Rudder pedal weldment issue?

[mcencula]

Howdy,

I'm working on fitting my rudder pedals and noticed that the weldments don't seem to line up. Here you can see that with the first and second pedal well aligned, the third and fourth are out of alignment by about 1/4 inch:

One of the weldments seems to be off by about 1/8 inch one way:

And the other is off by about 1/8 inch the other way:

Is this normal or should I be talking to Van's about getting these weldments replaced?

Thanks

 

[Wes Hays]

Mike,
I just went out and checked my rudder pedals on the -7A. They do not line up perfectly either. I didn't check the ones on my -6A but they were probably the same way.

One of my building buddies probably said it best: "Nobody ever built a perfect airplane or flew a perfect mission." He also had to keep reminding me throughout the building process that building an airplane was a series of compromises.

In this case, I say build on. I don't think it will make one twit of a difference.

Just my $.02.

 

[rv6rick]

Hi Mike,
I think you should definately buy new rudder pedal weldments.....I'll take your old crooked ones for my side by side Rocket since you won't be needing them !

I understand your concerns....and lack of quality control from the parts supplier. The good news is you won't notice it when sitting in the plane.

I figure you'll be flying sometime in 2012 ......see you at the next UFO buddy!

Howdy,

I'm working on fitting my rudder pedals and noticed that the weldments don't seem to line up. Here you can see that with the first and second pedal well aligned, the third and fourth are out of alignment by about 1/4 inch:
One of the weldments seems to be off by about 1/8 inch one way:
And the other is off by about 1/8 inch the other way:
Is this normal or should I be talking to Van's about getting these weldments replaced?

Thanks

 

[mike109g6]

Weldments

Howdy,

I'm working on fitting my rudder pedals and noticed that the weldments don't seem to line up. Here you can see that with the first and second pedal well aligned, the third and fourth are out of alignment by about 1/4 inch:

One of the weldments seems to be off by about 1/8 inch one way:

And the other is off by about 1/8 inch the other way:

Is this normal or should I be talking to Van's about getting these weldments replaced?

Thanks

Mike,
They are fine. Your elevator weldments will not be exact either. You have to remember that RV's are not RC or plastic models. No two are exactly the same nor are the jigged parts. Van's quality control is for the most part EXCELLENT and they don't normally ship anything that is BAD. Mistakes do happen and I have personally found them to be Outstanding in taking care of their mistakes. Don't let minor imperfections hang you up and not build-build on.
Mike H 9A/8A

 

[Vlad]

Just measured mine

Tolerances +/- 1/8" almost as on your picture. I have only one side brakes and didn't pay much attention first. Very difficult to see without measuring.

 

[roee]

This amount of slop is, unfortunately, typical of the rudder pedals and other welded components in the kit. Fortunately though, in this case, it's fairly inconsequential. Center your pedals such that the misalignment will be evenly split between the pilot side and copilot side, and it will be hardly noticeable. Don't worry about it and move on. Save your energy for when you receive a misaligned landing gear mount... It sucks, but you have to choose your battles. Choose the ones that matter most.

 

[mcencula]

Thanks!

OK, I'm going with the pedals as-is. Thanks everyone for the responses and taking the time to check your setups.