What's new
Van's Air Force

Don't miss anything! Register now for full access to the definitive RV support community.

What to leave out in finishing kit???

alpinelakespilot2000

Well Known Member
I'm about ready to order the finish kit.

1. I don't yet know for sure what kind of 0-320 I will be putting in. (Always waiting for a "deal.") What do I do about engine mounts? Is this something Van's will let me hold off on until later? I'm sure there must be others out there who were in the same position.

2. Anything I should leave out of the finish kit? (For example, I've heard the tubes and tires Van's ships with the kits are pretty worthless, so I'm planning to buy some Dessler retreads and Michelin airstopper tubes on my own.) Anything else I should think of having Van's delete?

Thanks.
 
Steve,
I would suggest omitting the heavy, expensive, and clunky stock rubber brake hoses. You can buy nice SS braided Teflon lined hoses for less money and weight from Pegasus Auto Racing Products. If you intend to use 1/4 turn fasteners for the cowl, you can omit the wide piano hinges.
You can also save money on the wheels/calipers/rotors/bearings. Most of the VariEze and LongEze crowd have upgraded (their opinion) their brakes to Matco. The VariEzes use the same wheel/rotor/caliper/bearing setup we do. You want:
Wheel/rotor/bearings model 40-78 (These are Cleveland #s)
Calipers model 30-09
Pads model 66-106

Try to make sure you get the grease seal spacers with the wheels. They came with the stock Cleveland brakes they originally purchased. I got a NOS (new old stock) set for $300 from an Eze builder. Vans price was $540 last year. Put your request on the Canard Aviator list. You'll get at least 10 offers to sell. Hold out for new.
A large number of builder also recommend omiting the empennage intersection fairing. Often it is easier to fabricate from scratch than to get the Vans item to fit.
Charlie Kuss
 
I wonder if anyone has "pieced together" their whole finish kit from various suppliers. I was thinking it might be a little cheaper and it would be great just not to throw down 5K all at once as well.
 
motor mounts?

am at the cusp of finishing kit ordering, and have two questions. . . 1) as above, can you leave out the motor mounts (no idea what will go under the hood yet) and, 2) why is it so stinking expensive? looking at the list on van's website, it appears that you basically get wheels/brakes, cowl, engine mount and canopy. where does the other $4K go?
 
Since I ordered a "non-standard" finish kit (deleted cowl) I received the invoice that had engine mount as a separate line item -- and it was $1,000 even... (just the mount) :)
 
Finish kit options

I didn't order the complete finish kit instead I purchase pieces that I needed to finish the kit. Some changes I made include the hoses where I opted to make my own rather then buy the premade ones. This would give me the best fit given where various components are mounted and lower cost. The same with the throttle cable, where I would wait till you can be sure of your cable routing and what the final length would be. Electrical wiring is all mine and I had no need for the wiring kit. Look at each option and decide if you need it now of perhaps it might be better to look at that option at a later date perhaps from a different vendor.
 
Radomir said:
Since I ordered a "non-standard" finish kit (deleted cowl) I received the invoice that had engine mount as a separate line item -- and it was $1,000 even... (just the mount) :)

Radomir,
I realized that I intended to omit a LOT of parts from the 8A finish kit. I also learned that when you omit items from a kit, Vans only allows 75% credit for the omitted parts. I decided that the best course of action for me, was to simply order the finish kit items I DID want, ala cart.
My 8A motor mount, nose gear leg, and nose gear weldment (aluminum weldment which holds the nose wheel/axle assembly to the gear leg) for $1,025. These items were nicely crated and shipped via UPS to SE Florida for about $45, which I felt was cheap.
On recommendation from several knowledgeable mechanics, I will forgo purchasing the VIP brand rubber engine mounts that Vans sells. I will spend the extra money to buy the genuine Lord brand mounts, as these do a much better job of damping the engine's vibrations.
I suggest you obtain a copy of the packing list for your model of RV. Go through the list and omit items which you don't want. Simply order the remaining parts, ala cart. Also consider what time frame you need various part in. I plan to delay ordering my canopy frame and related installation hardware till I am almost ready to install those items. This saves me cash layout and it also means I don't have to store large, bulky parts which would only be in my way for many months.
Vans gets over $900 for the 8A cowl. I bought mine from another builder who decided to build a super 8 (IO-540). I paid $500 for a new cowl. I also saved on shipping, as I was able to drive up and pick the cowl up myself.
You can save considerable cash if you are resourceful and willing to be an opertunistic shopper. ;)
Charlie Kuss
 
briand said:
I wonder if anyone has "pieced together" their whole finish kit from various suppliers. I was thinking it might be a little cheaper and it would be great just not to throw down 5K all at once as well.

This is EXACTLY what I am doing. I have more time than money, so I shop for everything. I've saved considerable cash by purchasing items from folks here on this list. SE Florida is a LONG way from Oregon. Any large item I can find cheaper and closer saves me money purchasing the item & shipping it.
Charlie Kuss
 
Call Van's, they can email you a parts list for the specific finish kit. I left so much out that I just ordered the parts I needed. Did the same thing with the firewall forward kit.
 
Fairings Etc upper/lower mains and nose wheel

Going through the 'what to exclude/include' on the finish kit process myself.

Substituting the empenage fairing with the Fairings Etc. unit seems pretty common. What about the intersection fairings for the uppper/lower mains and the nose wheel?

Thanks,
/\/elson
RV-7A
 
ww2planes said:
Is there a list of what is in the finish kit somewhere on the website?
It depends on what model, of course, but I made a spreadsheet when my finish kit arrived and I even got it down to every item in every bag. The reason is I have a column there for where I PUT all the stuff when I inventoried and stored it (when you build slowbuild -- REALLY slowbuild --you realize that the memory doesn't always serve you well in this regard.

It's in the "packing list" section of the Yahoogroups RV site.

There's also a bunch of lists (but not for the finishing kit) in the file area one level up.
 
ptrotter said:
Charlie,


How do you determine the correct part number for the Lord mounts?

Paul,
For the majority of RVs (those with Type 1 Dynafocal mounts) you want part number J9613-40 You need four of these.
Charlie
 
Brakes..

Hah!

Found another thread I could weigh in on. Seriously.. if you are building a -A, check this out as well as the other BRAKE threads.

My Crusade..

A later BRAKEs one..

If you are building a -A, scratch the std brakes and buy something bigger.

John
 
Back
Top