Landing Gear And Firewall Forward

Van's Aircraft offers several engines that can be used on the RV14A and RV14 aircraft. We will be using the Lycoming YIO-390 A3B6 standard engine of 210 H.P.

It took 1 year, 3 months to receive the finish kit which includes the engine mount, brakes, and landing gear parts.

Let's get started and put the fuselage onto the landing gear!

As per step three, on page 40A-02, of the builder's manual and using the dimensions provided in figure two, the (U-01405) gear attachment angles have to be fabricated.

They are fabricated from this piece of 2024-T351 aluminum angle stock which is 1 1/2"x 1 1/4"x 1/4" thick and roughly 15 3/16" long.

Each angle brace is 7 9/16" long and as you can see from the lay-out lines there isn't going to be much room for messing up the first cut to separate the angle into two.

*Measure twice, cut once!

I used our bandsaw to cut the aluminum angle stock in half.

My bandsaw has a thin gauged metal cutting blade on it, still, there is only about a 1/16" space between the two pieces that will be fabricated so be careful!

Okay, the first cut is done now and next a diagonal line has to be laid out on each piece and cut.

*Now that there are two pieces cut from the aluminum angle stock one is going to be (U-01405-L) and the other is (U-01405-R).

*Be careful to observe the diagram in figure 2, on page 40A-02 when when drawing the diagonals because you don't want make the cut on the wrong side!

I cut the diagonals using the bandsaw and cut a little short of the lines and will clean up the pieces with a file.

The file work took a little time but the (U-01405_L and U-01405-R) gear attachment angles are ready to be prepared for priming.

I used some 320 sandpaper, lightly sanded the surfaces, and then washed the parts with acetone.

I primed the (U-01405-L and U-01405-R) gear attachment angles with Tempo A-702 Valspar zinc phosphate self-etching green primer.

Nice!

These are the (U-01404-L and U-01404-R) upper landing gear braces.
They have to be deburred and prepared for priming as per step three, on page 40A-02.

These two braces will be bolted onto the wing spar where they will help support the (U-01401-L and U-01401-R) main landing gear legs.

I noticed some deep milling marks on the (U-01404-L) left upper landing gear brace so I called Van's Aircraft to see if it was okay to use this part.

*The scratches are .003" deep and, given that this is a brace for the main landing gear, I wanted to make sure that the part was sound.

Of course I discovered this on the weekend so I had to wait until Monday for an answer from Van's.

The engineers saw the photographs of the landing gear brace I sent them and said that the scratches were marks from the aluminum mill and weren't a result of any milling and that this (U-01404-L) landing gear brace was sound and that I could still use it.

Out an abundance of caution, I ordered a new (U-01404-L) upper landing gear brace anyway....

I started the deburring process on the (U-01404-R) right upper landing gear brace and preparation for priming as per step three, on page 40A-02 of the builder's manual.

Some light sanding with 320 grit sandpaper and a wash down with acetone and this piece is ready for Priming!

I primed the (U-01404-R) right upper landing gear brace with Tempo A-702 Valspar zinc phosphate self-etching green primer.

The (U-01403) gear attachment bars were next to be prepared for priming.
They were lightly sanded and then washed with acetone.

The (U-01403) gear attachment bars "sandwich" the (U-01401-L and U01401-R) main landing gear legs between themselves and the (U-01402) lower gear braces.

Ready for priming!

I primed the two (U-01403) gear attachment bars with (Tempo) A-702 Valspar zinc phosphate self-etching green primer.

As per step one, on page 40A-04, figure one and two of the builder's manual, locate the (F-14129AB and F-14129CD) gear shims and separate them into individual parts.

*Note that the (F-14129AB) shims are (.016") thick and the (F-14129CD) shims are (.025") thick.

I used the straight cutting shears to make the rough cuts in separating the individual pieces and will use a file to final size and debur the pieces.

These are the (F-14129A and F-14129B) shims.
They are (.016") thick.

I used the straight cutting shears to make the rough cuts in separating the individual pieces and will use a file to final size and debur the pieces.

These are the (F-14129C and F-14129D) shims.
They are (.025") thick.

The (F-14129A and F-14129B) shims have been deburred and labeled.

*Since these are shims, they will not be primed.

The (F-14129C and F-14129D) shims have been deburred and labeled.

*Since these are shims, they will not be primed.

I received the replacement (U-01404-L) upper landing gear brace from Van's Aircraft and thankfully the quality on this one is much better than the first one I received.

*Even this part is listed as being on backorder on the web store, it still arrived in under a week so thanks to Van's!

Here is a side-to-side comparison of the old (U-01404-L) (top of photograph), and the new (U-01404-L) (bottom of photograph).

This is an (U-1002) isolator washer.

*There are two washers provided in the finish kit but only one is to be modified as described in step four, on page 40A-05 of the builder's manual, the second washer is more or less a reserve washer.

As per step four, on page 40A-05 of the builder's manual, and referencing dimensions in figure two, excess material is to be removed from the (U-1002) isolator washer.

The washer, if placed directly over the diagram on the page, is pretty closely matched in size of the diagram but I elected to place some tape over the center of the washer and lay out the cut out lines just to be sure of an accurate cut.

Basically about 1/8" of material will be removed.

The (U-1002) isolator washer is supposed to be able to fit down inside of the (U-01407) elastomer pad as seen in figure one, on page 40A-06 of the builder's manual.

The (U-1002) isolator washer was lightly sanded and prepared for priming.

I primed the (U-1002) isolator washer with Tempo A-702 Valspar zinc phosphate self-etching green primer.

The (U-01404-L) left upper landing gear brace was deburred, the surfaces lightly sanded, and washed with acetone in preparation for priming.

