The Dream continues..

[flyguy737]

Hey Frank I'm still very interested in how your projector setup will be. I got my TH2go today wow what a difference it makes but my setup is testing 3 different screen types.

 

1 is projector 2 is LCD TV with DVI input 3 is my 22 inch led monitor.

 

now I had ordered a 27 inch LG with thin border and was looking at the three of them with the stand from the FSS and I have canceled that order and have bought another DLP projector cheap awaiting it's arrival.

 

My concerns are that yes projectors give you a larger screen it's not always as clear and sharp as a monitor. Maybe it's because I am going for DLP projectors? My projector has the effect of looking through a screen door up close. Maybe that will be better when I build the screen?

 

I'd like to know all your thoughts about that as I'm starting to think maybe I should go back to the idea of the 27 inch monitors but then that wont give the full wrap around effect.

 

I have looked at Ivar's information about the screen but I feel that if I spend to much on the visual system I'm going to waste more time on getting the mip sorted out.

 

any comments you can make would be appreciated.

 

Colin

[tuisong]

I loved the video Frank. It had tears running down my cheeks. I'd never seen it before. Thanks for the link.

It looks like the maiden flight will not be too far away now. You sure are doing a great job.

[tennyson]

Colin, I suggest you head over to the cockpit builders site. They have all the answers over there about all sorts of set-ups. It's a good start point.

I can't advise much, I don't have my projectors yet.

 

And Rog, I still got a fair amount to do yet, mate.

Next week will see a lot of changes happen when I start getting the yokes and frames done. then I can start putting things in the shell for good.

 

Here's a couple of pictures of the finished yoke gears that I had made for my set-up.

 

They are in the post and winging their way to me as I write........oooohhh, it's beginning to feel a lot like Xmas...

 

 

 

 

 

 

Frank

[flyguy737]

ok thanks Frank but don't forget to keep us posted

 

gears look good too

[flyguy737]

Hey Frank I found this circuit breaker board set from Poldragon net (symlatory.com) thought you might be interested.

 

[tennyson]

Yep, already know about them

 

 

 

Frank

[tennyson]

I've been away for three days and got back today, all full of good ideas and enthusiasm.

 

Got stuck into the frame and mounted my shock absorbers. Turned out to be a massive fail.

I need to modify the frame to accommodate the length of the shock's. Probably should have made the frames another few inches wider, isn't hindsight wonderful?

 

So, tomorrow is another day, a full day with no interruptions, so I should be able to knock the shocks over.

 

I might also get my gears tomorrow and can start adapting them to my yokes as well.

 

I'll also get some more pics tomorrow, too.

 

 

 

Frank

[flyguy737]

good stuff mate

[moonman]

Great to read, that besides some minor delays all is progressing smoothly and as intended overall Frank!

Superb work!

Cheers, Christoph

[Andrew 737]

Yep, already know about them

 

 

 

Frank

Alright Frank

I have sent them boys sooo many e mails re yokes, just to get no response! Have you purchased from these guys?

I am buying FFB dual linked yokes from Simujabs instead now

[tennyson]

I bought some small stuff from them, Andrew and was pleasantly surprised at the quick response. The quality was so-so and I won't be breaking a leg to go back. I'm looking at a few possibilities with rear wall CB's.

You can buy the CB dummies, painted or raw, from Simparts.de. They look like this:

 

 

And this is the blanks:

 

 

So, there are a few options.

 

Anyway, as I said, I'm not quite up to there, yet, but I got my finger on the pulse.

 

Now it's time to get back out in the cave and get some productivity done.

 

Till later.....

 

 

 

 

Frank

[Andrew 737]

Cheers Frank

Looking forward to more pictures mate

[tennyson]

So, I've had a full day out in the cave and half the night to boot.

 

I had some success and an abysmal failure as well.

 

I started off by modifying the frame for the shock absorbers. I tried adding a box section to the frame to house the bracket that attaches to the end of the shocks, but unfortunately the modification altered the structural integrity of the frame and I ended up with a big sag in it.

 

 

 

Of course, this is far from acceptable, so it back on with the thinking cap and off to the drawing board again.

 

I came up with another plan. I went and visited my favourite store, Bunnings and purchased a 3.0 metre length of 90 x 45 to start the box section again. I got them to cut it up to length, which saved me some time and effort and also allowed me to fit it in my MX-5.....hahaha

 

While I was down there I also bought a length of threaded rod to make the linkage for the dual rudder pedals. I bought lock nuts as well. 

 

Came back home and knocked up the linkage. Fitted and tested and worked flawlessly, first time. You gotta have a win some times.

