The International Cessna^® 170 Association

Hello,
Just had my first annual done since I bought this aircraft (1953 170B) and the AME found some cracks in the tail structure at the top rivets of the braces that hold the elevator bell crank. Has anyone else had issues with cracks in the tail. I think it may come from locking the controls with the seat belt which constantly keeps a full up elevator force. Has anyone else had issues here? What do you guys think and is there some kind of re-enforcement kit for this? Seems like an area that is pretty hard to access.
Any info greatly appreciated, thanks.

CF-HEW,

Cracks in the bulkhead to which the elevator bellcrank is attached is not uncommon in 170's. I was warned to check this spot when I bought my airplane in 1982. The consensus of the folks I've talked to (unscientific survey) is that it is more common in airplanes consistently operated from rough fields. I don't think that the constant force induced by using the seat belt to lock the controls is the problem. It is the cycling forces that generally cause fatigue.

I don't have the details, but I have heard of a repair whereby a doubler can be installed in this area if it's the bulkhead that's cracked, or parts replacement if it's the bracket. I'm sure others who know much more than me about this will weigh in here. Go to http://cessna170.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.p ... 17&start=0 for a previous discussion on this topic.

Miles

Thanks for the reply. My AME just called with more bad news. It appears my rudder cable is in pretty rough shape. Might as well change it while I got the tail off.