The (U-01404-L) left upper landing gear brace was primed with Tempo A-702 Valspar zinc phosphate self-etching green primer.

This (WD-1031) axle flange will be used in step two, on page 40A-07 of the builder's manual, as a guide to drill a (.313", which is 5/16") hole into the spindle of the (U-01406) nose gear leg.

I need to clean up the edges of the (WD-1031) axle flange and remove some of the excess powder coating so that it will easily slide into place over the (U-01406) nose gear leg.

I removed the excess powder coating on this (WD-1031) axle flange.

*There are some burrs on the inside of the pre-drilled holes of this flange that need to be removed, so make sure to inspect them on your piece....they would have definitely scratched the spindle of the (U-01406) nose gear leg!

The landing gear wheels will be painted soon so I made this stand to place the rims on while they are being painted. It has two pads with "lazy susan" hardware installed so that the wheel rim can be rotated while painting.

As per step 1, on page 40A-05, and figure 1 of the builder's manual, several holes have to have powder coat removed from the (U-01406) nose gear leg.
This hole on the front is a drain hole and I used a #40 dril bit to remove the powder coat.

These holes on the (U-01406) nose gear leg need the powder coat removed too. I used 3/8", 7/16" drill bits as well as some sandpaper to remove the powder coat.

*Be sure to get ALL of the powder coat off and dry fit the holes with the bolts that secure this to the (FF-01400) engine mount and the (U-01416) nose gear link assembly or else you will find yourself having to do this step twice.....ask me how I know!

The (WD-1031) axle flange needs to be slid onto the spindle of the (U-01406) nose gear leg and as per step 2, on page 40A-07, referencing figure 1, final drill the hole to (.313") using the axle flange holes as a guide.

This is the (WD-1031) axle flange.

I used a (.313") reamer to final size the hole, this keeps the hole perfectly round.

Be careful to note the proper orientation of the (WD-1031) axle flange on the (U-01406) nose gear leg.

The flat (straight) edge of the (WD-1031) is supposed to face forward as indicated in figure 1 on page 40A-07.

I taped the ends of the (U-01406) nose gear leg so that the threads and powder coat would not be damaged because the spindle needs to be sanded and polished next.

As per step 2, on page 40A-07, and figure 1, the spindle of the (U-01406) nose gear leg was sanded with 320 grit sandpaper and polished.
The (.313") holes were deburred as well.

These are the wheels that come standard with the RV14A kit.
The two main landing gear wheels are manufactured by Grove and are 500x5 wheels (Grove number 55-1M), (Van's number U-55-204). They are painted at the factory and are quite nice.

The nose wheel is manufactured by Matco Mfg and is a 500x5 wheel (Matco number NW501.25), (Van's number U NW501.25). It is unpainted so it is recommended that it be painted.

This is what the back side of the wheels look like.

This is what the sides look like.

The wheels need to be disassembled in order that the tubes and tires be mounted to them, I am starting with the Matco (NW501.25) since it will need to be prepared for painting before I mount the tires.
The lock nuts require 7/16" sockets to remove them.

The Matco (NW501.25) nose wheel has been disassembled and it should be noted that the wheel bearings will need to be repacked before using the nose wheel.

Matco NW501.25 disassembled.

These are the Matco wheel bearings that are to be cleaned and repacked with wheel grease.

I cleaned the Matco nose wheel with soap and water and scuffed the surfaces with red Scotch Brite pad in preparation for painting with epoxy primer.

I assembled a small paint booth in order to paint the Matco nose wheel. Nothing fancy here, just a small booth to paint some small items.

I am using the homemade paint stand to paint the Matco nose wheel with epoxy primer.

I am using SPI (Southern Polyurethanes Inc.) (6610-4) gray primer.
I really like this primer, it is mixed 1:1 with activator and goes on smooth.
I am only painting the front halves of the wheels today I'll prime the back halves tomorrow.

This is the (U-01430) nose wheel fork. I need to get it ready for priming. I am using several grits of sandpaper to get it ready, starting out with 150 grit and ending up with 400 grit.

As you can see there are a lot of curves, it's going to take awhile to get it ready....

I plugged up the holes with dowel rods so that I didn't get any dust and grit inside them.

I painted the Matco nose wheel rims with VHT high temp engine "cast aluminum" silver (SP995) enamel.
I used this paint because it was the closest, "off the shelf", rattle can paint that matched the Grove wheels color.

I have used the VHT paint before, it lasts pretty well, and from a distance it's a pretty close match and of course, the wheels pants will cover most of the wheel anyways.

Back to sanding the (U-01430) nose wheel fork.....

Finally! The (U-01430) nose wheel fork is ready for priming, after I washed it with soap and water and a light scuffing with a red Scotch Brite pad.

I primed the top half of the (U-01430) nose wheel fork with SPI (6610-4) gray epoxy primer.

I finished priming the (U-01430) nose wheel fork with SPI (6610-4) gray primer.

The (U-01401-L and U-01401-R) left and right main landing gear legs had some chips in the powder coat so I sanded them and primed them with the SPI primer.

I topcoated the (U-01430) nose wheel fork with UTECH 500 Insignia White (S60385) paint.

UTECH 500 (an AzkoNobel product) is a two-component, urethane single-stage topcoat paint.
This is the first time that I have used this paint and it was recommended by another kitplane builder and I have to say that I really like it. It goes on smoothly, it doesn't need any thinner, and it levels out with a nice even coat with virtually no orange peel.

I want to paint the (U-01407) elastomer pad, (U-00003) bracket mounts, (W/0-2211252 20-211-1R) and (W/02112521 020-211-1R) brake torque plates so I am lightly sanding them in preparation for priming.

