![]() |
If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below. |
|
|
Thread Tools | Display Modes |
#7
|
|||
|
|||
![]()
George wrote:
Try to apply torsion many times. Left, right, left, right..... George All the previous suggestions have merit for this and various other Cobra/Komet trailer ailments, of which there are many. But George has the right idea: when this happened to me, I took a long (six feet) steel bar and placed one end of it perpendicular to the front of the tongue, then wrapped a chain around the intersection to fix it. I then pulled up/pushed down on the other end of the bar to twist the movable part of the tongue. Simultaneously I applied fore/aft force, though it would have been easier with more people and/or using a tow vehicle. The combination of torsion and axial force gradually loosened it. My problem had nothing to do--this time--with the brake shoes rusting to the drums (that used to happen regularly until I found a way to park it by chocking the wheels instead of using the parking brake). It was caused by water getting into the mechanism and corroding the underside of the "piston" (i.e., the inner tube) that slides in the plastic bearings inside the immovable part of the tongue (i.e., the outer tube). It took a lot of filing and smoothing to clean things up. Chucking the whole inner tongue assembly in a big lathe would have made it easier. Also, the aft plastic bearing seemed to have swollen and it required opening up with some careful grinding/sanding. Regular lubrication should ward off some of these problems but you need to cycle the tongue fore/aft every once in a while (i.e., drive it around the block) to distribute the grease. Of course, the best preventative maintenance is to take the glider to a contest at least two or three times every year. Not only will it keep the moving parts loose but anything that can go wrong is bound to happen in the middle of a contest where you've got a lot of people around to help. ![]() Chip Bearden ASW 24 "JB" |
Thread Tools | |
Display Modes | |
|
|
![]() |
||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
Cherokee 180 soft brake - causes? | Nathan Young | Owning | 22 | March 1st 06 05:21 PM |
PA28-181 - Stuck Mike - King Silver Crown | Roy Page | Owning | 2 | October 29th 04 03:36 AM |
BRAKE FLUID | Ventus B | Soaring | 9 | October 17th 04 07:25 PM |
Building the Po' Boy Bending Brake | Veeduber | Home Built | 14 | March 1st 04 06:15 PM |
Brake caliper flange | Stealth Pilot | Home Built | 5 | July 7th 03 04:19 PM |