Brakes / Wheels

See also Parking Brake.

Brakes / Wheels

The stock Vans brakes are fine however aftermarket brakes promise improvements (concerning heat, braking action and weight). They usually come as a complete set (wheel, disk and brake calipers).

The Vans stock nose wheel used to have an axle that was hard to adjust which made most builders order an aftermarket nose wheel but since September 2021, Vans has changed the design and started shipping Matco wheels with a newly designed axle.

Companies supplying aftermarket Brake / Wheel sets

• Beringer (known for high quality and being lightweight; a good investment, but it is a big one; also replacement brake pads are reported 4/2022 to be close to $100 per wheel)
• Grove (known for better master cylinders, the stock ones hang after some years)
• Matco (known for higher brake action than stock)
  
  Above picture shows the stock main wheel on the left and the Matco wheel with 3 piston brake on the right.
  
  The Matco brake disk is 10 mm closer to the rim compared to the stock wheels (to make room for the stronger brake cylinders but also for improved spacing of the hot disks to the fiberglass fairings).
  See also this video on the Matco brakes and their installation: YouTube video by "a leaf on the wind"
  See also this video on the Matco brakes vs. the stock brakes: YouTube video by Base Leg Aviation (Vic Syracuse)

Improvements to Brake Pedal and stock Master Cylinder

• See this bulletin: Matco, Diagnosing Uncommanded Brake Drag.
  If the master cylinder doesn't fully retract, the valve to the reservoir doesn't open and the pads can't push back the pucks.
• Single axis instead of bolts on each side (from McMaster.com)
  • 8 x 9440T63 High-Temperature Dry-Running Flanged Sleeve Bearing, 841 Bronze, For 3/16" Shaft Diameter
  • 1 x 8893K178 Tight-Tolerance Oil-Hardening O1 Tool Steel Rod, 0.1875" Diameter, 3 Feet Long
  • 8 x 6432K19 Set Screw Shaft Collar For 3/16" Diameter, Zinc-Plated 1215 Carbon Steel
• Return spring for master cylinder (from McMaster.com)
  • 8 x 6389K625 Light Duty Dry-Running Nylon Sleeve Bearing, 1/16" Thick Flange, 3/8" Shaft, 1/2" Housing Id, 3/8" Long
  • 4 x 9657K432 Compression Spring, 3" Long, 0.6" Od, 0.51" Id (they come in packs of 6, don't order 4 packs)
  • 4 x 6462K14 Set Screw Shaft Collar for 3/8" Diameter

Detailed writeup on the procedure with pictures:

• Rocketman's Build Log
• Improvements: If you press the brass bushings into the pedals, they will not necessarily align as the pedals are not exatly 90 degrees and drilling is only exactly to a limited degree. It seems better to give the bushings some play and cement them in with JB Weld while the shaft is temporarily installed.
  
• Good drilling results for the bushings were obtained when using a .311 (7.9mm) reamer threaded through the hole on the other side (the .311 reamer is part of the RV-10 Cleaveland tool kit as it is needed during the main gear installation).
• Final result: