Elevator Pushrod Bolt Orientation

[Jerry 5TJ]

While pre-flight inspecting my M20C today I noticed that the elevator push-rod bolts just under the rudder can touch the sheet metal fairing under the elevator when the elevator is at extreme full up deflection.

Photos show that the bolt end appears to have "nicked" the paint in this area on the left side, and the clearance is minimal on the right side, too.

If I pull the elevator to full "up" and then press the sheet metal in with my finger, the bolt will hang up on the faring and hold the elevator in the full up position.  Not good!

This is the situation on both sides of the tail.  

I ASSUME the bolts are in backwards, but don't see any such detail in the M20C maintenance manual. 

QUESTION:  Should the bolt heads be outboard, not inboard as on my plane?

 

[N6843N]

Figures 6-3 and 6-5 show the bolt orientation opposite of your installation in my M20 service & maintenance manual.

[Jerry 5TJ]

Good, thanks for the verification.

Will turn 'em around before next flight.

[N6843N]

As a followup I inspected my own "C" today and the bolt heads are in fact oriented outward for the elevator control.

[carusoam]

Nice catch...

For your reference... I have looked up Elevator and Aileron Control Systems on page 113 of the Parts Catalog (june 1973 rev)  The drawing is relevent to M20C,D,E,F

The drawing in figure 28 shows bolt heads facing outwards on the "elvator Horns".

Item 52 is a bolt and two washers.  It looks like the corresponding item 51 includes the nut along with the bungee assemblies.

- a -

[Jerry 5TJ]

I replaced the two elevator bolts and stop nuts today, putting the new ones in place with the heads outboard.   There is not much more clearance than before, but a critical extra few millimeters between the bolts and the sheet metal makes a lot of difference.    It was much easier to clean and lube all those Heim joints in the tail with the elevator bolts out, I found.  Putting them back in place was a bit tricky: I can see why some shade-tree mechanic put them in "the easy way" years before I owned this plane.

Sobering that I missed this in two years of pre-flights and two annual inspections.   Perhaps my new year's resolution should have been "look closer."   Few or none of us are original owners of these vintage Mooneys and who knows what was done to them in the past four + decades.   As Felix Dzerzhinsky used to say, "trust, but verify."