of side to side movement from inside the wing..is there another joint I cant see, or just the bracket bolting to the spar..how would I be able to get access to the bolts?

MikeB · Post by **MikeB** » Sun Mar 16, 2008 17:56

I think this is what you're looking for..........

The bracket is bolted directly to the spar and if it feels loose I suspect either the bolt holes are elongated in the spar or the wood has dried out over the years allowing the bracket to feel loose. I guess if you wanted to find out for sure you could cut a new inspection hole directly under the spar (don't cut into it though) and see what's loose.

Hope this helps!

Mike Berg

Nathan K. Hammond · Post by **Nathan K. Hammond** » Sun Mar 16, 2008 21:45

That's normal play. Take a look at the picture above and you'll see there's a 12" lever arm and only 3/4" of material touching the spar.

nkh

Nathan K. Hammond · Post by **Nathan K. Hammond** » Sun Mar 16, 2008 21:50

nkh

MikeB · Post by **MikeB** » Mon Mar 17, 2008 08:46

Nathan, On the wing I have hanging on my wall the bolts are actually loose in the spar and the bracket can be moved around some. Probably doesn't hurt anything and if everything else looks OK I would have just snugged them up. However, I'm replacing all four spars on this job

. I know the aelerons do "float" on the Champs and Chiefs.

Mike berg

Nathan K. Hammond · Post by **Nathan K. Hammond** » Mon Mar 17, 2008 12:52

mikeberg/wi wrote:the bolts are actually loose in the spar and the bracket can be moved around some.

In that case, it might not hurt to take a closer peek.

Do the other brackets move the same? More, less?

nkh

Jody Wittmeyer · Post by **Jody Wittmeyer** » Mon Mar 17, 2008 17:17

They were designed to float. Look at the wide slot in the aileron bay, where the mont protrudes. They could have narrowed the slot, eliminating most of the float, but thought it better to float