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32-13/14 Stabilator Cables

B

Bob Kibby

Well Known Member
Two questions relative to the stabilator cables.

1. When I torque the-3 bolts which secure the the cable ends to spec, the fork ends do not rotate about the attaching bolt. Is this correct or do I need to back off on the torque until the fork end rotates freely on the bolt?

2.Fig 2 on page 32-14 says to have the grove around the barrell connector to the front to connect the fore and aft cables. My cables will only connect when the grove is to the rear. I don't see any changes posted for this page so it appears to me that there is a typo on the direction of the grove.

Thanks,
Bob Kibby
 
Bob Kibby said:
Two questions relative to the stabilator cables.

1. When I torque the-3 bolts which secure the the cable ends to spec, the fork ends do not rotate about the attaching bolt. Is this correct or do I need to back off on the torque until the fork end rotates freely on the bolt?

2.Fig 2 on page 32-14 says to have the grove around the barrell connector to the front to connect the fore and aft cables. My cables will only connect when the grove is to the rear. I don't see any changes posted for this page so it appears to me that there is a typo on the direction of the grove.

Thanks,
Bob Kibby
Click to expand...

1. When working with castellated nuts & cotter pins (I'm assuming these are castellated, if not then just tighten the nylock then back off 1/8 turn until free)h) in this instance you don't want to torque them tight. They need to be loose to allow for movement of the cables & rudder. They should be hand tight then back off to the next hole and insert the cotter pin. Put a drop of lube in them and make sure they move easily, little to no drag.

2. I don't have the plans right here, but I think you are right. Have you tired inserting the locking pin yet? That may tell you if things are aligned correctly.
 
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Hey Bob

Those little locks are not easy to get in. You have to look very closely to see the groove and slot are lined up just right. Then you can get the little keeper to start in.

John Bender
 
Bob,

I looked at mine and the groove on the barrel of the turnbuckle is aft. Tried to revese it and it would not go. The plans have to be corrected here.

Did you send an e-mail to Van's?
 
The grove is only on one end of the barrel. I'll check out the orientation on Wednesday. Tomorrow we have to go to the Texas State Fair. Need to load up on Fletcher's Corney Dogs, deep fat fried butter, fried Oreos, fried PB jelly & banana sandwich, chicken fried bacon, and lots of beer. I need to bulk up to 210 lbs so I can meet the RV-12 pilot specs.
 
Backwards

Pete,

Having one cable barell grove forward and one cable barell grove aft indicates to me that if you didn't check the cable connections with the barell before installing the cables you could have a problem. One end of the barell has a right hand thread and the other end has a left hand thread. So it appears that in Pete's situation that you could have a mismatch between the forward and aft cables. Luckily, the forward cables are easy to install and you could pull them out and swap sides if you had a problem. Bottom line is to check that the barell works with both the fore and aft cables that you intend to use on the upper and lower stabilator horn before putting the cables in the fuselage.

Another warning is to have help when installing the rear stabilator cables. I tied my string to the stabilator cable and stuffed it through the hole in the rear bulkhead. When I attempted to pull the cable forward it lodged in the first bulkhead it came to. My mentor save me again by crawing into the tailcone to free the cable. Once the cable was free I started all over again. My friend pulled on the string while I provided resistance to the cable and fed the cable through the bullhead. This keeps the cable above the bulkheads so you don't have the mess I created.

The Texas State Fair was rainy today but that did not interfere with massive fried food consumption so I have bulked to RV-12 spec pilot weight.

Bob Kibby
 
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