Recurring Maintenance "Lube Flight Controls"

[Lax291]

Found a great spreadsheet early on that tracks things like registration renewal, oil changes, time since overhaul, compressions, no back clutch spring replacement (ouch) and lots more.  One of the sections is titled "Recurring Pilot Maintenance" and I included a picture of it.  I've got the check tires and lube fuel caps down, but cannot find anything specific on how and what to lube for the flight controls.  Can anyone help with that line item as to what should be lubricated every 4 months on the controls, confirm if DC-4 is best, and add any additional recommendations?  1990 M20J.

Thanks!

[Utah20Gflyer]

I try to lube the flight controls every 30-60 days.  Basically if I’m doing my preflight and I’m not in a hurry I’ll grab the spray can I keep in the plane and hit everything that is accessible without unscrewing things.  My understanding was that Triflow is the correct lubricant.  

[PT20J]

Lube the hinge bearings with a light oil such as LPS 2 and lube the rod ends with Tri-Flow. It's covered in section 5 of the service and maintenance manual.

[N201MKTurbo]

The things that bind the controls most, are the yoke shafts and the stuff behind the panel.

[dzeleski]

  On 3/20/2025 at 5:20 PM, N201MKTurbo said:

The things that bind the controls most, are the yoke shafts and the stuff behind the panel.

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Agreed. Ill notice my GFC500 start to hunt a bit, lubing the shafts and everything behind it fixes the problem. It usually lasts about 3 months or so before I start to notice again. I lube the hinges and rod ends as well but those dont seem to make that large of a difference.

[PT20J]

  On 3/20/2025 at 5:20 PM, N201MKTurbo said:

The things that bind the controls most, are the yoke shafts and the stuff behind the panel.

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And ,the thing that causes the newer nylotron balls on the yoke shafts to bind is is lubricating them. The older manuals said to lubricate them but the newer manuals say to leave them dry. Lubing them attracts dust and gums them up. Keep the shafts clean and a little wax on the shaft doesn't hurt. Just don't spray lube into the balls.

[dzeleski]

  On 3/20/2025 at 5:27 PM, PT20J said:

And ,the thing that causes the newer nylotron balls on the yoke shafts to bind is is lubricating them. The older manuals said to lubricate them but the newer manuals say to leave them dry. Lubing them attracts dust and gums them up.

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If you use triflow you wont have that problem. But I also clean the shafts every time I lube them.

My MSC has told me to do as such, im not aware what kind of bushings my 77 J has but I have had zero issues lubing them.

[N201MKTurbo]

  On 3/20/2025 at 5:37 PM, dzeleski said:

If you use triflow you wont have that problem. But I also clean the shafts every time I lube them.

My MSC has told me to do as such, im not aware what kind of bushings my 77 J has but I have had zero issues lubing them.

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My 77J has phenolic bearings.

[TangoTango]

@Lax291 Would you be willing to share the spreadsheet? That sounds useful for staying organized

[Lax291]

  On 3/20/2025 at 6:17 PM, TangoTango said:

@Lax291 Would you be willing to share the spreadsheet? That sounds useful for staying organized

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Hey @TangoTango link here: https://themooneyflyer.com/tools.html  a few lines down it's called "Aircraft Status Sheet".  Been very helpful and keep it on my google drive so I can access it via phone to update or review.

[PT20J]

  On 3/20/2025 at 5:37 PM, dzeleski said:

If you use triflow you wont have that problem. But I also clean the shafts every time I lube them.

My MSC has told me to do as such, im not aware what kind of bushings my 77 J has but I have had zero issues lubing them.

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According to the IPC, Mooney changed to the nylotron balls at M20J S/N 24-0901.

Tri-Flow is what’s called for in the M20J Service Manual but later model service manuals say to keep them dry. Tri-Flow contains a light oil that doesn’t dry and will attract dirt that embeds itself in the plastic.

[hammdo]

I triflow the shafts by wetting out a shop rag, applying to the shafts, work the shafts forward/back, confirming no excess triflow remains. As Skip noted, don’t want to collect dust with excess triflow.

-Don

[dkkim73]

  On 3/20/2025 at 7:08 PM, PT20J said:

... Tri-Flow contains a light oil that doesn’t dry and will attract dirt that embeds itself in the plastic.

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I wonder what the experience using dry lubes is? e.g. silicone, PTFE-based things. 

In the world of high-velocity projectile launchers, required to have high availabilty and with occasional rugged conditions and long storage periods, I've had good luck with:

1. TW25B (available as a white grease and also an alcohol-based spray that "dries"), which I believe is PTFE-based and also with

2. Eezox. If cleaned off this leaves a very dry residual and inhibits corrosion very well but also contains tricholoroethylene [IIRC] in the delivery base. I've heard it can cause other issues but have never really understood the concern... I think it has to do with chlorinated organics doing something weird to metal.  OTOH it has worked great for me over many years. 

I am still meaning to disassemble and clean my ball vents. I could always try Eezox or TW25B on those, and make sure they are touch-dry before re-install. OTOH they are aluminum (??) so not sure it would help. 

DK

[PT20J]

Actually, I've been thinking that Boron Nitride lubricants might be the best. BN is really slippery and it dries without leaving any oily film.  Dupont has a number of lubricants using it and there are other brands as well.

DuPont_Lubricants_Catalog_2022.pdfFetching info...

[Lax291]

  On 3/20/2025 at 5:16 PM, PT20J said:

Lube the hinge bearings with a light oil such as LPS 2 and lube the rod ends with Tri-Flow. It's covered in section 5 of the service and maintenance manual.

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Thanks, will be picking up some LPS 2 at Ace tomorrow. 

[TangoTango]

  On 3/21/2025 at 1:52 AM, Lax291 said:

Thanks, will be picking up some LPS 2 at Ace tomorrow. 

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FYI it looks like Ace is discontinuing all LPS products. There is still stock for now, so your local store can order it if you ask. It's also on Aircraft Spruce.

[EricJ]

Most of the relevant lubricants are available on Amazon.

 

[cliffy]

Plain old house floor wax works well on the control shafts. Wipe it on. let it dry for a minute and polish it off.

The big yellow cans that Johnson made are no longer available. 

When lubing any of the rod ends be sure to see if the move and rotate a little and are not frozen to the ball itself. 

[Lax291]

  On 3/21/2025 at 1:48 PM, TangoTango said:

FYI it looks like Ace is discontinuing all LPS products. There is still stock for now, so your local store can order it if you ask. It's also on Aircraft Spruce.

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Interesting, was able to get over there today and grab one of the last two LPS 2 cans they had.  They also carry Tri-Flo there too, love that place.