Return-Path: Received: from [65.33.160.45] (account ) by logan.com (CommuniGate Pro WebUser 4.1b6) with HTTP id 2360220 for lml@lancaironline.net; Fri, 23 May 2003 02:23:08 -0400 From: "Marvin Kaye" Subject: Re: [LML] Re: LNC2 Horiz.stab hinge center line To: lml X-Mailer: CommuniGate Pro WebUser Interface v.4.1b6 Date: Fri, 23 May 2003 02:23:08 -0400 Message-ID: In-Reply-To: <000001c320d8$41ef1c40$8119fea9@bknotts.net> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1"; format="flowed" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Posted for "F. Barry Knotts" : Boy! I'm glad I'm not the only one with this problem. Here's a bit of my tale. The horizontal stab and the elevators were closed out at Lancair on their jigs during the builder's assist. Got it home. Reassembled it. The leading edge of the elevator was not centered with the trailing skins of the hs. I straightened the skins by first heating and clamping until cool, then adding a 4 bid "strip" to the inside of each trailing edge and clamping it. They are STRAIGHT now. Then checked the alignment of the hs hinges with a laser. They were up to 3/16" out of alignment with each other. Straightened them temporarily by "cocking" them with thin washers between the hinge plate and the spar on only some of the hold-down screws. The holes lined up and were reasonably centered between the skins. Added the elevator and to my misery, found that the mating hinges on the elevator were now very out of line with the hinges on the hs. The elevator tended to bind. More than that, the hinge on the elevator is too far away from the now closed leading edge of the elevator, and the change seemed to make that worse. Breaking into the leading edge of the elevator to reposition the hinges in the elevator didn't seem too appealing, so..... I took everything apart. Replaced the hinges where the factory set them, and I've tried to smooth things out with micro. Lots of fitting and sanding. Looks like it will work. No binding now and the gaps are OK. It just hasn't been a very satisfying experience. And I worry some about the non-linearity of the hinge pairs, even though they seem to work quite freely. The lesson to me is...you can't move one hinge plate (on the hs) without moving its mate (on the elevator) as well. Although labor intensive, my solution seems to have worked out. Any thoughts?