'41 Deluxe Trim Indicator

[Peterroy]

Today I had need to pull back the headliner in my '41 Deluxe. I thought I would take the opportunity to repair the "up-down" indicator which hasn't worked since I bought the plane back in 2014. Before getting into this, I reviewed Rob Lees' and Buell Powell's posts that described how they refurbished their indicators. I was excited about getting mine repaired.

I compared my indicator to that of Rob and Buell's, but there's little comparison. The apparatus that drives the left and right movement is not the same. While Rob and Buell's indicator employs rigid structural components that are fixed to the cross member above the windscreen, mine uses a heavy wire attached to the stringer over the passenger's head that is eventually connected to the screw above the pulley.

Here are a few photos of what I have









Now, see below. I found this photo on the forum. It is somewhat similar to what I have, but not the same.










Does anyone know if the three images on the top are the original set up?

Thanks.

Peter

[PA1195]

See page 50 for an example of the trim: http://www.univair.com/content/partc...nteractive.pdf

My 41 has no trim indicator. About six turns of the crank full up to down. I set it half way for neutral and mark the pulley with directional arrows.

Gary

[Hank Jarrett]

I did up a set of drawings of the original mechanism parts. From the photos I can see why yours didn't work. Just a bit too Mickey Mouse to work for long. The original was "Rube Goldberg" but will work for a long time if you don't drive it past the limits.

Hank

[Hank Jarrett]

Sorry, wrong drawing.
Hank

[PA1195]

I guess the headliner blocking the trim parts complicates things. With a skylight it's visible. Marking the cable as it travels fore and aft would suffice, or like Piper, have a tab the cable moves as an indicator. Maybe the later trims with a full size tab are critical, but with my partial span tab it does't over control the elevator at any position.

I set it full nose up at takeoff to maybe help elevate the tail during that event with intentional application of forward elevator pressure, and at landing to slow the plane although it probably reduces the elevator's down load a bit when needed. Taylorcraft's stable pitching moment may not have required more authority unlike a Boeing 737 Max 8.

Gary

[Peterroy]

Thanks for the responses, everybody.

I just fixed it. It must be an original design. Hank's description of the system being too Mickey Mouse is accurate.

I'll keep running it in its original configuration until I get tired of fooling with it. Then, I'll look into installing something more durable like the ones described in other posts.

Thanks again.

Peter

[1938BF50]

FWIW........this might be another option. My '40 has a trim off a Cessna 140 (gasp)! Not original but it works flawlessly. Cables routed straight back thru a couple short steel tube ferrules. I still much prefer the flippers on my '38 for both function and ease of use.

[Hank Jarrett]

Thanks for the responses, everybody.

I just fixed it. It must be an original design. Hank's description of the system being too Mickey Mouse is accurate.

I'll keep running it in its original configuration until I get tired of fooling with it. Then, I'll look into installing something more durable like the ones described in other posts.

Thanks again.

Peter

Mikey Mouse not meant as an insult, my wife is a huge Disney fan. The factory one is pretty Donald Duck. ;-) One thing that could help is to make the headliner so that you can pull two zippers back and expose the whole mechanism up front. It would make putting the cable back on when it jumps the pulley and centering the cable much easier.
When i recover my 45 I guarantee the headliner fabric in the front will be held on with Velcro so I will have access! My 45 had two triangular skylights and a triangle of fabric from the center of the "roof" to the back of the windshield. Should be a snap to do!

Hank

[Peterroy]

VELCRO!!!!!!! Outstanding. I'm going to reinstall (what I just peeled back) with Velcro.

[Hank Jarrett]

There are several different grades of Velcro. Check with an upholstery shop. Some you could use to tow a car, some barely hold a pencil. You need some that won't fall down, but also can be easily opened up to get to the mechanism. I plan to use some of the "SUPER" stuff at the corners and the soft stuff just to keep the edges from coming loose.

Hank

[Hank Jarrett]

Trim indicator parts Trim parts drawing (2).pdf

[mikeg]

Hank,
My '41, s/n 2652, is like yours.
Mike

[davidpa28140]

Wrestling my arms through the small openings in the headliner in an attempt to fix my trim indicator has me strongly considering the skylight install to open that area up for easy viewing and access!

[PA1195]

I have STC SA661AL skylight in mine. More headroom and vis in a turn. Look up Greg Clayton and that STC. He's still here in Fairbanks I believe.

Gary N36007

[davidpa28140]

Thanks Gary, I'll take a look at the STC.