Simviation Forums

I have reposted pics of the throttle as I noticed some of the original pics have gone but others are still posted ?

see link
http://www.simviation.com/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.cgi?board=homebuild;action=display;num=1084528805


Here are some of original build

cheers
chuck









Latest pics-- (missus bought me a digitial camera for xmas) will take some more soon for new post new

Chuck,

Thanks for reposting the stuff.  One unfortunate fact is that SimV needs to clear out image files every now and again because of the MASSSIVE amount of server space thay tie up.  So about once every year or two Pete cleans out all images over a year or two old.

So some of these old pix get deleted.  My early threads on my simpit are affected the same way.  At some point I'll try to re upload mine too.

best,

.....john

Hi John
I haven't done a lot on the pit for a while apart from sit in it and enjoy it.
I have added a few refinements like addittional Point of View switches etc that I will post about later and give some links/pics .

My next stage (stage 1 )for the pit will be to upgrade my pc to a PCI Express board so I can run multiple video cards and then set up a three monitor (lcd). ( I mostly run CFS3 and this will not support FSUPIC so I can't run wideview on a lan setup)  

Stage 2 is to fit the three monitors.

Stage 3 is the big one ! I'm researching motion platforms. I found this fantasic link in New Zealand of a platform made from old car parts .
The biggest hurdle will be how do I extract the data out of cfs3 as fsupic won't work.
There is a site in the UK that sells software that is supposed to work with cfs3 but the site stills lists fsupic as a pre-requisite for the s/w to work.

Speaking of old car parts I have a great idea for making throttle assemblies which I will post some pics, when time permits.

See this link for the car part motion platform.
http://www.jimspage.co.nz/intro.html  

cheers
chuck

That is terrific: simple constuction and inexpensive materials, and  it looks fantastic!!

Hi Rottydaddy
it was a fairly simple construction. I would suggest that you invest in a very high quality jig saw to do all the wood work. I burnt mine out doing this project as it was a cheap one. This caused me extra work as I had to then sand down by hand all the bulkheads as my cheap jigsaw tended to undercut.

But I had a lot of fun building it and seeing it all come together. The best part was when I painted it. It really started to look like something then.

All I can say is have a go. It's not that hard.

cheers
chuck

Hi Rottydaddy
it was a fairly simple construction. I would suggest that you invest in a very high quality jig saw to do all the wood work. I burnt mine out doing this project as it was a cheap one. This caused me extra work as I had to then sand down by hand all the bulkheads as my cheap jigsaw tended to undercut.

But I had a lot of fun building it and seeing it all come together. The best part was when I painted it. It really started to look like something then.

All I can say is have a go. It's not that hard.

cheers
chuck

I sort of have room for something like that, but the main reason I haven't built a cockpit mock-up is that I don't want to be pinned down to one type of plane (not that you have to fly the same one all the time in the sim; it just seems that with all the work, it would make sense to use the model that matches the simpit, for "full immersion").
But for a combat sim (I have CFS3 and IL2/PF)...? Might make sense for me.  My choice would probably be the P38, and I'd most likely want to use a projected exterior view outside the windscreen and small LCDs for active instruments... it'd be a huge, expensive project. And I'm so wrapped up in FS9 and making progress towards building a sort of "universal" unenclosed simpit for that... I doubt i'll get around to something like this, although I can imagine building one for sale to someone else... hmmm...

The motion concept, as described, is a very cool idea; shouldn't be too tricky to set up.

 And I agree about the jigsaw: I was a full-time shop and site carpenter for many years; I swear by Bosch. Not outrageously expensive,and they're just the best. A small band saw or a large scroll saw would make a huge difference, too.
But you've done a bang-up job so far, mate- I think you're gonna enjoy it!!

great job

It must be very imersive in that cockpit  8)

Hi Kipman
the best part about is the sound. I have a 5.1 surround sound system installed in it. I also put black plastic on the outside of the perpex canopy to stop the outside view and this made it more immersive. The whole cockpit shakes and  vibrates as you fly.
It's great having all the control functions and levers as you have to dial in rudder trim etc for take off and then throw the gear lever etc. The best flying part is the control of throttle , prop pitch, and mixture. This creates quite a large work load as you constantly adjust the controls to get the best performance from the plane. This is especially immersive in combat sims as you are always on the throttle , and flying the early model Spits you are always playing with the mixture just like the real thing.

I find I have to limit the flying time  :D to an hour at a time so I can get out and have a break ( beer would of run out !)

It's great fun !
cheers
chuck

[quote]

I sort of have room for something like that, but the main reason I haven't built a cockpit mock-up is that I don't want to be pinned down to one type of plane (not that you have to fly the same one all the time in the sim; it just seems that with all the work, it would make sense to use the model that matches the simpit, for "full immersion").
But for a combat sim (I have CFS3 and IL2/PF)...? Might make sense for me.

great pit! I too am building a WW2 pit (more generic, but loosely based on P51 and others).  did plenty of research and found many great photos but I can't seem to find and real dimensions. Everything in my pit is eyeballed.




everything so far is built in compoments, and not bolted to the floorboards yet. I plan on making this an on going project, changing/upgrading as time progresses. Eventually I hope to build a more traditional 3 lever - power,pitch, mixture -  throttle quadrant like yours (thanks for the pics).as well as gear, flap levers and more. I also plan on cutting a hole in the instrument panel with another screen for instruments.

What I really, really need are true dimensions. Just basics like -
height of font of seat to floor
height of joystick from floor
cockpit width from canopy rail to rail , and across seat height
distance from front of seat to instrument panel

do you happen to find these anywhere? any help is appreciated

Hi Bubba
that pit looks great. You have done a great job. With these types

hey chuck

I've dismantled my X-45 throttle to make a 3 lever throttle quadrant similar to yours.  It seems from your pics that the levers are connected directly to the pots through gears? do all the levers rotate about the same bolt(axis)? and how is the tension controlled? is that a nylon nut to prevent slippage?  I've seen similar throttle quadrants, but most of them use a push rod system.

sorry for all the questions, but it seems everything I do, I have to redo about 4 times - if I could eliminate one or two steps it would save me alot of grief(and time).

also, if you have any dimensions - still lots of great info at simpits.org but no hard numbers.

sorry for all the questions, but it seems everything I do, I have to redo about 4 times - if I could eliminate one or two steps it would save me alot of grief(and time).

Bubba,

If you only have to re-do 4X........... then you are really getting to be a pro at this stuff!

Hi Bubba
all the levers are on the same axis. I used two nuts on the front of the throttle to form a lock nut which I use to adjust the tension on the spindel bolt.
Inside the unit I have spacers between the levers that held keep the levers rigid and allows the levers to slip enough without moving the next lever.

This was all a bit trial and error and although it works ok I think it could be improved by making the mixture lever spin off it's own bolt/spindel , I might get around to doing this some time.

One thing with this setup is that you have to have some friction being applied to the side of the levers so they don't move the adjacent lever. I did this by making the prop & throttle levers an exact fit in the quadrant. The mixture lever has a length of rubber gromet that  it rubs against to give the friction required.

Would you like me to take some more pics of the unit showing the insides ?

The other way to make a throttle assembly is to use the old car part method that I posted a thread about.
I think this would be a lot easier than using gears etc.

cheers
chuck