Rudder Problem

Techsan02

Techsan02

Filing Flight Plan
Joined
Aug 24, 2014
Messages
15
Location
Fort Worth
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Display name:
WhiskeyTangoFoxtrot
Long story short, it appears my rudder is canted slightly to the left. While I wait for a hangar to open up at my airport, storms rolled in this morning with high winds. I noticed the tail of my plane was way left of where I parked it. I am assuming the wind blew the rudder hard and caused this problem. I took it up flying not noticing this and it was blowing my mind as I kept drifting towards the runway and overshooting it on the first go around. After three pattern runs, I called it quits cause I could not keep it straight. After examining it closely, that's when I noticed the rudder not centered.

Is it possible to just tighten some bolts on the right hand side to get it re-centered? Thanks for any info. The pictured attached is taken at night so forgive me.
 

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Hard to say, may be out of rigging. Have an A&P check it.
 
Yeah I did a pre-flight but apparently didn't notice this. It definitely something I will look closely at now rather than just check the deflection of the control surfaces. Going to have an a & p check it out.
 
Cessna, right? 172? You most likely have a broken right rudder bar spring. Grab the right rudder pedal and pull it back toward the seat; it should have considerable spring to it. Compare it to the left pedal's pull. Cessna rudder systems MUST be rerigged according to the service manual, and it's not an owner-maintenance item. I frequently find these systems way out of whack, having been "fixed" by mechanics who don't know the system. The nosegear, for instance, is the centering mechanism for the whole system, but that busted rudder bar spring is the usual reason it's off-center. The steering bungees let it go off-center when the spring forces are imbalanced.

Replacing that spring can be a whole lot of work unless the rudder itself is disconnected. Even then it's not much fun. The springs are relatively cheap. High-time airplanes sometimes have broken spring anchors, and they are a real pain to replace.
 
Dan Thomas said:
Replacing that spring can be a whole lot of work unless the rudder itself is disconnected. Even then it's not much fun. The springs are relatively cheap. High-time airplanes sometimes have broken spring anchors, and they are a real pain to replace.
Click to expand...
Recently had to replace a spring on our 172. Few bucks for the spring itself. Almost $400 in labor.
 
It's a Cessna 150f. Not really a high time aircraft considering the age. But I assume there have been quick fixes throughout the years.
 
lift the nose wheel of the ground, see if the rudder centers, then get back.
 
Which one would be more catastrophic to break in flight? Rudder or ailerons?
 
GlennAB1 said:
It's that flippy, hickey-do, thing on the back of the vertical stabilizer that's considered a primary flight control... that you don't need, until you do... and if you over use it on some airplanes the tail breaks off and hundreds of people die
Click to expand...
He's flying with training wheels. He doesn't need a rudder. :D
 
mfisher said:
Recently had to replace a spring on our 172. Few bucks for the spring itself. Almost $400 in labor.
Click to expand...
Probably because they didn't disconnect the rudder cables at the rudder. Makes it much more difficult to get the spring in. Disconnecting the rudder lets the pedals fall forward and take the tension off the springs. Even then, working though that tiny inspection hole in the belly makes it fun. Access through the tunnel top is even worse.
 
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