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Seat height

jask

Well Known Member
I am currently in the fuselage build and need to make some decisions on the seats/rudder position. I am 73 in and my wife is 61 inches. We got a seat form from Oregon aero and tried it out for position and height. Without the canopy installed, I am exactly on line with top skin of the nose. I have never ridden in a RV-7 and my first impression was that I was sitting too low. Canopy clearance would be the deciding factor but I do t hand that on yet.

Right now, the rudder pedals are in the center position and that seems to be too close for me. My wife needs the pedals about 3 inches closer but if extra padding is added to the seat back, the stick is way too close. Has anyone ever put an "s" bend in the stick to move it forward? Has anyone come up with a good solution to the different size pilot problem.
 
Seat foam

Oregon aero suggested using some aerobatic foam that compresses less for higher seat height. Has any one used this type of foam?
 
Oregon aero suggested using some aerobatic foam that compresses less for higher seat height. Has any one used this type of foam?

I have it in most of my stunt matts. It is denser, not sure of the density, but generally measured in pounds per square inch I believe. Compression pounds? I use 18lb for stunt guys, or denser, and super soft for the actors and talent. Many different densities available.
 
I don?t know of anyone bending the stick in a -7. I don?t think there?s much tolerance for that. There are some rudder pedal extensions that secure to the bottom of the pedals made by various vendors. I would think that would be one of the options that would help.
 
seat height

The right stick just has a push button release and it would be very simple to make a replacement stick with an offset to effectively move it forward. If you don't want to bend it, you could weld the offset in below the stick boot. About a 2 inch offset would be enough and a fourth hinge could be added to the floor to move the seat forward.
 
rudder pedal extensions

Several people make the pedal extensions that probably add up to 1 inch but they do nothing to change the ability to use the brakes. Eventually, I will have to do something to allow her to use the rudder and brakes.
 
I decided on a course of action to get the right seat to fit my much shorter wife. I will add two additional rows of hinges to the floor at 1.5 inch spacing. I will also make another flip up adjust for the seat back 3 inches longer. The pin pulls out of the flipper so it is easy to change. I have also ordered a 3 inch seat pan out of hard foam from Oregon aero. That will get her up to an adequate seat height. Finally, I will make another control stick with a forward offset near the base so the stick will be in a normal position. That will put every thing to normal and allow for the seat and stick to be easily put back in the original position.
 
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