Flipping Tail wheel Arms....

[Ironflight]

I am not sure that I am going to be able to describe this, but thought I'd share my experience in case anyone else has this annoying problem....

I changed from a Van's tail wheel to an API Assembly probably six months after first flight - at maybe 150 hours total time. Works great, feels good - an excellent product. The only maintenance it requires is an occasional cleaning - very occasional as it turns out, maybe twice in a year and a half. I have always carefully inspected the little detent and plunger for burs that might cause it to hang up, and quite frankly, it has been trouble free with a little grease.

A few months back, however, I started to notice a funny problem. On a long straight taxi, I usually have just very slight pressure on the right peddle. After a hundred feet or so, I'd realize that the tail wheel had "broken free" - if I pushed right peddle, I got rudder, but no tail wheel steering. Returning the peddles to neutral reengaged it, and I could steer without trouble. It was only if I kept a very gentle pressure on that it "crept out" and went free. Pushing to the left was perfectly normal - locked up until enough deflection was reached, then broke out.

Of course, I took the thing apart, cleaned, inspected, grease, and re-assembled it a couple times. Same results. I looked at all parts wit a loup, and found no burs. I finally decided that maybe the slot in the control arm was worn - after all, it had over 400 hours on it! The troubleshooter in me figured that if I flipped the arm upside down, I would swap the slot from left to right, and if the problem occurred on the let side, I'd have identified the bad part. Well, it only took a few minutes to flip, and the results? It works perfectly! My guess is that the slot does have a little asymmetric wear, but it is not only asymmetric left to right, but top to bottom. Flipping it gave a new surface to wear on. I guess if it goes another 400 hours before becoming a problem, I can say I got my money's worth out of the part.....

Just another thing for the archives!

Paul

[Tom Martin]

Paul
This is quite a common occurance for me and the F1 rockets that I fly. The heavier tail weight of the F1 puts more pressure on this part. It is always the one side that tends to wear and I too have flipped them over to extend the life but you will not get as many hours on the flip side. This wear can happen to me with as little as 25 hours of use. After I switched to Vince Fraizers tail fork I have not had the same wear issue. That tail fork has been a real positive upgrade for the airplane as it really reduced the rudder pedal pressure required to turn the airplane. I am sure that wear will show up down the road a bit. I have taken a couple of these arms to a local shop that heat treats metal and I will see if that gives me a bit longer service life. If I could get 400 hours of use I would be real happy!

[Ironflight]

Thanks for the additional info Tom - it's always nice to know that I'm not the only one! I'll see how long it lasts on this side, and keep Vince's in mind.

Paul

[Mel]

Paul,
I've done the same to my APS tailwheel. I've got about 950 hrs on it now and still on the original arm (flipped 0nce).
The diameter on my tire is getting pretty small again. When I replace the tire, I'll probably replace the arm.

[vfrazier]

Thanks, Tom.

I have well over 150 hours on my prototype tailwheel now and haven't worn the first part yet. I am very happy with it. So are about 100+ other customers.

Sorry for the shameless plug here... but hey, it is an RV product and not some Ginsu knife sales pitch like you can get at Oshkosh.

I have complete tailwheels, retrofit forks, spare parts, tires, sealed bearing tires (new), etc. in stock and ready to ship. Money back if you don't like it.

Thanks,

Vince Frazier
Screaming Eagle Graphics and Accessories, LLC
3965 Caborn Road
Mount Vernon, IN 47620
812-464-1839
http://vincesrocket.com/products.htm