Klixon switch jammed.

[EricJ]

The other day the klixon switch for my strobes jammed in the OFF position.   It's physically stuck, and won't move.   It's been working fine and worked fine during pre-flight, but when I went to turn the strobes on at take-off the switch was jammed and has been ever since.

Is this a common thing?   I haven't taken the switch out yet since the ground bar is in the way and I haven't had time to really dig in there and get it out.   Not sure what I'd even be looking for unless it was something obvious.    If it's a known common failure mode I'm interested in the common wisdom for whatever it takes to get it going again.  

 

Edited December 28, 2017 by EricJ

[AH-1 Cobra Pilot]

I just had a similar problem with my Trim switch.  Previously, I had found a strange part on my floor that I could not figure out.  It was a small cylinder of metal with splines on one end.  Turns out it was an 'axle' for the switch.  I could remove the pivoting apparatus through the dash and see the switch contact since both axles fell out of place.  I have not found the axle from the other side, and the switch is nonfunctional without at least one of them.  I am left with fabricating a new one to fix the switch.

[AH-1 Cobra Pilot]

I have thoroughly scoured the internet to no avail.  I cannot find the hinge pins I need to fix my switch.  The only hope I have is that someone has an old, otherwise inoperative switch that I can salvage the pins from.  Anyone?

Edited February 12, 2025 by AH-1 Cobra Pilot
Added Photo

[Oldguy]

@EricJ and @Ah-1 Cobra Pilot - did you see @82Mike has several ETA switches for sale in the Parts For Sale forum? Came off of his '82 J and one of them in his photos is a strobe switch. Don't know if they would solve y'alls problems, but thought I would pass it on in case you had not seen it this morning.

FWIW.

[peevee]

So close. 

 

 

[N201MKTurbo]

As long as you have a good switch cover, the switches are readily available. ~ $100 

[EricJ]

6 hours ago, N201MKTurbo said:

As long as you have a good switch cover, the switches are readily available. ~ $100 

Got a source?

The M20J panel is a frustrating example of 1970s engineering before Design For Maintenance was a thing, or at least getting that switch out makes it seem so.   Finally got it out, and the axle seems fine and I couldn't see anything accessible that was causing the jam, so something must have broken internally.   If I get a replacement reasonably soon, I can send my failed one to @Ah-1 Cobra Pilot  if it's still useful to maybe press that axle out and reuse it.

[N201MKTurbo]

1 hour ago, EricJ said:

Got a source?

The M20J panel is a frustrating example of 1970s engineering before Design For Maintenance was a thing, or at least getting that switch out makes it seem so.   Finally got it out, and the axle seems fine and I couldn't see anything accessible that was causing the jam, so something must have broken internally.   If I get a replacement reasonably soon, I can send my failed one to @Ah-1 Cobra Pilot  if it's still useful to maybe press that axle out and reuse it.

Take all the screws out and push them all back at once. Take the buss screws out and remove the switch.

[N201MKTurbo]

17 hours ago, N201MKTurbo said:

As long as you have a good switch cover, the switches are readily available. ~ $100 

Holy crap the only prices I can find online are about $275. And they don't even have gold plated terminals.

[EricJ]

So swapped out the jammed switch with a used one (thanks Rich!), and was fidgeting with the bad one last night and it popped loose.   A few iterations of spraying Lectra Clean in it and fidgeting some more loosened it up enough that it is probably serviceable again.   It'll be good to have a spare given the nature of these things.