 

 

 

So, I cut the original frame down and made a new box section for the shock absorbers that will fit back within the original frame.

 

All I have to do tomorrow is put it all back together and I should be right again.

 

I'm hoping my gears will arrive tomorrow, so I can start fitting them as well.

 

 

More to come........

 

 

 

 

Frank

[flyingleaf]

Wow Frank. I am speechless. Good on you mate.

[tennyson]

Today is Xmas!

 

Well, for me it is. My gears arrived....yaaayyy! (perhaps I need a little more valium and a few more days away in the real world!!!)

 

I've got a few pics of them, but I'll hold on and try and get some pics of them mounted today, to show where they go and how they work.

 

 

So, it's off to physio, and then into it..........

 

Until later....

 

 

 

 

 

Frank

[flyguy737]

thats a great way to link the pedals Frank looks too easy

[Andrew 737]

Looking forward to the pics Frank

BTW thank you for this wonderful thread mate

[tennyson]

That's alright, Andrew. It's really courtesy of ORBX, letting me waffle on all the time.

 

To be fair tho, I eat, talk and sleep FTX anyway! Why wouldn't you???

 

 

Now, to get back to the sim. In amongst a few appointments and such, I managed to have a very productive day.

 

From the top, here's the gears as they arrived this morning:

 

 

And here is the Leo Bodnar potentiometers that will be fitted to the gears:

 

 

Dealing with Gwyn from Aerosim means you get a perfect fit every time and great quality manufacturing. Here's the roll gear on the bottom of the shaft that fits in the bottom of the yoke:

 

 

And here it is, all fitted up nicely to the yoke:

 

 

So, I finished attaching all of the frame components and installed the cross tube again. This frame doesn't have a big sag in it like the last one!!!

 

 

And now the gas struts fit perfectly and operate as they should:

 

 

Next was re-installing the yokes:

 

 

And finally installation of the half gear that is used to give you accurate pitch movement:

 

 

 

And that, my friends, is where I am up to.

 

Tomorrow is another brand new day, full of opportunities. I hope to finish off the set-up for both of the pitch and trim gears.

 

Then I'll be busy re-designing the pitch centring mechanism.

 

 

Till then....................

 

 

 

Frank

[Ryan Mason]

Just amazing Frank.  The engineering of this is built to last, that is for sure   I just want to know when the garage sale is of all the parts you decided not to use lol

[flyguy737]

looking very good

[tennyson]

Actually, Ryan, there isn't that much left over. I tend to sell my old stuff as I buy the new. That's a good trade-off, it keeps the cost down and the MOF happier.

 

I still end up with the odd part here or there, but being in touch with so many builders, you usually don't have any trouble off-loading bits and bobs.

I normally buy good quality stuff and if I change my mind and go for something different, then it's usually of a higher standard.

 

I sometimes see other builders with sheds full of machinery and think...."wow, I could make all sorts of goodies here". The truth is, I'd probably never finish this project, I'd be forever changing my mind about this and that.

So, I've tried to be as practical as possible when considering choices of parts and their quality and cost.

 

My biggest problem is trying to be happy with the current state of the build and keeping my mind on finishing it, before upgrading any more components. It's so hard, when you see the manufacturers bringing out better and cheaper stuff all the time.

 

 

 

 

Frank

[Andrew 737]

Looking great Frank - How do the yokes feel mate?

[Ryan Mason]

Actually, Ryan, there isn't that much left over. I tend to sell my old stuff as I buy the new. That's a good trade-off, it keeps the cost down and the MOF happier.

 

I still end up with the odd part here or there, but being in touch with so many builders, you usually don't have any trouble off-loading bits and bobs.

I normally buy good quality stuff and if I change my mind and go for something different, then it's usually of a higher standard.

 

I sometimes see other builders with sheds full of machinery and think...."wow, I could make all sorts of goodies here". The truth is, I'd probably never finish this project, I'd be forever changing my mind about this and that.

So, I've tried to be as practical as possible when considering choices of parts and their quality and cost.

 

My biggest problem is trying to be happy with the current state of the build and keeping my mind on finishing it, before upgrading any more components. It's so hard, when you see the manufacturers bringing out better and cheaper stuff all the time.

 

 

 

 

Frank

I know what you mean about the upgrading thoughts mate.  I treat it as I treat technology.  I wait a while until the "newness" wears off and hence price drop a little bit before going for new stuff.  It took me a few years to getting around to getting an iPad, but I was happier paying $150 for a used one that was in new condition than $500

[flyguy737]

Hey Frank

 

I just picked up the deal of the century. 3 short throw projectors less then $1000 bucks. all with very low hours and in mint condition.

 

the best of the lot is the MX812ST $280 only 3hrs of use. it has the best performance as far as distance throw goes it's super!

 

the only thin is they are all different models but I reckon I can still make good use of them. They came from a liquidation company. hehe

 

Now my other problem is I did a huge cleanup in my garage today and started planning my rebuild. Problem number 1 just not enough room for a full size pit unless wife moves out haha! So after lots of thought and drawing pics etc I have decided for the time being that I will just do a half size. I only rent so with the projectors on the floor I can get at least a twin view but alignment will be key here as different models.

 

But if anyone is looking for a short throw I highly recommend the MX812ST it's an older model but you can pick them up cheap. two have arrived and tested the third is still coming.

 

Colin

[tennyson]

Hey Colin, I got a great idea. Why don't you start a thread, yourself.

 

There is a lot of interest at the moment over threads with build content.

 

So, yesterday, I got to finish off the roll gear potentiometer set-up.

Firstly, I mounted the second year securely:

 

 

 

Then I set about aligning the gears and marking the positions of neutral (-10 degrees from 90, or 80 degrees if you like). Fully forward is -20 degrees or 70 and fully rear which is 90 degrees. 

You see, apparently, the yoke sits forward at rest.

 

 

 

Now that I've slept on it, I'm a little concerned that the part gear, in it's upper most travel will hit the flooring, so today, I'm going to re-mount the second gear lower and thus bring the upper  limit lower in the frame. This should allow a correct clearance from the flooring panel.

 

The alternative is to cut a slot in the flooring, but I'd rather not do this, as it will allow dust and bugs and crap into the gears. That's called an in-built design flaw, I'd rather avoid those.

 

So, I'm off now to the cave and get out my trusty spanners and make a few tweaks. After that, I've got the pitch gear to complete.

 

Until later...................

 

 

 

 

Frank

[flyingleaf]

Brilliant Frank.

[flyguy737]

yes I'll do that sorry Frank just got excited didn't mean to hijack the thread

[Andrew 737]

yes I'll do that sorry Frank just got excited didn't mean to hijack the thread

Sounds like a great bargin Collin. I look forward to following your thread mate

I was thinking of starting one too

Frank

How do those dampers feel when operating the yoke?

[tennyson]

Andrew, they are essential.

 

As you know, the real aircraft has artificial feel as well, so the simulator stuff is not too far from the truth. You also need springs to add to the tension effect as the real aircraft gets harder to push as you get to the farther ends of the pitch and roll travel. 

 

The beauty of the dampers, or shocks, is that they have that distinctive hydraulic sound to them, as well, which also sounds great in the cockpit.

 

Now, to another story.

 

Today, I tidied up my cabling, coming from the two yokes. I had been gifted an invaluable article from my old mate, Gwyn Perrett, a document that lays out the wiring for the original yokes.

I say invaluable because he's saved me sitting through hours of testing and probing with a muti-meter.

 

The only problem I had with the document was I had an extra black/white wire left over and in Gwyn's document he said there were 2 left over that weren't being used.

 

I looked at Gwyn's pictures and he's missing the trip meters. The black/white wires go to the trip meters.

 

So, I took out the trip meter from one of the yokes and confirmed the black/white wire situation. Only problem is, I have 2 black/white wires going to it.....hmm, something is amiss here and I haven't yet got to the bottom of it.

 

Anyway, here is a pic of the trip meter I'm talking about:

 

 

So, I pulled it out of the yoke:

 

 

Depressed the pin on the top to release the head unit:

 

 

And as you can see in this pic, there is a slide in the side of the unit. It pushes out:

 

 

 

It contains three tiny little bulbs. So, what I need to do now is ascertain what voltage they are and then check the circuitry:

 

 

The trip meters are expensive and hard to get a hold of. It is not hard to see why they fetch a good price, as there is much more to them than meets the eye. 

 

So, tomorrow I'll break out the multimeter and test the circuit and the bulbs. If my hunch is right, there's a wrong second wire going to the attachment on the back of the trip meter. I think it should be the common or ground wire. That would make more sense.

 

More to come............

 

 

 

 

Frank

[Ripcord]

Geez, mate....what a ridiculous question.

 

 

It is a stupid question, Frank, upon further review... I must apologize. 

 

Clearly this is a well-designed and thoroughly thought-thru project you have here.  Well done.