I primed the above parts and the spots on the main landing gear legs with SPI (6610-4) gray primer.

The parts have all been primed and now it's time to topcoat them with Insignia White paint.

I painted the (U-01401-L and U-01401-R) main landing gear legs, the (JU-01407) elastomer pad, the (U-00003) bracket mounts, the (W/0-211252 020-211-1R and W/0-21125221 020-211-1R) brake torque plates with UTECH 500 (S60385) Insignia White paint.

They turned out pretty nice!

I want to paint the lower half of the (U-01406) nose gear leg Insignia White so that it matches the rest of the landing gear parts.
The factory powder coat color is a shade off from the final color so that is why I'm going to paint it.
All it takes is some scuffing with a red Scotch Brite pad and it will be ready for final topcoating.

I painted the (U-01406) nose gear leg with UTECH 500 (S60385) Insignia White.

*So far, I have been getting great coverage with only two coats of paint.

Here is another view.

As per step 1, on page 40A-02, figure 1, there are six holes that the (FF-01400) engine mount bolts to the airframe at the firewall. These need to be final sized to (.375").

*There is a note in the instructions that says to be careful to ream the six holes perpendicular to the firewall.

I made a jig with a steel bushing in the center so that when I reamed the six (.375") holes in the firewall there would be no chance to drill an un-perpendicular hole.
As it turns out, the holes were already final sized, but be sure to check them in case this isn't just a happy coincedence.

The mounting holes in the (FF-01400) engine mount DID have to be final sized to (.375") so the homemade drilling jig did come in handy.

I loosely bolted the (FF-01400) engine mount to the firewall assembly using the hardware called out in figure 1, on page 40A-02.

*It is going to take two people to final torque these nuts so I'll get that done on the next work session....

I want to prime the bolts that will be used in the wheel and brake assemblies.

These are the (NAS 1304-29) bolts that are used in the main landing gear to attach the (U-00003) bracket mount, (U-00009) axle, and (W/0-2112522 020-211-1R and W/0-2112521 020-211-1R) brake torque plates together.

These are the bolts that are used in the following: (AN5-21A) bolt that is used to secure the (WD-1031)) axle flange to the (U-01406) nose gear leg, (AN7-21) bolt that is used to secure the (U-01416) nose gear link assembly to the (U-01406) nose gear leg, and the (AN6-65A) bolt that is used to secure the nose wheel and tire assembly and the (U-00024) nose wheel axle together.

The bolts were primed with SPI (6610-4) gray primer.

The bolts were primed with SPI (6610-4) gray primer.

This is the (U-00024) nose wheel axle.

The (U-00024) nose wheel axle was primed with SPI (6610-4) gray primer.

As per step 2, on page 40A-02, figure 1, I final torqued the (FF-01400) engine mount bolts to a final value of 184 inch/pounds. (170"/lbs. + 14"/lbs. drag = 184"/lbs.

*Torque values for the (AN6) bolts and (AN365-624A) lock nuts are 160-190 inch/pounds according to Van's tech guys.

I put torque seal on the lock nuts after final torque was set.

Each bolt was final torqued and torque seal was applied.

Each bolt was final torqued and torque seal was applied.

Each bolt was final torqued and torque seal was applied.

The main gear axles (U-00009) and attachment bolts are being prepared for priming with epoxy primer.

The (AN6-23) bolts shown here are going to be primed (just the heads); these bolts are used to attach the (U-01406) nose gear leg to the (FF-01400) engine mount.

I am priming the hardware to attach axles to the landing gear with SPI (6610-4) gray primer.

This is a (U-00009) main landing gear axle, it is primed with SPI (6610-4) gray primer.

I later primed the end of the axle, which you will see in the next picture, but both axles will be painted the same way.

The (U-00009) axles were primed with SPI (6610-4) gray primer.

The (U-00009) main landing gear axles, (MS21025-20) nuts, (MS21025-24) nuts, and (AN6-23) bolts were all top coated with UTECH 500 (S60385) Insignia White paint.

It's time to mount the tires and tubes to the wheels.

The tires are Aero Classic 5.00-5 6 Ply Rating Tubetype Type III (AA4D4) tires.

The inner tubes are Aero Classic "Leakguard" butyl rubber 5.00-5 (GL-5067B) inner tubes.

As per step 5, on page, 40A-02, figure 3, the nuts and washers were removed from the Aero Classic "Leakguard" inner tubes.

*I did not use any of this hardware (except the cap) on the nose wheel tire.

Make sure to locate the red dot on each of the tires so that when you mount the inner tubes the valve is located adjacent to this dot.

The inner tubes and also the inside of the tires should be "dusted" with tire talc.

*Don't use baby powder or corn based starch talc because over time moisture can accumulate and will result in clumps and hard pellets which can wear out the inner tubes.

I dust the inner tubes and also the inside of the tires and then "stuff" the inner tube into the tire.

*There might be a blue dot on the tire so make sure that the inner tube is rotated in such a way that the valve stem is adjacent to the red dot. It has been said that the blue dot is the heavy spot of the tire, that is why the valve is located adjacent to the red dot, the lightest spot of the tire.

After the inner tube is placed into the tire I inflated the tire to 25 psi to work out any wrinkles and then deflated the inner tube some (but not fully).

This is the correct position of the inner tube with the valve stem adjacent to the red dot...

To help mount the wheel halves inside of the tire/inner tube I made a jig to hold the halves together while placing the bolts in place. The jig is just a couple pieces of plywood cut to the diameter of the flat spot of the center hub of the wheel and then using a long bolt with two washers clamp everything together to keep all in place.

