Grizzly Claw Ski brakes
- On Carbon Concepts skis
Jeremy did a good job with this design, the lever makes it something that will keep working and not require constant maint.
I installed the Grizzly claw brakes last year because I have to taxi around other planes (with straight skis) for fuel, at an airport that plows the ice and snow smooth as glass. Not to mention the wind blowing me all over the place.
But
They did not work at all because the master cylinders that I have on my plane would only push 1/3 of the fluid needed to fully extend the "claw".
So I had to install Grove Master cylinder# 679-3 with a 7/8" bore to push the volume required to make these brakes work.
The Grizzly Claw brakes require a master cyl volume of at least .62 cubic inches to actuate all the way.
AK Airframes won't tell you that. And they don't care if the brakes don't work on your plane after you buy them. Very poor customer service.
The brakes work well now, with the new master cyl, if I taxi super slow, and the wind is not blowing. (My skis are oversized and super slick bottoms). I can turn with the brakes, and stop when needed. The one drawback is that the larger master cyl is pushing a lot of fluid, and the orifice sizes in the brake system are small, so the brake actuation is not instant, "kinda like stepping on a plum".
The only time they have not worked for me is when the ice/snow got packed in under the "claw" lever so it couldn't go down. I have to clean it out every time I get out., especially when it is warm/wet.
The harder the ice the better they work.
- On Carbon Concepts skis
Jeremy did a good job with this design, the lever makes it something that will keep working and not require constant maint.
I installed the Grizzly claw brakes last year because I have to taxi around other planes (with straight skis) for fuel, at an airport that plows the ice and snow smooth as glass. Not to mention the wind blowing me all over the place.
But
They did not work at all because the master cylinders that I have on my plane would only push 1/3 of the fluid needed to fully extend the "claw".
So I had to install Grove Master cylinder# 679-3 with a 7/8" bore to push the volume required to make these brakes work.
The Grizzly Claw brakes require a master cyl volume of at least .62 cubic inches to actuate all the way.
AK Airframes won't tell you that. And they don't care if the brakes don't work on your plane after you buy them. Very poor customer service.
The brakes work well now, with the new master cyl, if I taxi super slow, and the wind is not blowing. (My skis are oversized and super slick bottoms). I can turn with the brakes, and stop when needed. The one drawback is that the larger master cyl is pushing a lot of fluid, and the orifice sizes in the brake system are small, so the brake actuation is not instant, "kinda like stepping on a plum".
The only time they have not worked for me is when the ice/snow got packed in under the "claw" lever so it couldn't go down. I have to clean it out every time I get out., especially when it is warm/wet.
The harder the ice the better they work.
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