by JBaymore » Mon Aug 28, 2006 3:05 pm
Flyboy4992,
Welcome to the insanity ;). Actually you seem to be started off on the right foot just by asking this question. I always recommend that people do the homework before beginning the physical work on the whole project.
You will want to have a realistic assessment of what skills you bring to the table for fabrication.....and also what typical costs for parts you'll likely need will be. This will take you some time.... but will be WELL worth it in planning your project. It is PART of the project....and actually is part of the fun of undertaking such a complex activity.
Remember that simpits seem to have a way of involving "design creep". As you get involved and it gets more and more complete............. you'll find more and more that you still want to do. It is terribly addictive ;).
"Cheap" is a relative word. What is "cheap" for some... would be considered "expensive" for others. Some of the simpits I have seen cost about what a real Cessna 172 would ;). But it doesn't HAVE to be THAT expensive. But keep in mind.... it does all add up pretty fast.
Home cockpit building does add costs when compared to just flying with a simple computer/joystick setup. The costs are pretty much directly linked to the complexity of what you undertake........... combined with your scrounging and fabrication skills. If you can't build it.... you usually have to buy it. You'll pay for those skills that you don;t posess....which is the normal way of the world ;).
As an example..... just take rudder pedals.
You can go out and buy a set of new CH Products USB Pro Pedals for about $120 (USD) if you look arouind a bit. Some would say that is expensive....some would say they are pretty cheap. They ARE cheap when compared to some of the other rudder pedal options available..... which cost FAR more than that.
BUT...... you could also construct yourself a set of pedals yourself using the "guts" from a joystick (see some other threads here). How much this approach costs ALSO depends on the sources for your parts and your skills.
If you have the old joystick just laying around...... the basic electronics are "free". If you find a joystick at an electronics flea market..... they will cost you a bit more.... and if you buy a brand new joystick to canibalize, they will be even more money.
Then there are the parts for the physical / mechanical parts of the pedals. If you make them out of wood they will cost a certain amount....possibly "free" if you have the stock lying around. Metal fabrication will likely cost you more.......and if you have to tools to handle it.
If you have to go out and buy some tools to fabricate the project..... you have to add that cost in too.
Look around at the supplies listed in the "Cockpit Building Resources" websites listed in the stickies at the top of this Forum. That will help yopu get an idea of the cost for certain aspects of such a project.
For example.... look at the GoFlight website to get an idea of the cost of their prefabricated VRP-166 COM and NAV radio panels. If you are going to use them....... you will have a good idea of what they will actually cost you...... and what (less expensive) alternatives you might consider to solve the issue of having physical radios in the pit. It you look to buy them used or on EBay....you'll also know what is a "good deal". Or you'll decide that those types of radios are NOT something that you'll consider in planning your simpit design because they exceed tyour definition of "cheap".
Hope these thoughts have helped you. Keep us posted here on your efforts (with photos)..... and if you have questions or need help with something.... just ask. Someone likely will have an answer for you.
best,
.......................john
Intel i7 960 quad 3.2G LGA 1366, Asus P6X58D Premium, 750W Corsair, 6 gig 1600 DDR3, Spinpoint 1TB 720
