Studying geometry of brake pedals. I tried several combinations of seat and rudder bar positions and found that with the seat all the way aft, the pedals all the way forward, and the downtubes of the left pedal more or less parallel with the firewall, the fit is fairly comfortable but the pedals could stand to be a bit further forward. One workaround would be to use longer links between the rudder pedals and cables. Another might be to consider the “almost a 14” mod, but I’ve been trying to avoid that due to the work involved, and I’m not positive it’s doable in a tip-up airplane anyway.
Calculated that the 3/8-inch adjustment in the master cylinder clevis will give about an inch of adjustment in the range of positions of the top of the brake pedal. Assuming 1/2-inch edge on the attachment of the brake pedal to the master cylinder, the longest adjustment of the clevis puts the pedal WAY too far aft (too close to the pilot), and the shortest adjustment puts it about right if the pilot has his toes low enough and the full throw of the rudder bar is close to the 2-1/4 inches I’ve calculated. Theoretically I could move the clevis hole 1/8-inch closer to the edge of the attach bracket and move the pedal about 3/8 inch closer to the firewall, but I’d want ask Vans about that. Another option that I think I’ll try is to simulate pedal extensions so the pedal doesn’t have to be so far back. I think I’ll also take a look at a couple of RV-6As on the field and a -7 at another nearby airport and see how they were done.
