Steel Guitar Builder

I have my rails drilled out for the cross shafts, I am installing 4 cross shafts for 4 pedals, each cross shaft fits nicely and rotate very easily, but my question is when I put the rails and the cross shafts into the guitar do I need to put a pin cap on the ends of the shafts opposite side of rails where the rods has some part of the cross shaft stick through to keep them from coming out on one end or the other, or does the apron keep them in, the rods move back and forth in and out of the rails right now since the rail is not installed into the guitar. Steve B.

Difficult to be sure without a picture or sketch, Steve, but I'm tempted to say you will be fine. There is little going on in a steel which creates axial (end to end) thrust or movement on those cross-shafts. Everyone builds in a tad of end float anyway, say up to 1mm, just to prevent it binding.