The Align plastic swashplate has been the cause of much discussion. Firstly
the swash ball invariably doesn't move very smoothly or is quite hard to
move at all. Add to this that on some kits the swashplate has come apart
in flight due to the inner swashplate not being glued correctly. In some
kits there is an advisory warning to this effect and a note to re-glue
the swashplate. Add to this that the early swashplate outer ball screws
were to long and we have several problems to resolve.
Firstly the outer balls on the swashplate are screwed on, the screws to
do this on early kits were to long and protruded through and could bind
on the inner swashplate links. If the outer swashplate screws are too long
then dremel them to make them flush with the plastic.This is purely a case
of the screws holding the balls onto the swashplate being too long. In
the very latest kits they have been replaced with a more suitable screw
for the job.
The swashplate coming apart is more serious and several crashes are known
to have happened. The swashplate should be prized apart and cleaned then
CA'd back together before flying. The pictures below illustrate the two
problems. Be extra carefull when using CA around the swashplate as it could
easily get into the swashplate bearings and foul things up.
Loosening the swashplate ball has several solutions, personally I inserted
the shaft into the swashplate and then whilst exercising the ball I put
teflon grease onto it. Others have used soldreing irons to heat up the
ball against the outer metal wall. This heating up loosens the ball and
can be done using a soldering iron pressed onto the swashplate ball. This
method can potentially ruin the swashplate so exercise caution and watch
for the plastic starting to smoke/melt which indicates you have reached
the required temperatire and the ball should now be moved around in the
plastic until it cools.