First, I put the front half of the wheel face down into the tire, making sure not to pinch the inner tube and also making sure that the valve passes through the valve stem hole.

The back half of the wheel was put in place, again making sure that the inner tube wasn't being pinched and that the bolt holes are aligned.

I installed my homemade jig to keep the wheel halves together and from wandering off center. The lock nuts of the wheel bolts were installed, tight, but not fully torqued yet.

With everything in place I slowly inflated the inner tube so that the tire could seat properly around the wheel halves.

Here is what it looks like from the back.

When it looked like the tire was fully seated against the wheel halves, I torqued the lock nuts to the recommended torque which is 90 inch/pounds.

As per step 6, on page 40A-02, the inner tube was slowly inflated to 25 psi, then deflated, and reinflated several times to work out any possible wrinkles and then as per step 7, on page 40A-02, the tire was inflated to the recommended 35 psi with the valve stem core installed.
As per step 8, on page 40A-02, the valve stem and the tire was checked for leaks and the wheel bolts were torque sealed.

Grove mfg. recommends Mobilgrease 28 to repack their wheel bearings so I used it on all of the wheel bearings.

The wheel bearings were cleaned earlier with mineral spirits and dried with compressed air. Now the nose wheel bearing will be repacked with Mobilgrease 28.

I use this grease packing tool, they are pretty common and you can get it online for around $26, it does a nice job. Just place bearing in and press down hard until the grease pops up through the bearings and you're done!

The nose wheel bearings were reinstalled onto the nose wheel rims.

The Grove (55-1M) wheels are next to be disassembled in order to mount the inner tubes and tires.
These wheels are a little more complex than the Matco nose wheel was because these have a more complex wheel bearing assembly and also have a brake disc that is attached to the rims.
The nice thing with these rims are that they are already painted.

This is the back of the Grove (55-1M) wheel. The black section is the brake disc.

This is the Grove manufacturer's tag.

As per step 1, on page 40A-03, figure 2, the wheel bearings were pulled from the wheels paying attention to the order of dismantling so that they can be reassembled in the correct order.

I like to pull each component, wipe it off, and flip it face down on a piece of paper towel, stacking each part in descending order of disassembly (top-to-bottom) so that when reinstalling I can work backwards (bottom-to-top) until the whole bearing is put back into place on the wheel.

The retainer clip (snap ring) is the first to come off, it is held in a grove and can be removed with a small flat bladed screw driver, but they do make a special tool if you are so inclined to get one....

The part to come off next is a large flat washer.

The felt grease seal comes off next.

The second large washer comes off next.

Finally we get to the actual wheel bearing, it gets pulled and then cleaned.

The wheel bearing removed, (on one side), there are two per wheel.

This is what I was saying earlier, it's how I disassemble the parts in order, (top to bottom), flipped over (face down), and placed in descending order of disassembly.

I wiped off the old grease from the rim where the wheel bearing was.

I cleaned the wheel bearing with mineral spirits and then dried it with compressed air.

Now on to the back side of the wheel and remove the second wheel bearings and parts.

The disassembly is just like the front side was.

The retainer (snap ring) comes off first. The glare in this photograph hides the ends of the clip, but if you look close you can see that it is just like the one that was on the front side.

The large flat washer is the next to come off.

The grease seal felt comes off next.

The second large flat washer comes off next. The wheel bearing will be pulled out after the washer.

Here are the front and back wheel bearing assemblies lined up in order so that they can be reassembled later.

I cleaned the second wheel bearing with mineral spirits and dried it with compressed air as well.

I wiped out all of the old grease from the wheel rim where the wheel bearing was.

Next, disassemble the wheel halves....

Here the wheel halves have been separated.

The bolts and nuts are 7/16" and the tolerances on the back half of the wheel is really tight due to the brake disc being there.

The wheel bearing parts and the wheel through bolts.

The bolt is a (AN4-23A), the washers are (AN960-416), and the lock nuts are (AN365-428A) according to what Grove mfg tech support has told me.

As I said before, the tolerances for the bolt heads on the back of the wheel half is very close. In order to be able to use a socket to loosen and take apart the wheel halves I had to grind the sides of a 7/16" socket so that I could "clear" the side walls of the brake disc.

Here's what the socket looks like from the end.

As per step 3, on page 40A-03, the Aero Classic inner tube was "dusted" with tire talc as well as the inside of the Aero Classic tire.

The inner tube was placed inside of the tire making sure that the valve stem was adjacent to the red dot on the tire.

The wheel half was mounted face down into place making sure not to pinch the inner tube and also ensuring that the valve stem was placed correctly through the valve stem hole and the valve stem grommet in the wheel half and that it was still adjacent to the red dot on the tire.

Just like when the nose wheel tire was mounted, the back wheel half and the brake disc was placed onto the front rim half and using the jig, (described earlier), to hold everything in place, the tire through bolts were installed.

The lock nuts were tightened, but not fully torqued until the inner tube inflation/deflation cycle was completed.

As per step 4, on page 40A-03, the inner tube was slowly inflated to 25 psi, then deflated and re-inflated a couple of times to work out any possible wrinkles in the tube.

As per step, 5 and 6, on page 40A-03, the tire was inflated to the recommended 40 psi, the valve stem core was installed and inspected for leaks and the tire was inspected for leaks and proper seating around the rim.

The through bolts were final torqued to the recommended 90 inch/pounds and torque sealed.

The wheel bearings will be repacked with grease and installed shortly....

As per step 3, on page 40A-03, the Aero Classic inner tube of the remaining main gear tire was "dusted" with tire talc as well as the inside of the Aero Classic tire making sure to align the valve stem of the inner tube with the red dot on the tire.

