The International Cessna^® 170 Association

Anyone help with aileron balance specs for 170a.
Cannot find anywhere on forum.
When i click on links it just comes up as rubbish .

Did you check the MX LIbrary..under “Fuselage …” where the airplane Rigging Instructions are located..?

viewtopic.php?f=41&t=8196

(Aileron Balance wt is 2.94 lbs +.06 to -0.0.)

The asterisk calls attention to the note that “some Model 170A airplanes were delivered with 1.75-pounds lead balance weight in the ailerons.” The 140A calls for 1.75 pounds of lead on their ailerons. Looks like Cessna stole from the 140A aileron inventory when they ran out on the 170A line. Their ailerons share the same part numbers.

Back to the OP's question, does anyone have the aileron balance specs, since the 100 series service manual doesn't list them?

cessnut wrote:Back to the OP's question, does anyone have the aileron balance specs, since the 100 series service manual doesn't list them?

I posted them above.

That is the weight tolerance of the counterweight, not the balance spec.

Cessnut:
If you follow the link to the MX Library, you will find the balance spec.
(But I believe that the MX Library may be accessible only to members of The International Cessna 170 Association.)

Thanks for info. Still not sure if i got the right answer.
I try to follow the links on site but all i get is errors.
Do i need to be on windows PC?

The specs you are looking for can be found in Cessna SNL 86-44.

The SNL 86-44 is posted here: viewtopic.php?f=6&t=573&start=0

I ran across this video from an A&P school on aileron balancing. At about 1:30 into the video they say to leave the push-pull rod on when balancing. Anyone do that? I’ve always assumed it is removed. Cessna’s instructions are explicit in specifying that the trim tab rod is installed when balancing the elevator, but I don’t see any similar instructions for keeping the push-pull rods connected on the ailerons.

Gary, on certain designs such as the Cirrus, it may be appropriate to balance the control surface with the "control rod" attached but not the Cessna 170 design. The Cirrus design the control rod is a stiff attachment affair that expends forward into a ball socket which is rotated around raising and lowering the rod thus moving the aileron. In the Cirrus case the rod is more or less a counter balance. However even in the Cirrus case I'd have to review the maintenance manual for the correct procedure.

In the Cessna 170 case the rod is not stiff being attached with a bolt through a bearing rod end. While the rod end pushes and pulls the aileron, it is not stiff or fixed in position to act as a counter weight.

My thoughts anyway.

I think Bruce has it correct. The elevator trim tab control rod however, is contained within the elevator assy…and is part of the total weight of the elevator-and-tab….so should be included. The wide counter-weight range allowed likely makes it superfluous tho’.

Here’s Cessna Support’s answer:

We are not aware of anything that says the aileron push rod be installed. Most flight controls should be balanced without the control rods installed as far as we know.