Adjusting link-rods

Burgess · Extreme 3D Joined: 27 Mar 2012 Posts: 1103 Location: Wales

Popping link-eyes on and off will stress the inner lip of the eye, better to fit them on to the link-ball once, then if adjustments are required simply unscrew the link-ball and when all adjustments are complete then apply Loctite. Also, pliers may damage the surface of your balls.

For holding the rods modify a pair of pliers, by running a drill with a diameter just less than that of the rods down through one place in the serrations of the nose. Or just enlarge and or round-off one pair of mating grooves with an needle file.

Dumb Thumbs · Posted: Thu Sep 13, 2012 8:12 am Post subject: Re: Adjusting link-rods

matelot · Posted: Thu Sep 13, 2012 1:54 pm Post subject:

.
Never having drilled pliers, I always imagined them to be made of particularly hard metal. Are they hard and a case of very slow drilling?

Burgess · Extreme 3D Joined: 27 Mar 2012 Posts: 1103 Location: Wales

Small pliers will probably be made from tool steel which is not that hard.

The diameter of the link rods are around 1.5mm 0,75mm per side.
All that's needed is to round out an existing pair of serration grooves, which might be 0.5mm deep, so only 0.25mm of metal to remove from the serrations on a jaw 5mm to 10mm wide. When clamped closed in a vice, the two serration halves will act as a pilot drilling.

So all that's needed is to carefully enlarge that serration space by some 0.5mm. Medium speed light pressure and drops of light oil using either a titanium coated drill bit, or a cobalt drill bit. ' Wink

'

Alternatively, open the jaws clamp in vise and chase out matching serration grooves using a diamond tipped rotary burr of 1.5mm diameter, or thin Grinding wheel preferably with rounded edge, or cutting disk.

Diamond coated needle files will also do the job.

Well it's just a thought. ' Laughing

'

matelot · Posted: Sat Sep 15, 2012 1:55 am Post subject:

That'll do. I've some old pliers kicking about, so when the need arises...

Always good to have these tips.

Cheers

Perez Turner · Hover Master Joined: 05 Aug 2013 Posts: 8

I think you must take help from Youtube videos to learn features of adjusting link rods. You can seek tricks from that lace quickly by visuals and step by step guidelines.

Why pay more for scales while you can pay less?

Burgess · Extreme 3D Joined: 27 Mar 2012 Posts: 1103 Location: Wales

Hello PT and welcome to the forum

solentlife · Posted: Sun Oct 06, 2013 6:30 pm Post subject:

My ball-link pliers were less than $5 from local shop ... designed and made for the job. After 3 years still as good as day I bought ..

Nigel

Burgess · Extreme 3D Joined: 27 Mar 2012 Posts: 1103 Location: Wales

In a hobby grounded in engineering, producing equipment either from scratch or by modification should not be viewed as being inferior. Having been in divergent forms of engineering for most of my life, making or modify equipment for some specialised purpose was second nature. My balancing equipment was produced by recycling and modifying something else, and so far I've not come across any store bought kit that could do the job as good.

My original suggestion was, rather than popping the link-eye off and on when making adjustments to the link rod, unscrew the ball make the adjustment and screw it back on. That would prevent stressing the inner lip of the link eye.

Therefore one only needs to modify one pair of matching grooves in a pair of pliers, only takes a few minutes and costs nothing.

Burgess

solentlife · Posted: Tue Oct 08, 2013 11:41 am Post subject:

Just a comment ....

The ball link eye ... the 'tighter' side of the link is supposed to be on the OUTSIDE ... difficult to tell sometimes which way round but if reversed and the tighter side forced on to the ball first - that link is then compromised.

My 450's are nigh on 3yrs old both .. and only 1 or 2 links have had to be changed in all that time ... despite repeated on / off ...

BUT I have had to change a swash because of failed thread where I have had to repeat unscrew the rear pitch linkage ...

So IMHO ... it's 6 of one and half dozen of other ... personally I'll pop ball links as I have a box of new links if needed.

Nigel

Burgess · Extreme 3D Joined: 27 Mar 2012 Posts: 1103 Location: Wales

Well, yes the larger aperture to the inside and most link-eyes have an identification ring pattern on that side. While on the earlier Align link-eyes there is a letter ‘A' on the outside and the latest 450 Pro ones also have numbers.

The problem with small machine screws is they tend to get over tightened and when screwing into alloy threads deform all too easily.
Small handled driver helps to limit applied torque force. A small torque screwdriver would help in overcoming the problem. When fitted at their optimum screws won't shake loose or fail under load, or round out hex sockets.

Link

Link

A chart of thread-size and torque force setting would be invaluable.

Burgess