The inner tube was partially inflated and deflated.

Back to the previous tire, time to repack the wheel bearings with grease and install them....

The first thing you see when opening the wheel kit from Grove (kit: 55-204) is this note to repack the wheel bearings.

This is the tool that I use to repack wheel bearings, you saw it before when repacking the nose wheel bearing....

Just place the wheel bearing, cone side down, into the tool and press hard until the grease forces its way up through the bearings.....easy peasy!

Next, reinstall the wheel bearings onto the rims.

The bearings were repacked and reinstalled onto the front side of the Grove wheel hub just as described earlier and as per step 8, on page 40A-03.

The bearings were repacked and installed onto the back side of the Grove wheel hub as described earlier and as per step 8, on page 40A-03.

The second Grove wheel assembly was disassembled just like described on the previous wheel but this time I ran into a problem....good news though everything eventually worked out fine.

The bearings and all of the parts were removed just like before.

The old grease was cleaned out of the hub centers.

The wheel halves were disassembled.

The wheel halves were re-assembled just like before but this time when I tightened the through bolts this one would not tighten, no way no how!

I suspect a stripped nut or bolt....

The finish on the Grove rims is really nice so in order to remove the lock nut, which I suspect is stripped, I made these aluminum protector plates to protect the paint and rim metal.

*If you look in the background you can see the nut that I eventually was able to remove.

I held the protector plates in place with blue tape and good old duck tape!

I mostly used a hack saw to cut through the sides of the (AN365-428A) lock nut.

The cut gets deeper, it's a tough nut to crack haha!

Still working on the removal of a stripped nut and bolt. I mentioned it before, this is a (AN4-23A) through bolt. I am cutting 180° opposite the first cut as well to get a clean split of the nut off of the bolt.

Finally after about 10 hours of work I got the lock nut removed. It took longer than I thought it would but it was tight quarters to work in and I didn't want to do anything extreme to get the nut off.

This is the (AN365-428A) lock nut that was removed.

This is the (AN4-23A) through bolt that was removed, it's pretty evident where the bolt was stripped. This bolt didn't even make it to final torquing, the nut just spun around without very much wrench pressure.

I cleaned the area around where the bolt was very thorughly before removing the bolt, don't want to get any dust down inside of the tire!

Replaced the (AN4-23A) bolt, (AN960-416) washers, and (AN356-428A) lock nut on the Grove wheel.
The nut was final torqued to the recommended 90 inch/pounds and torque sealed.

As per step 4, on page 40A-03, inflated and deflated the inner tube several times to ensure the tube was not wrinkled.
As per step 5, on page 40A-03 reinstalled the valve stem core and inflated the tire to 40 psi.

As per step 6, on page 40A-03, checked the valve stem for any leaks and the tire for proper seating.
As per step 7, on page 40A-03, repacked the wheel bearings with Mobilgrease 28 and as per step 8, reinstalled the bearings, washers, grease felts, and snap rings.

As per step 9, on page 40A-03, figure 3, installed the (U-01404-L and U-01404-R) left and right upper gear braces and the (BUSHING-AL.377x.75x1.6875) aluminum bushings using the hardware called out in figure three to the Center Section Assembly.

This is the (U-01404-R) right upper gear brace.

This is the (BUSHING-AL.377x.75x1.6875) aluminum bushing on the right side of the fuselage.
The (AN3-6A) bolts were final torqued to 42 inch/pounds (28"/lbs + 14"/lbs drag= 42"/lbs.) and torque sealed.
The (AN6) bolts were torqued to 184 inch/pounds (170"/lbs. + 14"/lbs. drag = 184"/lbs.) and torque sealed.

This is the (U-01404-L) left upper gear brace, the (AN3 and AN6) bolts that connect this to the Center Section Assembly can clearly be seen.

The (AN6) bolts were torqued to 184 inch/pounds and torque sealed. The (AN3-6A) bolts were torqued to 42 inch/pounds and torque sealed.

(AN365-624A) lock nuts attached to the (AN6) bolts.

(AN365-624A) lock nuts attached to the (AN6) bolts.

(AN365-624A) lock nuts attached to the (AN6) bolts.

(MS21042-3) metal lock nuts attach to the (AN3-6A) bolts.

This section of the builder's manual, (Section 40) has been a challenge for me.
It is time to install the landing gear and the first thing that I had to do was to build a set of saw horses so that I could raise the fuselage up in order to get the landing gear into position without hitting the ground. The pad I had the fuselage sitting on up until now was perfect for working inside the baggage bin and cockpit without having to climb a step ladder but now, I need more ground clearance!

*I eventually had to raise the fuselage yet again because there still wasn't enough clearance to get the tires installed....you might notice the extensions I had to construct in later photos to raise the saw horses.

Ultimately the front saw horse needed to be 27" tall, the saw horse in the aft baggage bin area had to be 24 3/8" tall, and the tail saw horse had to be 31 1/4" tall.

UP FRONT WARNING:
The (U-01401-L and U-01401-R) left and right main landing gear legs can not be installed without filing and adjustments as they come straight from Van's Aircraft, so be prepared to do some FILING!

The tech guys at Van's will even tell you this. Apparently the manufacturing process of the (U-01401-L and U01401-R) left and right main landing gear legs requires heating and bending processes that will cause the edges of the landing gear to increase in width and thickness. It is acceptable to file down the edges to achieve proper fit.

The problem is mostly that the (U-01401) main gear leg as provided will not fit into the "notch" of the (U-01402) lower gear brace and therefore will require filing in order for it fit properly. Be ready to repeatedly slide the main gear legs in and out as the filing and fitting goes forward.
I found that the right main gear leg fit much better than the left gear leg, and it seems, that other builders have had the same experience, of course that is probably just a coincedence.

