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Internal control lock concept

bmarvel

Well Known Member
Friend
Years ago I installed an internal control lock in my former RV-8A in order to hold the stick in a neutral position. It was a simple hinged pivot attached to the front seat back and lowered into position over the rear seat stick. It worked very well and let me lock the stick internally while using an external lock for the rudder.

In my RV-14A I have been playing with a similar concept to lock the stick on the copilot side while again using an external lock on the rudder. The attached pictures show the idea, which is to pivot a locking mechanism off the bottom of the instrument panel. The stick is held such that the ailerons and elevator are in their neutral positions.

Nothing here is in concrete so it is just a concept. I pieced it together using a bunch of scrap aluminum and some rivets. The lock is lowered over the top of the Tosten stick grip and retained there with a short piece of webbing that snaps onto a fitting on the stick to keep the lock pulled down. When retracted, the lock is held up below the panel with just a velcro tab since it weighs only a couple of ounces.

You'll note I did not use the curved stick that came with the kit. Instead I replaced it with an RV-8 straight rear stick. That works well for me at 5' 10" and 165 pounds. You may have to implement it differently depending on what stick and stick grip you have.

Again, this is just a concept and a prototype at that. If interested you can try something similar yourself.

IMG_1312-L.jpg


System in the locked position. The black strip on the left is velcro for retaining the lock in the stowed position. The black strip in the middle is webbing which holds the lock down by attaching to a snap on the control stick.

IMG_1311-L.jpg


Lock in the stowed position. Only the hinge shows.

IMG_1313-L.jpg


The lock assembly removed from the panel. The black strip on the left side is velcro and the black strip in the middle is webbing that snaps to the stick below the stick grip.

IMG_1315-L.jpg


The snap on the stick is attached to a strip of aluminum which in turn is attached to the stick with hose clamps.

IMG_1316-L.jpg


The snap on the stick is attached with two hose clamps.
 
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