Free your swash, check your washout linkage

We all know that a free-moving swash is a critical element of a good-flying helicopter. I have worked with all my links to make sure they move smoothly and don't bind. I thought I had a good swash as I have sized all the links and made sure they moved smoothly by squeezing them gently with pliers while on the ball.


However, when I took off the head to replace the main shaft (damaged in my previous crash), I noticed that the swash was quite sticky. I couldn't figure it out, I could move all my linkages easily with my fingers. Then, I isolated the movement on the washout linkages (part HH5003B-3) and they were very tight.

So, out came the ball sizer. Now my swash is truly smooth.