[flyguy737]

very interesting about the trip meters Frank. I always wondered if they affected any instrument or circuit in the aircraft itself or are they just used as a pilot reminder of flight number?

 

I also have to agree about the level of detail you put in to this project mate.

[tennyson]

Haha...there is a wonderful blog called flaps2approach that my good friend Iain Williams has. He did a section on Scope creep. It was great reading. It basically outlined most of the builders that I know of and their initial intentions.

What they end up with is quite another story.

 

I'd be the first to admit that I had grand illusions to start with and then quickly cut those down when time and money started hitting home.

However, somewhere in the fog, the reality got thrown out the window again and the project grew wings (excuse the pun).

 

My excuse is, that there are lots of new additions being produced at cheaper rates....bla, bla, etc.

 

The real truth is, I've flown Nick Kranenburg's Simjet 737 and he is to blame for my big ideas!

 

I saw enough potential there and knew that it was possible to have a real replica 737, albeit a bit less costly and a little less professional. But I'm not in the business of training people for profit, so I can afford to please, well.....myself!

 

I'd like to kid myself that it's not enjoyable, making all of the little bits and pieces and stitching this thing together, but it is. I'm using skills that I've learned throughout my life and the end result will be to my satisfaction.

 

Probably some of the biggest surprises along the way, is the level of interest and also the level of help that is out there in various forms.

 

I guess it's human nature to want to see a project come together and.......fly

 

 

 

Frank

[Dibidut]

Its just smashing, WoW , and im beginning to se and feel your "obsession" to this altar.

Henrik

[Andrew 737]

Frank

Where does it all end?

I keep asking myself this question...

I think in the end I will be somewhere not far behind you mate - thanks for this thread

Edit - just saw your reply about the dampers; cheers for the insight bud

[Dibidut]

Frank

Where does it all end?

I keep asking myself this question...

I think in the end I will be somewhere not far behind you mate - thanks for this thread

Edit - just saw your reply about the dampers; cheers for the insight bud

I actually cant see the end of this  too

But i like to se the progress and failliours . i think its Ok to use 20000$ or more , for this passion, if you have them.

Otherwise its a break in your flying plan.

Personly i am flying.... Im not sure that Frank do.

Kind regards

Henrik

[Andrew 737]

I actually cant see the end of this too

But i like to se the progress and failliours . i think its Ok to use 20000$ or more , for this passion, if you have them.

Otherwise its a break in your flying plan.

Personly i am flying.... Im not sure that Frank do.

Kind regards

Henrik

Hi Henrik

Don't want to hijack Franks thread here but would love to hear about everyone's Real World flying experiences in another thread; I fly C172s out of EGSC

Do you fly Frank?

[Dibidut]

Hi Andrew.

Me neigther (to hijack).

Actually

KR

Henrik

[tennyson]

Where does it all end?

Come on, guys, a little faith, here.

I'm personally aiming for a Xmas christening, that's 2013 by the way! It is doable, provided some things fall into place.

And Henrik, 20,000 bucks won't buy you much in todays market, unless you buy someone's dream gone bad. I know of several guys selling full cockpits for a quarter of their worth at the moment.
That's a real shame, in my eyes.

 

I'm in no hurry and have no deadlines, but I'm certainly not dragging the chain. I wanna fly the thing!

 

Oh, and no, I don't fly anymore. I couldn't pass a physical today anyway.

 

Thas why I don't mind spending 100 g's on a simulator.....

 

 

 

 

 

Frank
 

[Andrew 737]

Where does it all end?

Come on, guys, a little faith, here.

I'm personally aiming for a Xmas christening, that's 2013 by the way! It is doable, provided some things fall into place.

And Henrik, 20,000 bucks won't buy you much in todays market, unless you buy someone's dream gone bad. I know of several guys selling full cockpits for a quarter of their worth at the moment.

That's a real shame, in my eyes.

 

I'm in no hurry and have no deadlines, but I'm certainly not dragging the chain. I wanna fly the thing!

 

Oh, and no, I don't fly anymore. I couldn't pass a physical today anyway.

 

Thas why I don't mind spending 100 g's on a simulator.....

 

 

 

 

 

Frank

You are an inspiration Frank

[Dibidut]

I was just a bit "optimistic" with the 20G (i see) .   And buing anothers dream wount make me (peresonly) happy either.

(sorry to hear that someone is going brooke. it happens also in DK, all the time).

I cant remember Your original estimate, but im surden(sure) it was in that erea ,  (funny to se the old/first treads).

I ,of curse wish you all the best, Frank.

Im looking forward to the "final solution"

Kind regards

Henrik