*I found it handy to order an extra set of (NAS1306-22 and NAS1306-19) close tolerance bolts; when you are finally happy with the final fit, use these new bolts for the final install and it also helps to keep these in the freezer for a few days before using them. It is a very tight fit for these bolts and freezing them shrinks them enough to make them slide into place better.

As per step 4, on page 40A-04, start out by sliding the (U-01401-L and U-01401-R) left and right main gear legs through the bottom of the fuselage, aligning the hole (where the red arrow is pointing) in the top of the gear leg with the hole in the (U-01404-L and U-01404-R) upper gear braces as shown in figure 4, and slide the (NAS1306-22) bolt just far enough (barely sticking out through the main landing gear hole) to hold it up in place.
If the bolt sticks out as much as you see in this picture then, if you are doing a final install, you will not be able to install the (U-01405-L and U-01405-R) gear attachment angles as called for in step 3, on page 40A-04, but for intial fitting purposes this will be okay.

I used some shims at the bottom of the gear leg to help hold it up in an approximate final position as I marked out trim lines for filing the gear leg to fit into the "notch" of the (U-01402) lower gear brace. I used a fine tip sharpie to mark out my trim lines.

While it is possible to do this trial fitting on your own, it helps out quite a bit if you have some help sliding the gear up through the bottom of the fuselage and shimming the bottom of the leg, it's kind of heavy and that's a far reach!

I used a heavy file to file the sides of the ()-01401-L and U-01401-R) left and right main landing gear legs. The metal is dense and quite hard so a light file is not going to remove much material. I avoided using a grinder because I didn't want to build up much heat in the grinding process.

This is the (U-01401-L) left main landing gear leg. I didn't just file on one side of the gear leg, I removed excess material on the forward and aft gear leg sides so that there was a symmetrical close fit.

This is what it looks like, I'm still not done with the fit as it will take a few more "fits" before the gear would rest in the "notch" of the (U-01402) lower gear brace.

You can see the dark spot in the side of the gear leg it's a low spot and the shiny exposed metal has to be filed down even more to meet that spot. If you look closely there is a slight "crown" in the edge here and it has to be flat before a nice fit is achieved.

Here you can see that the metal has been filed down to the low spot on the edge of the left main landing gear so that it is flat.
I also removed some excess material from the "face" of the main landing gear so that it would fit tighter to the (U-01402) lower gear brace.

This is the opposite edge of the (U-01401-L) left main gear leg. It is almost where it needs to be but still needs some filing so that edge doesn't have as much of a "crown" on it and is flatter.

I guess it goes without saying that all of the filed areas need to be primed before being installed.

I primed the bare metal part of the landing gear with Tempo (A-702) green self etching zinc phosphate primer.

As a side project I wanted to balance the wheels for our airplane. I started off thinking that this wheel balancer would work, but it didn't. First the top is too wide for aircraft wheels, the diameter of the center of our aircraft wheel would not allow it to sit on top of the balance unit, and even after I made an adapter to allow it to sit atop the unit everything was too top heavy and it just didn't work!

These are the wheel weights that I will use to balance the wheel.

My next option was to use a motorcycle wheel balancer so I exchanged the previous balancer for this one. In case you haven't guessed by now, these are both from Harbor Freight.
This wheel balancer worked but I had to make an adapter to fit the center of our airplane's wheels. The maximum diameter axle that this balancer can handle is 1 1/8" and our aircraft wheel axle, with the bearings installed is 1 1/4" so an adapter is needed.
Once the adapter is made, all of the existing Harbor Freight motorcycle wheel balancer parts can be used and balancer your wheels.

This is what the adapters look like, they are made out of wood and are lined with inner tube so there is a snug fit.
Use the conical spindles and lock them up against the wheel hub with the allen screws and let the balancing begin!

The conical spindle snugs up against the adapter in the center of the adapter and the wheel can be balanced with the bearings in place.

The wheel will naturally come to rest with the heaviest side of the tire and wheel at the bottom. I put a piece of blue tape to mark the heavy spot and start placing balancing 1/4 ounce weights opposite the blue tape point.

The weights are temporarily held in place with blue tape as well and when you displace the wheel it should remain in place staying motionless. If it doesn't stay in place that means you have to either add more weight or change the location of the balancing weight.....it's pretty easy!

The #1 main gear wheel needed 1/2 ounce weight for balancing.

The #2 main gear wheel also needed 1/2 ounce weight for balancing.

The nose wheel needed 1 ounce weight for balancing. I put 1/2 ounce weight on the front.

I put 1/2 ounce weight on the back of the nose wheel to complete the balancing.

Back to the frustrating task of fitting the (U-01401-L and U-01401-R) left and right main gear legs to the fuselage. It took two more sessions of installing, checking the fit, marking trim lines, uninstalling and refiling before I was able to get a nice close fit.
Here you can just barely see a trim line that I drew on the left main gear leg, hopefully this will be the final trim....

Well, looks like it's really going to happen this time!

Once again I need to mention that it really helps to freeze the close tolerance bolts (NAS1306-22 and NAS1305-19) when installing the main landing gear. These have been frozen in our freezer at home for over a week.

As per step 2, on page 40A-04, the (U-01401-L and U-01401-R) main landing gear legs were slid through the bottom slots of the fuselage upward and aligning the top hole of the gear legs with the hole in the (U-01404-L and U-01404-R) upper gear braces per figure 4. The (NAS1306-22) bolt was slid, as depicted in figure 3, through the upper gear braces only far enough to hold everything in place.
As per step 3, on page 40A-04, figure 4, bolt the (U-01405-L and U-01405-R) gear attachment angles to the aft center section bulkhead assembly using the (NAS1305-19) bolt and the rest of the hardware called out in figure 4.

