The bellcrank in the picture looks like the same one in mine. The circled part (control horn bearing) I didn't get in my kit. Did you leave the pushrod a super tight fit on the bellcrank or did you loosen it up some?
Chris
I built it with the stuff it came with. Anything that was changed (like the bellcrank) was noted. I even used the CA type hinges because I have used them in the past and they have performed well for me - but I understand others are not so willing to try them. There was a problem with the motor mount for the electric so that was redesigned with an integrated air scoop and the nose ring was repositioned. Randy Smith got the nitro fuselage and discovered that the pipe tunnel was wrong, so he directed how to fix that. As you have probably discovered the wood work is superb. The guys who bought the ARC's have probably noticed that the cap strips for the rib are laser cut and notched into the LE and TE sheeting - it looks like the sheeting is assembled off the wing, sanded, then applied to the wing in a single piece. The leading edge radius is also very well done - certainly a huge improvement over the earlier ARF's/ARCs. They did a good job with the CL hardware installation too. I think these are the best ARFs/ARCs yet.
I did not make the pushrod hole especially tight or loose in the bellcrank. The bellcrank is about 3/8" thick so I would expect that it will last a log time without wearing loose. I know some folks like to use a ball link there. If I was doing that I would tap the bellcrank, use a steel washer for the ball link to set on, screw the bolt into the bellcrank then back it up with a lock not. However I would also make sure the link cleared the joiner spars.
Everybody has their own preferences, you started this thread asking if you needed to change the bellcrank. My answer would be no you do not NEED too, however I cannot/will not bash anyone who changed out to Tom Morris hardware, that aint bad stuff either!