Spent the day working with the control column mounts to eliminate the binding . Tried numerous shims in various places but ended up with a .044 shim under the forward control column mount and a .064" washer under the aft control column mount at the two forward holes. With this setup and all bolts torqued there was no binding and the column moves side to side freely. For the final configuration I'll fabricate shims to go under the forward part of the aft mount. The shims will likely be riveted to the floor so they can't be left out if the mount is removed and replaced.
I also fabricated a tool that can be inserted into the rod ends to keep them straight while their nuts are being tightened. This prevents binding.
I removed the cockpit floors, installed the pilots' sticks and the push rod that connects them.
