Rudder Cable Systems Used in Modern Sailplanes

There seems to be a fair amount of confusion about the springs used in almost all modern sailplane rudder cables. The springs are there to keep the pedals upright (pulling forward) and to facilitate rudder pedal adjustment through the use of an 'S' tube. Each rudder cable enters the top rear of its 'S' tube and exitsthe lower forward portion of the 'S' tube, then extends on forward another foot or so and is bolted to the square tube that both pedals slide on when adjusting the pedals forward and aft. One can simulate a broken cable by simply grasping one rudder pedal and pulling it aft about 6 inches. The spring on that side will expand and the rudder cable will go slack. The spring on the other side will slam the rudder hard over..........I just did this on my ship. The same is true for Schleicher, Schempp-Hirth, DG, LS and most all sailplanes!

Some things to check on annual inspection:

1. Nylon inner sleeve in place on both 'S' tubes and extending about an inch out both ends of the 'S'tube.(the nylon sleeve keeps the cable from rubbing metel to metal during normal rudder operation and during pedal adjustment.