V
FUTABA 9Z
THE UNOFFICIAL WORKSHOP MANUAL
WARNING:
THE INFORMATION IN THIS MANUAL IS FOR INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY AND MAY BE INCORRECT, CAUSE DAMAGE
TO YOUR RADIO OR INJURY TO YOURSELF AND OTHERS. IF YOU USE THIS MANUAL YOU DO SO SOLEY AT YOUR OWN RISK.
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Page 41 of 84
The procedure for changing the reference plane of the joystick is simple and does not
require you to open the set:
1.
Loosen the 4 Allen key screws around the joystick you wish to alter.
2.
Rotate the joystick to the correct plane.
3.
Retighten the screws.
4.3. Strengthening and Repairing the Joysticks
The “official” Futaba 9Z joystick and gimbal assemblies are ridiculously expensive (e.g.
£150++), but damage can often be repaired permanently and easily if caught early.
However, if you leave a crack to develop, it will progress until it meets the joystick or
gimbal axis and you may be replacing the entire joystick assembly at significant cost.
Always inspect a crack and if you can replace or repair the parts.
Joysticks sometimes crack at the base, either through fatigue or from mechanical
damage (i.e. being dropped). When a crack occurs this almost always introduces
significant play into the control and for safety reasons the joystick must be repaired or
replaced before the set is used again (see Figure 35). As an older set, the 9Z appears to
be particularly susceptible to this sort of damage through fatigue. As fatigue damage
occurs spontaneously, you should periodically inspect your joysticks for cracks.
Figure 35 Crack in the base of a 9Z joystick adding significant play to the control
For this type of crack, you can cheaply replace the stick and base with a new part (see
the procedure in Section 3.4.2). However, one simple way of preventing or repairing
stick cracks is to add a collet to the joystick (see Figure 36). If you fly aggressive
aerobatics which cause you to really bang the sticks of your 9Z from corner to corner, I’d