My Explorer -project (2000-08-11)

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Possible faults found in steering linkage

When checking through the steering linkage system yesterday i found probable causes to very heavy steering experienced during first test run at 6th of August.

There seems to be wrong length leverage arms in part of my torque tube linkage system and that causes steering to be too heavy for normal use. First i thought of rudders having this problem, but after playing with some numbers and CAD sofware, i noticed that i don't necessarily have to change rudders - there are other possibilities.

Two things to start with:

Fix excessive play in torque tube going all the way from helm to aft. Front end is acceptable, but aft end extends just too far from last bearing  and whole tube bends during last ~400mm (~1,5ft) when torque is applied. Correct rudder linkage arms. Barry suggested me to trim rudders by taping cardboard to leading edge of rudders and by this way to find correct balance in airflow vs. pivot point. But before i do that i'll have to change leverage arm lengths in some of the linkages in my steering system.