*It is important that the (NAS1305-19) bolt be installed first because the (NAS1306-22) bolt will block this bolt from being installed.

As per step 4, on page 40A-04, figure 3, push the (NAS1306-22) bolt at the top of the (U-01401-L and U-01401-R) main gear legs, through the (U-01405-L and U-01405-R) gear attachment angles and install the called out washers and nuts in figure 3.
As per step 5, on page 40A-04, figure 4, attach the (U-01402) lower gear braces using the hardware called out in figure 4.

*The red arrows point to the hardware called for in the previous steps.
This is the right side of the fuselage. The following hardware was installed, torqued, and torque sealed: (NAS1306-22, NAS1149F0663P, and AN365-324A) torqued to 189 inch/pounds (175"/lbs. + 14"/lbs. drag = 189"/lbs.
(NAS1305-19, NAS1149F0563P, and AN365-524) torqued to 134 inch/pounds (120"/lbs. + 14"/lbs. drag = 134"/lbs.)
(NAS1305-36, NAS1149F0563P, and AN365-524) torqued to 134 inch/pounds (120"/lbs. + 14"/lbs. drag = 134"/lbs.)

This is the (NAS1305-19) bolt at the top of the (U-01405-R) right gear attachment angle that had to be bolted in first to the aft center section bulkhead assembly.

This is the left side of the fuselage, everything went together just like the right side did.

As per step 2, on page 40A-04, the (U-01401-L and U-01401-R) main landing gear legs were slid through the bottom slots of the fuselage upward and aligning the top hole of the gear legs with the hole in the (U-01404-L and U-01404-R) upper gear braces per figure 4. The (NAS1306-22) bolt was slid, as depicted in figure 3, through the upper gear braces only far enough to hold everything in place.
As per step 3, on page 40A-04, figure 4, bolt the (U-01405-L and U-01405-R) gear attachment angles to the aft center section bulkhead assembly using the (NAS1305-19) bolt and the rest of the hardware called out in figure 4.

*It is important that the (NAS1305-19) bolt be installed first because the (NAS1306-22) bolt will block this bolt from being installed.

Every bolt was final torqued and torque sealed just like the right side was.

The space to get at the nuts attaching the (U-01403) gear attachment bar, (U-01401) main landing gear leg, and the (U-01402) lower gear brace together is tight. It helps to use a crow's foot attachment when final torquing the (AN365-524) lock nut.

To have a valid torque make sure that the crow's foot is 90° to the handle.

To have a valid torque when the crow's foot isn't 90° to the handle use the formula: T1 x (L/L + C) = T2
T1 = Torque specification for the fastener.
L = Effective length of the torque wrench. Measure from the center of the square drive tang to the indicator line on the handle of your torque wrench. First, set the torque wrench to the torque spec for the fastener (T1) and then measure in a straight line parallel to the body of the wrench. Most torque wrenches have a groove in the knurled handle grip. Split beam torque wrenches have a line in the center of the handle. (always, check the manufacturer recommendations, or use the center of the handle grip if the manufacturer does not recommend a location).
C = Change in length caused by the crowfoot wrench. Measure from the center of the fastener to the center of the square drive tang on the torque wrench. Measure in a line parallel to the body of the wrench. If the position of the crowfoot wrench decreases the effective length of the torque wrench, creating a negative change, then input this amount into the equation as a negative number.
Formula Output
T2 = Final torque wrench setting that you should use. This will correct for any change in leverage caused by using the crowfoot wrench.

The red arrows in this photograph point to the access holes in the (F-01416-L and F-01416-R) seat ribs that are used to install the (NAS1305-36) bolts holding the (U-01403) gear attachment bar, (U-01401) main gear leg, and (U-01402) lower gear brace in place.

This is the (NAS1305-19) bolt at the top of the (U-01405-L) left gear attachment angle that had to be bolted in first to the aft center section bulkhead assembly.

I final torqued the remaining bolts that attach the (U-01405-L and U-01405-R) gear attachment angles to the (F-01404) aft center section bulkhead assembly. The bolts and hardware are: (AN3-6A) bolts, (NAS1149F0363P) washers, and (MS21042-3) metal lock nuts.

They were torqued to 42 inch/pounds (28"/lbs. + 14"/lbs. drag = 42"/lbs.) and torque sealed.

If you have a quick build forward fuselage kit, be sure to remove the wood plugs that are bolted between the spars, it gives you much better access to the (AN3-6A) bolts making the final torquing task a breeze!

This is the right landing gear (U-01401-R) installed. This is an overhead view.

This is an overhead picture of the (U-01403) gear attachment bar and the (U-01401-R) main landing gear leg.
You might notice that there is a gap between the intersection of the two parts. There is a reason for this....

The (U-01403) gear attachment bars are not flat on each side, the side that is up against the main landing gear leg is curved in the center, the purpose of this "high point" in the curve is to provide a built in wear surface. Because the curved portion rests up against the (U-01401) main landing gear leg there will be a gap.
According to the Van's Aircraft tech guys, this is normal and over time, with use, the curved portion will wear away and therefore should be one of the things checked on an annual condition inspection.

All of the bolts on the right (U-01405-R) gear attachment angle have been final torqued and torque sealed.

This is an overhead view of the left landing gear attachments.

The bolts have been final torqued and torque sealed.

This is the hardware called out for attaching the (U-01406) nose gear leg to the (FF-01400) engine mount.

*The washer, (U-1002) will not be used in this step.

