Johnson bar hard to secure into lower socket

[Prior owner]

1 hour ago, carusoam said:

MS has had one instance of the handle  being ejected off the top of the J-bar...

So... Expect that there is an adjustment, and a lubrication, and a bolt to hold it all together... (?)

...  Now to find that thread...

Best regards,

-a-

There is a service bulletin that covers ththe new style socket- the SB also has the adjustment procedure for the bar handle (height and switch contact). Can’t remember the SB number right now.. maybe height is set too high?

[Shadrach]

4 hours ago, Andy95W said:

I've mentioned it a few times.  I use silicone spray on the slider (the same stuff you spray on brake calipers slider pins and the starter throw-out gear shaft).  Works great.

I've never seen a specific reference in the Service Manual for the Johnson Bar slider lubrication, all that's really called for on the landing gear is the standard low temperature oil lube (TriFlow or LPS-2).

This is kind of my point Andy. We have the situation:

1) A few aircraft are displaying a symptom.

2) That symptom has been treated by applying lubrications to an area that the mx manual does not list as requiring lubricant.

3) Many, many aircraft in operation that do not get lubricant to that area do not exhibit the symptom

So it would seem a small number of planes “require” lubrication to the J-Bar contact areas to function while others can go 50+ years without a drop. That kind of anomaly concerns me. If the gear is so difficult to disengage that one has concerns about a forced gear up landing, I’d have concerns about an unprescribed procedure that utilizes unprescribed lubricant is masking not solving the real issue.

[midlifeflyer]

2 hours ago, Shadrach said:

This is kind of my point Andy. We have the situation:

1) A few aircraft are displaying a symptom.

2) That symptom has been treated by applying lubrications to an area that the mx manual does not list as requiring lubricant.

3) Many, many aircraft in operation that do not get lubricant to that area do not exhibit the symptom

So it would seem a small number of planes “require” lubrication to the J-Bar contact areas to function while others can go 50+ years without a drop. That kind of anomaly concerns me. If the gear is so difficult to disengage that one has concerns about a forced gear up landing, I’d have concerns about an unprescribed procedure that utilizes unprescribed lubricant is masking not solving the real issue.

You make an excellent point. OTOH, is it unusual for any metal-on-metal moveable connection to get slightly out-of-spec after 50 years and require just  a little lubrication? 

I will be picking up the C in question when it's done. I'll ask the mechanic (who does have Mooney experience) when I do.

[steingar]

3 hours ago, Shadrach said:

This is kind of my point Andy. We have the situation:

1) A few aircraft are displaying a symptom.

2) That symptom has been treated by applying lubrications to an area that the mx manual does not list as requiring lubricant.

3) Many, many aircraft in operation that do not get lubricant to that area do not exhibit the symptom

So it would seem a small number of planes “require” lubrication to the J-Bar contact areas to function while others can go 50+ years without a drop. That kind of anomaly concerns me. If the gear is so difficult to disengage that one has concerns about a forced gear up landing, I’d have concerns about an unprescribed procedure that utilizes unprescribed lubricant is masking not solving the real issue.

Something to keep in mind.  The only "symptom" of which I was aware was that the brand new from Mooney top holder got sticky to the point of dangerous, and less than a year after it was put into service.  But after the ministrations of my mechanics, both it and the floor lock now work much, much better.  I didn't  know the floor lock had an issue because the Lucky Strike is the only Mooney I've ever flown.  But it did.  It is quite possible that lots of aircraft have "symptoms", and no one is the wiser because its all we've ever known.

[hmasing]

On 3/25/2019 at 11:26 PM, carusoam said:

See if you have any wires for headsets and things like that getting crushed there...

...ask me why I had to buy a new iPhone. :-/

Slipped out of my pocket on takeoff, unnoticed, and I made DAMNED sure that gear was up and locked. 

Edited March 29, 2019 by hmasing

[Andy95W]

7 hours ago, Shadrach said:

This is kind of my point Andy. We have the situation:

1) A few aircraft are displaying a symptom.

2) That symptom has been treated by applying lubrications to an area that the mx manual does not list as requiring lubricant.

Ross- @Shadrach- All I know is this:  When I first bought my airplane in 2011, I had no problem swinging the gear.  

-After about 3 years, it was getting a little bit stiff, but I had planned to  work on the gear anyway.

-I took everything apart- all bearings, bushings, pushrods, hardware, and components.  Cleaned out old grease until it was pristine. Installed new oversized bushings from LASAR, fresh grease applied before assembly, stripped and repainted everything as needed, reinstalled with new hardware and rigged exactly IAW the manual.

-It was better, but still pretty stiff locking down.  It felt like something was preventing the Johnson bar from moving forward enough to latch in the down lock.  I cut a big oval out of the carpet on the nose gear hump.  No change.

-It kept getting worse over the next month.  I thought I was starting to have rotator cuff problems in my right shoulder due to sharp pains. Then I started to really worry that I had screwed up the rigging and was reminded of N6XM ( @gsxrpilot's old plane) that had a gear collapse after gear work.

-Put it back on jacks, checked the rigging.  Still perfect.  Changed nothing, but sprayed silicone spray on the slider mechanism.

-Test flight:  smooth as butter.  I can honest-to-God latch it in the downlock using only my thumb and 2 fingers.  No shoulder pain at all.

I'm very happy with what I did.  Maybe it falls into the "If it's stupid, but it works, then it's not stupid" category.