REFLECTOR: Elevator counterweights, inboard

Wed Jan 9 14:15:23 CST 2008

Grigore,

I believe Alex refers to the bronze flange bearings that you have between the torque tubes
and the center elevator hinge.  I went through the same process.  I recommend that you use
the 3.5 inch screws provided and forget the labeling of the bags.  The manuals and bag
labeling do not always match.  Remember that the spacer and counterweights are part of the
control system (elevators) anyway.  

I needed to add half a counterweight to balance my elevators and used two long (3.5 inch )
screws for it.  I used a long screw with the spacer in the distal (forward) hole, a long
screw in the middle hole and the bolt connecting the elevator assembly to the control
stick.  I believe the spacer would work better in the middle hole but it tops against the
elevator hinge and restricts down elevator deflection.  I  remember having to increase
somewhat the depth of the screw holes in the counterweights to be able to tighten the
three of them.  I used washers on both sides to avoid direct contact of the screw heads or
nuts with the lead counterweights and keep these from deforming the seats in the holes of
the weights.  I had the opportunity to see the factory's Velocity TC and have a picture of
it somewhere with the additional half inboard counterweight for balance too.  I will look
for it if you want, although it will not show the detail of the assembly.  If you do not
need additional inboard weight, you would only need to use a long screw and the spacer in
the front hole and the bolt in the aft hole.  
Here is the link for the picture of my setup.  Don't be misled by the castle nut in my
picture, I just use them temporarily so I keep my lock nuts unused until final assembly.
http://members.dslextreme.com/users/abujanda/images/CWEIGHTIN.jpg

I have not looked but would like better quality 3.5" to 4" screws.  Any leads from the
group on where to find some extra long 10-32 screws would be appreciated.  I have not
looked in real detail but seems like AS does not have them that long.  

Hope this helps,
Jorge

Regards,
Jorge Bujanda
Velocity XL FG 
Palmdale, CA
Website:  http://members.dslextreme.com/users/jbujanda/

"Make your best case... not the best case."
"Spare the noise... convince through silence."
                                                                         JB

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From: reflector-bounces at tvbf.org [mailto:reflector-bounces at tvbf.org] On Behalf Of Grigore
Rosu
Sent: Wednesday, January 09, 2008 7:02 AM
To: Velocity Aircraft Owners and Builders list
Subject: Re: REFLECTOR: Elevator counterweights, inboard

Alex,

Don't know what the ball bearing is, sorry.  However, I took a picture of what I think
should go in there and attached it.  The left bag's label is "torque tube spacer assembly"
and its including bolt is an AN4-10A.  On the other hand, the manual says that the spacer
would be used together with a stainless long screw of size 3-1/2'' going through the two
weights and the torque tubes plates.  The only 3-1/2'' screws I received with my kit are
those in the bag on the right side of the picture, which contains 4 AN3-33A bolts.
However, those screws appear listed in the "control system" part, not the canard, and the
spacer's hole is 1/4'', not 3/16'' as one would expect if one was to use one of those long
bolts. 

Thank you,
Grigore
On Jan 9, 2008 8:16 AM, Alex Balic <velocity_pilot at verizon.net> wrote:
Grigore-

Do you have the ball bearing modification on the elevators? Maybe it is standard equipment
now, the hardware would be different from what the manual shows if it is the case and the
manual has not been updated.. 

Alex

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From: reflector-bounces at tvbf.org [mailto:reflector-bounces at tvbf.org] On Behalf Of Grigore
Rosu
Sent: Tuesday, January 08, 2008 6:46 PM
To: Velocity Aircraft Owners and Builders list
Subject: REFLECTOR: Elevator counterweights, inboard 

Many thanks for your answers on primers.  I will consider some cold weather accelarator
for 545, but in the meanwhile I'll work on parts that don't need higher temperatures, such
as the elevators instalation. 

I was just installing my inboard elevator counterweights and ran into some problems.  I
guess part of the them are due to the fact that the manual is not updated together with
the kit. 

First, all the parts listed in the table at the begining of section 3.5.2 (positioning
torque / counterweight arms) have completely different numbers from those of the parts
that I received with my kit in the little plastic bags.  Therefore, I had to go by
descriptions, pictures and by trial-and-error. 

Second, all the screws mentioned in the installations in Sec 3.5.2 are MS23694S-59,
including those attaching and weights and those attaching the aluminium bushing in the
torque tubes to the elevators; however, they were too short for the aluminum bushings, so
I took the liberty to use MS23694S-70 instead, which appear to have the right, larger
length.  I'll call Velocity tomorow and ask them whether that was OK to do or not, but I'm
sure that MS23694S-59 cannot go all the way through those large aluminum bushings. 

Third, my "torque tube spacer assembly" bag contains indeed one spacer and one bolt, but
the bolt is AN4-10A and the spacer has a 1/4'' hole through it.  On the other hand, the
manual mentions a large stainless 3-1/2'' screw that goes through both weigths; the
weights have 3/16 holes, so I'm assuming the 3-1/2'' screw would also be 3/16.  I was
really expecting to find the 3-1/2'' screw together with a spacer with hole 3/16 in the
torque tube spacer assembly, not what I found.  Am I doing anything wrong here? 

Finally, while the countersunk MS23694S-59 look nice on the outboard counteweights because
they really sink in the arms, they look kind of ugly on the inboard one ... Are they
supposed to also be countersunk where they attach the inboard weights as well? 

Thank you,
Grigore

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