Aileron spacers

[Shay King]

Does anyone have a photo or sketch of how the aileron end spacers look when finished. I’m trying to figure out if I glue in spacers at the hinge point to maintain the 1/4” gap, will they get covered by fabric. If so, will there be fabric on fabric rotation, or fabric rotating against a washer? I’m also experimenting with Scott in Iowa’s idea of Delrin bushings. The ones I’ve made so far require a much bigger hole to accommodate them compared to the brass bushings. Any advice appreciated.

[pappyadkins]

I used wood from 'lighting' holes, glued together... the fabric went 'around' the wooden spacer, I'm not sure if I showed that in my videos, but I'll look for a photo...

[Kamcoman77]

I did something similar to David. When covering, I'll cover the aileron, overlapping the ends. Then I will put an airfoil shaped piece of fabric over the ends with a hole cut out for the spacer. The spacer will not have any fabric on it. I plan to put a thin Delrin washer between each spacer and the wing.

[Shay King]

Thank you guys, that answers my question.

[jrbirdman47]

If you have access to a lathe you might consider the way we did it: Turned a 1 inch Delrin rod to be the bushing AND the spacer, all in one. We turned the outside diameter to fit the hinge block and the inside to fit the hinge pin, then the 1 inch diameter "head" thickness is cut to become the spacer, as required for each one. It's pretty much friction free, needs no lubricant, and is very lightweight. Pro tip: drill the pin hole first and insert a length of pin to stiffen the bushing before machining. Don't ask me how I know this.

[Shay King]

Thanks for replying, I’ve made a couple of the delrin bushings and I’ve found them tricky to get right. So far, one useable and one a bit off center. The other thing that puts me off them is that they need a bigger hole in the hinge blocks. The brass bushing material that I have needs only a 7.2mm diameter hole, the delrin ones that I’ve made need almost 10mm diameter holes. I’m not sure if I can get them much slimmer.
I’m thinking that the brass bushing method is the easier option, just not as elegant as the delrin ones.

[Brock]

I wonder if 3d printing something from nylon or PETG would work.  Would be easy to print and draw.