Question: The nose gear on my VMAR model is steerable. I am having trouble aligning it so that it is centered (straight ahead) and so that I have some movement to both the left and right. What should I do?

 

Answer: Most VMAR models use a steering arm attached to a control rod and a servo. The steering arm is then slid over the nose gear wire or cylinder and locked into place with a set screw which engages with a flat spot that has been pre-positioned on the nose gear.

  

To resolve alignment problems:

 

1) Turn on your radio and center the servo that will move the nose gear.

 

2) Slide the steering arm into place on the nose gear, rotate the gear so that it points straight ahead. Cinch down the set screw. Check left and right movement. If you have more or less all the movement in just one direction, remove the wire gear and grind a new flat spot onto the wire at a location to allow the steering arm to engage with the wire and still rotate equally to both the left and right.

 

3) Remember that the amount of deflection to the left and right does not have to be large to enable nose steering. Slight left and right movement is all that is necessary.

 

4) In some cases, it may help to remove the steering arm and flip it over so that the distance between the firewall and the arm portion of the steering arm assembly is maximized. This stands the steering arm off from the firewall and enables the servo to "pull" more and hence turn the nose gear more before the arm contacts the firewall.