Hard to tell about the bell cranks w/o getting in there ? The T-18 bell aileron bell cranks are a little more difficult to access than the S-18 so a T-18 guy would/might have knowledge to access/remove them . Spruce sells the stainless steel hinge rod in 6ft lengths . I would check with Jim at Thorp Central about the bushings for the stab and rudder . Removing the rudder and stab is so easy a politician can do it ! Remove the rudder cables from the bottom of the rudder . One bolt on top of the rudder hinge , one bolt on the bottom of the rudder . Fin removal...once the rudder is off you have access to the bolts on the back of the fin . At the very front of the fin where it meets the fus. there is an access point for that bolt . The attachment points for the trim have very small bushings in the "links" so a look at those may be helpful . A set of plans will detail the bushing requirements .

RB

I buy piano wire from the hobby stores. I have found that off the shelf bushing's generally do not fit,because of wear or the builder used a drill instead of reamers , the holes are not to specs.

Do you have County or City offices ? They may have an old reader stored in the basement with the preserved bodies of past politicians ? Maybe one of your schools has one inturned with the ever popular mimeograph machine ! For sure the FAA has one as they are still using vacuum tubes and slide rules !

RB

HI Jeff,

I know you're looking for ways to gain some knowledge and fix these problems ASAP. They all sound like important items, and the stabilator/anti-servo tab ones are especially important safety of flight issues. One general comment - you really need to have a set of readable plans if you are going to maintain and service your airplane safely and properly. The bushing material is specified in the plans, and for the T-18 they are generally made of "mild" steel tubing. There are some non-metallic bushings used on the flaps.

As Bill said, the bushings are many times custom-fitted by the builders of these airplanes. You start out with a very tight or oversized bushing and carefully machine,file, and/or polish it down until you get a good fit. If you have access to a lathe it's easy, or you can use a mandrel and a drill press. From a flutter standpoint, the hinge points on the stabilator are less critical than the anti-servo tab system. You want everything tight, but free and smooth. The lubricant is important.

The cadmium plated steel AN or MS structural bolts on your airplane should be tightened to the torque values specified on standard aircraft torque value charts. Just Google "aircraft bolt torque values" for instant access to charts. Be sure to measure and add the additional "running" or rotational torque caused by friction from locking nuts, etc. to the chart values when you are tightening bolt/nut assemblies. Propeller bolts are a different matter, and should be tightened to the prop manufacturers' specs.

It just might be easier to buy a new set of real paper plans ? Keep the film as a back up , but I hear unless that film is kept under the proper conditions it will deteriorate with age much like some of us !

RB