Nice Cheap Pit

[Scottler]

For anyone who already has the Saitek X-45 or similar HOTAS stick, you could probably do this for under $20.

http://users.acninc.net/padipaul/HBCP.htm

[KnightStryker]

Sweet!
Looks like a good idea, but not good enough.
If I did that it would be the end of all gifts from my wife.
Not to mention no more talking her into nice new shiny bits for the computer.

Kevin

[Scottler]

lol I would never mod my current X-45, but if I stumbled across another one for a reasonable price or even a comparable stick, I might be very likely to do it.

[KnightStryker]

You know, since the wife bought me this nice new shiny X45 I actually have a perfectly good M$ Force Feedback 2 joystick just collecting dust in the bedroom.
I think I might be able to try this out and not get the wife mad at me!

Of course she is nine months pregnant and ready to pop any day now so you never know what is gonna get her mad. LOL

[Scottler]

Just have her lie down on her back and set the collective on her tummy.

[Smoke2much]

It's not a bad idea but I'm not sure that it will work as intended.  The stick is designed to be sensitive at the length that it is, it the length is increased then the amount of movement at the hand end will have to increase to get a small amount of movement at the base end.  Make sense?

For example at the moment to move the stick "2mm" you have to move your hand 2mm, this is a small movement and feels like a small movement.  Add three feet to the stick and you have to move your hand through a whole lot further to get the same degree of travel.

Looks good in theory, difficult to arrange in practice.

Will

[Scottler]

Excellent point, Will.  I wonder if adjusting the sensitivities and "null zones" would compensate for that?

[Smoke2much]

You would have to set the null zone to 0% and the sensitivity to maximum which is what I am set at now.  I suppose you could tape a broom stick to your joystick to try it out.

Will

[Scottler]

LMFAO.....you're not going to believe this.

The other night after seeing that shot, I thought, "Hmm...."

I searched high and low for something I had lying around to affix to my throttle so I could set my "collective" on the floor beside me.

When I couldn't find the item I had in mind, I stumbled across the broom.  I tried it, but the X-45 throttle is hardly the best surface to tape something to...there's just not enough room.

True story.  Too funny.

[Smoke2much]

LOL  

I wouldn't try it myself, the sticky residue from the tape would drive me up the wall.  The way I see it is that whilst my X-45 is not as realistic as a sim pit it is substantially more realistic than my Logitech was.

Will

[Scottler]

It wasn't even on there long enough to get sticky residue.

I think all told it was taped on for about 45 seconds before I realized it wasn't going to work.  It was just too loose.

[Smoke2much]

You would also need to move your handle three feet back to get your heli' off the ground.

Will

[stevewilson]

How about a narrow box, say 18'' high, 2' long and no wider than the base of the stick. Pad the sides some what, and you could even mount the box on a draw slides so you could slide it forward to get in and out of the chair.

Steve

[Polynomial]

looks good, wish i had the $$$

[chomp_rock]

The pictures won't show up .