Location of rudder cable exits

[Acroeric]

Tribe- can anyone give me the location for the rudder cable exits. My fuselage is a BC-12D. . . 1946. A measurement of how many inches fwd of the tail post and how many inches up would be perfect. Just want to make the fabric patch neat and centered.

[Hank Jarrett]

Re: Location of rudder cable exits

Problem is. it isn't the same place on different planes. No two fuselages seem to be exactly the same. If I remember, you already have fabric on your plane (if not there is an easy way to find the right spot, write again). With fabric in place already I would start with the locations from several people and tie a piece of carpet thread to the furthest aft fairlead. Use a needle to go through the fabric somewhere close to the center of the suggested locations you get. Tie the rudder to it's center position and pull the thread tight to the rudder horn. You will see the thread pulling on the fabric in the direction you want to move the penetration to. Repeat the process a few times till the thread stays straight passing through the fabric and make a small slit there. The nice thing about using the thread is you don't make a bunch of big holes in the fabric, just a needle hole and the pull in the fabric will come out with just a little heat from the iron. When you move the rudder back and forth by having someone pull the thread you will see where to enlarge the slit (it won't actually be in the right place at first, but hopefully close enough that the leather patch will cover it all the marks and slit).
Now you know why I said to fully assemble and check out all controls and systems before covering. That fuselage is REALLY uncomfortable to crawl into, and the fabric on the bottom is really easy to mess up with knees and toes.
Have fun! I will measure mine this weekend if you don't have some numbers by then.
Hank

[crispy critter]

Re: Location of rudder cable exits

[QUOTE=Acroeric;51157]Tribe- can anyone give me the location for the rudder cable exits.


Eric,try somewhere near the tail..... Sorry man,couldn't resist that one.

[mulwyk]

Re: Location of rudder cable exits

Eric: my exit holes:
Right side 24 1/2 forward from tailpost, 7 up from lower longeron

Left side 23 1/4 from tailpost, 7 1/2 up from longeron

The rear rudder fairleads in my fuselage were not aligned left to right. It almost looks like the factory welder just put them in approximate position? My old cover was not much help either, it looked like the previous recover guy had guessed wrong several times and made several ugly gashes where he thought the exit holes should be.
I had better luck shining a bright light through the fabric (during the polybrush/tapeing stage) locating the fairleads inside the fuselage, then using a chalk line to mark the elevation of the future rudder cable path. To find the distance forward from the tailpost I made scale drawings with fabric, rudder horn, fairlead and the cable shown.

[RoN43220]

Re: Location of rudder cable exits

Might a laser pointer help in this effort?

Ron

[Acroeric]

Re: Location of rudder cable exits

Guys- thanks for the measurements and suggestions- I'll use a light to get the height right- that will be 50% of the problem solved! Thanks again. . . . this really helps. I installed all my inspection holes last night, ready to iron over all teh tapes and small pockets at 225 degrees with a hobby iron then off to the booth for spraying. Gotta love progress! I have to admit that Poly Fiber is really easy so far- just takes some time.