I have area washers between the bolt head and the rod end bearing at some locations, but not others.  The gear side brace, for example, does have a washer (to capture the ball if it pops out) but control rods and flap pushrods do not.

I probably oughta have some means to retain the rod end bearing (like an area washer) in case the ball pops out, eh?  But is this necessary in all cases or merely the highly loaded ones?  An elevator pushrod must be loaded far less than a landing gear brace, but I'd much rather land with a dangling gear than with a dangling elevator.

What say you A&P's?  What is standard on certified airplanes?

- Rob Wolf