Flaps fail to retract on Ground (1990 J)

[DC_Brasil]

Hello, 

Wanted to know if anyone has experienced this issue.

In two out of my last 4 flights, during my departure checklists (i.e. engine ready running) I checked the full movement of the flaps. After extending to full, they will not retract. 

I had to pull the flap actuator CB, give it a minute or so, reset it, and then it works again.

They work well in flight and after landing (no issues whatsoever).

Any thoughts?

[Ragsf15e]

 

44 minutes ago, DC_Brasil said:

Hello, 

Wanted to know if anyone has experienced this issue.

In two out of my last 4 flights, during my departure checklists (i.e. engine ready running) I checked the full movement of the flaps. After extending to full, they will not retract. 

I had to pull the flap actuator CB, give it a minute or so, reset it, and then it works again.

They work well in flight and after landing (no issues whatsoever).

Any thoughts?

I had to work on mine a little while ago.  I doubt it has anything to do with the cb if it wasn’t popped.  There are two limit switches and two relays (in some models).  Both the relays and the limit switches eventually fail.  If they are sticking down, id first check the down limit switch.  Once you look at the schematic and open up the airplane to look, its not hard to figure out.  Mine wouldn’t come down all the time and the up limit switch was at fault.  A new one wasn’t expensive from online electronics sources (exact part number).

[N201MKTurbo]

With the flaps down, leave the master on with the flap switch in the up position. Get out of the plane and grab the trailing edge of the flaps and shake them up and down. They will probably come up. This will get you by until you GT new switches or clean the ones you have.

[Ragsf15e]

18 minutes ago, N201MKTurbo said:

With the flaps down, leave the master on with the flap switch in the up position. Get out of the plane and grab the trailing edge of the flaps and shake them up and down. They will probably come up. This will get you by until you GT new switches or clean the ones you have.

For sure.  When I replaced my up limit switch, it still worked ok when i bench tested it but there was a slight dead spot in its actuation that was causing it to stop retraction but not allow them back down.  I could easily see how a vibrating airplane or shaking the flaps could alleviate this.

Note though, when mine stuck up the first time I tried this and it didn’t do anything, so maybe not always going to help. Or maybe I needed to shake harder.

[DC_Brasil]

47 minutes ago, Ragsf15e said:

 

I had to work on mine a little while ago.  I doubt it has anything to do with the cb if it wasn’t popped.  There are two limit switches and two relays (in some models).  Both the relays and the limit switches eventually fail.  If they are sticking down, id first check the down limit switch.  Once you look at the schematic and open up the airplane to look, its not hard to figure out.  Mine wouldn’t come down all the time and the up limit switch was at fault.  A new one wasn’t expensive from online electronics sources (exact part number).

Thanks for sharing the pictures!

My plane is fresh out of the annual. I am guessing the flap screws must have been lubricated during the annual so the A&P should have accessed that part. That may have introduced some instability to the switch.

I will check those. Thanks!