192 – We Always Knew He Had A Screw Loose!

Airplane Owner Maintenance - By Dean Showalter

My good friend, Clark Trobaugh, flew into KSHD this past week, and while he was visiting with his family, I walked over to his airplane on the ramp and noted a few things that needed attention…

Here’s the one that prompted Clark’s brother Scott to send me a text that said, “Thanks for looking out for him. We always knew he had a screw loose and I’m glad you could fix it.” That made me laugh, for sure! These brothers have a lot of fun together.

It turned out the screw was the wrong one… it was a sheet metal screw and should have been a machine screw. Check it out:

And here’s the result after installing the correct screw:

I also discovered a panel chafing under the left horizontal stabilizer:

I removed the panel, cleaned the area, and reinstalled it:

Another item that needed attention was a shielding ground connection on the left alternator… check out this video:

And one more item I took care of for Clark was the left and right elevator trim tab connections… take a look at this:

Since there is a bushing in this location, the bolt should be tightened onto the bushing and the rotation happens around the bushing. I greased the bushing, reinstalled the bolt and nut, and installed a new cotter pin, for both trim tabs.

Here’s how the pieces look when taken apart:

And here’s the end result after reassembly:

Listen to the audio for this episode for more details on these items, as well as a tribute to Clark and Scott’s dad, Larry Trobaugh, who passed away in May of 2020. Larry was a great man, and I think so highly of him and his family.

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