Bell's Tail Wheel Fork not locking

Flyrod · #1 04-21-2008, 11:59 AM

(All better now, it was a worn tiller)

I installed my Bells tail wheel fork, but found it will not stay locked. No burrs, only lightly oiled, also tried new spring and key. I put the vans fork back on and everything is fine. I know it has worked great on many RVs out there. Did anybody else have this problem and if so, how did you solve it?

rvaitor87 · #2 04-21-2008, 02:16 PM

Mine has been working perfectly for a year and a half now, but if you call doug, he will make it right. I had a sllight problem with vibration a while back and he helped to locate it, turned out it was in the mains, but he was vary helpful to try and work it out. The man makes a good product. Is your key in the right way?

mine is rounded on one side.

Mike Bauer
RV-3 N87LB flying
RV-4 N742MC building

Sam Buchanan · #3 04-21-2008, 02:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Flyrod

I installed my Bells tail wheel fork, but found it will not stay locked. No burrs, only lightly oiled, also tried new spring and key. I put the vans fork back on and everything is fine. I know it has worked great on many RVs out there. Did anybody else have this problem and if so, how did you solve it?

Experiment with various degrees of torque on the big nut on top of the fork. If it is too tight, the locking pin won't work correctly. Be absolutely certain the pin is free in its bore. The Bell fork on my RV-6 was a perfect plug-n-play.

RV8iator · #4 04-21-2008, 02:46 PM

You may want to check the thickness (height) of the tube that is welded onto the spring and make sure it's not different from the shaft on the fork itself. It only takes a couple thousands to interfere with the locking key. You can take a look at Vince Fraziers website and he shows how to measure them.
Just a thought.
My Bell fork worked perfect right out of the box.

glfrdug · #5 04-21-2008, 09:20 PM

I'll make Dad aware of your situation and he'll post here or to you directly. He does not check the forums to often but will be more than willing to help.
He'll be in touch tomorrow
DOug Jr.

glfrdug · #6 04-21-2008, 09:24 PM

May I ask who this is? In the forums everyone is sneaky and does not post real names. I may be tired but cannot figure it out.
Thanks
Doug jr.

Flyrod · #7 04-22-2008, 01:52 AM

Sam,

You might have a good point there as I do have it torqued down pretty good. I will loosen it up and see if that helps.

Jerry,

I have measured them both with a micrometer and they are extremely close to being exactly the same, any difference I found might have been in shaft length. I will get exact numbers to pass on to Doug

Doug,

Thanks for the quick reply, I sent you PM, thanks for the help.

vfrazier · #8 07-10-2008, 01:19 PM

Unless I am misunderstanding something here, the big nut torque should not affect your tailwheel operation no matter how hard you torque it down. The shaft should be just long enough that it is impossible to tighten the nut enough to put the shaft into a bind with regards to the socket.

Check your shaft lengths of the Van's and Bell forks by placing them together "69" style to see if one shaft is longer.

Wow, I never thought I'd reference "69" style on this forum. ;-) Or anywhere else for that matter.

If your Bell shaft is a little shorter, you can remove a little from the bushing under the socket if needed. A belt sander and a bit of careful material removal will do the trick. Some guys say "but what if I want to put my Van's fork back on?" I say "Throw the Van's fork away. They are inferior."

If you're not taildragging with Doug's fork or my fork, you're missing out on great ground handling and better clearance. Did I mention that you should throw your Van's fork away?

In conclusion, nobody should fly around with their nuts loose... not even a tailwheel, nylon locking nut!!

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

Bubblehead · #9 07-10-2008, 01:28 PM

Vince - you not only referenced "69" in the forum but you mentioned loose nuts!

Flyrod · #10 07-12-2008, 04:48 AM

Of course you are very correct about lose nuts and I have mine tightly under control which was something my wife suggested.

You may have a good idea about looking at it with a 69 point of view. I will see if the wife has some input on this.

Doug was very helpful in trouble shooting the fork and all was found in good order. Turns out the Tiller arm was worn. Once a new tiller was installed she locked fine. I also switched from the (Janson?) linkage to the Silver Bullet, much better! The shock absorber in the previous linkage was nearly frozen. The new Silver Bullet with it's nice shiny tiller arm has great movement and all is good now with the Bell tail wheel fork. Love the ground clearance and tight handling. As suggested, if you do not have one of these high lift forks, do your self a favor before you stub your tail wheel on something substantial and do damage.