Im new to the RV world (actually I have an F1 Rocket) and I came across something that sort of perplexes me - apparently this arrangement is the same on most RVs so hence my post here.
Does anyone know why there is only one bolt (the lone bolt that connects the elevator pushrod to both elevators) connecting the left and right elevators together?
With only having a trim tab on one elevator, I would expect some reasonably high "torsional" loads to be carried from one elevator to the other through this one bolt.
I was thinking about drilling another set of holes in the elevator horns, and connecting together with another an3 bolt with a proper sized spacer between - this would greatly increase the torsional rigidity between the left and right elevator.
Whenever I feel the need to modify or reengineer something, especially a potentially critical part like this, I ask myself how many planes are falling out of the sky because they didn’t do this or that..
If you bolted the elevators with the bolt specified, then clamped one elevator and then you pressed up and down on the other, do you really feel that the bolt is the weak link? You’ll destroy both elevators before you even scratch the cad plating off the bolt.. don’t overthink this, one bolt is fine
I've noticed that with just one bolt, there can be noticeable torsional loads, especially with trim tabs on only one elevator. I've actually experimented with adding extra bolts and spacers on my own setup. It did improve the rigidity between the elevators and helped distribute loads more evenly. It's a straightforward modification that you can try out with some AN3 bolts and correctly sized spacers. If you're up for it, drilling additional holes for the Elevator Bolts could be a practical solution. It's always good to test it out and see how it affects the handling and stability during flights.
-- Edited by sanchewz on Monday 8th of July 2024 10:23:21 AM