The hardware called out are: two-(BUSHING-ST.375x.750x1.563) bushings, two-(AN6-23) bolts, four-(NAS1149F0663P) washers, two-(AN310-6) castellated nuts, and two-(MS24665-283) cotter pins.

As per step 1, on page 40A-05, figure 1, some remaining powder coat on the indicated sections of the (U-01406) nose gear leg was removed.

After lightly polishing the (BUSHING-ST.375x.750x1.563) nose gear bushings and applying Mobilgrease 28 wheel grease on them, I slid them into position on the (FF-01400) engine mount as per step 2, on page 40A-05, figure 1.

The (AN6-23) bolts will attach from the inside of the (FF-01400) engine mount.

They hold the (U-01406) nose gear leg onto the (FF-01400) engine mount.

As per step 3, on page 40A-05, figure 1, the (U-01406) nose gear leg was bolted onto the (FF-01400) engine mount using the hardware called out in figure 1.

The (AN310-6) castellated nuts were secured with (MS24665-283) cotter pins.

The three landing gears are attached!

As per step 1, on page 40A-06, figure 2 call out, removed excess powder coat from ends of the (FF-01400) engine mount bushing areas and the chamfered insides as well in order to allow the (U-01407) elastomer pad to swivel freely.

*This area was quite smooth even with powder coat on but I removed some of the powder coat anyways.

Removed excess powder coat.

As per step 2, on page 40A-06, figure 1, coated the outer surfaces of the (BUSH-F-ST.438x.750x1.328) flanged bearings with Mobilgrease 28 wheel bearing grease.

Inserted the (BUSH-F-ST.438x.750x1.328) flanged bushings into the (FF01400) engine mount.

These are the parts needed to install the (U-01416) nose gear link assembly onto the (U-01406) nose gear leg and the (FF-01400) engine mount.

As per step 3, on page 40A-06, figure 1, I placed the (U-01407) elastomer pad in position on the (FF-01400) engine mount and inserted the called out hardware (AN7-22) bolts through the holes in the pad and into position through the flanged bushings on the (FF-01400) engine mount.

Overhead view of the (U-01407) elastomer pad in position on the (FF-01400) engine mount.

There are four (J-11968-14) nose gear elastomers that need to be placed onto the (U-01416) nose gear link assembly.

As per step 4, on page 40A-06, figure 1, I slid four (J-11968-14) nose gear elastomers onto the shaft of the (U-01416) nose gear link assembly.

As per step 5, on page 40A-06, figure 1, I coated the (BUSHING-ST.438x.750x1.25) withMobilgrease 28 wheel bearing grease.

The (BUSHING-ST.438x.750x1.25) bushings were inserted into the lower end of the (U-01416) nose gear link assembly.

As per step 6, on page 40A-06, figure 1, bolted the (U-01416) nose gear link assembly to the (U-01406) nose gear leg using the hardware called out.

This was done by first inserting the bottom end of the (U-01416) nose gear link assembly to the (U-01406) nose gear leg and then threading the shaft of the nose gear link assembly through the center of the (U-01407) elastomer pad.

*Make sure to loosely fasten the (U-01407) elastomer pad with the called out hardware: (NAS1149F0763P) washers and the (AN310-7) catellated nuts before threading the (U-01416) nose gear link assembly through the (U-01407) elastomer pad....don't want anything to accidentally fall off!

In order to install the (U-1002) isolator washer, (SPRING-0003) compression spring, (U-01420) link assembly cap, (NAS1149F0632P) washer, and to be able to thread the (MS21045-6) 3/8" lock nut into place, on top of the (U-01416) nose gear link assembly and the (U-01407) elastomer pad, I had to use our shop jack to lift the assembly enough vertically to compress the elastomers and compression spring.

You have to keep a constant load on the nose gear link assembly because the compression spring (SPRING-0003) has to be fully compressed in order to final torque the (MS21045-6) 3/8" lock nut.

The (MS21045-6) 3/8" lock nut was final torqued to 184 inch/pounds (170"/lbs. + 14 "/lbs. drag = 184"/lbs). The nut was torque sealed.

The rest of the hardware called out was torqued and cotter pins were installed.

Nose Gear Link Assembly Installed!

See how flat the compression spring (SPRING-0003) is; it's just about even with the top of the (U-01407) elastomer pad.

The (MS21083-N5) lock nut on the (AN5-21A) bolt that holds the (WD-1031) axle flange onto the (U-01406) nose gear leg was final torqued to 84 inch/pounds (70"/lbs. + 14"/lbs. drag = 84"/lbs.). The nut was torque sealed.

These are the parts that will install the (U-01430) nose wheel fork to the (U-01406) nose gear leg.

As per step 1, on page 40A-07, figure 1, I put Loctite 567 thread sealant on the (MS 15002-1) grease fitting and then threaded it into the hole in the front of the (U-01430) nose wheel fork assembly.

Two (5/16-24x3/4) screws were attached to the top of the (U-01430) nose wheel fork.

The next step is to grease the spindle of the (U-01406) nose gear leg and marine trailer grease is recommended.

I am using Starbrite Trailer Marine Wheel Bearing Grease, I got it at West Marine.

As per step 2, on page 40A-07, figure 1, the spindle on the (U-01406) nose gear leg was greased with Starbrite trailer marine wheel bearing grease as indicated.

As per step 3, on page 40A-07, figure 1, I slid the (U-01430) nose wheel fork and the two (K2750-O-219) belleville washers onto the spindle of the (U-01406) nose gear leg being careful to observe proper orientation) and then threaded the (MS21025-24) nut on.

The (MS21025-24) nut has not been final torqued yet, some calibration in step 4 has to be accomplished.