The First Purchase for Every cockpit Builder [Archive] - MyCockpit.org

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jmig

08-08-2009, 11:05 PM

<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 12"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 12"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5CJohn%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><link rel="themeData" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5CJohn%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_themedata.thmx"><link rel="colorSchemeMapping" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5CJohn%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_colorschememapping.xml"><style>  </style> Should be Mike Powell’s [I]Building Recreational flight Simulators. The book is one nickel short of sixty US dollars. However, I promise you that if you buy the book and use it, you will save much more than the cost of the book in time, research, and simulator purchases. I WISH I had a copy this book before I started building my T-38C cockpit. It would have saved me several hundred dollars of false starts. In fact, after reviewing the book, I want to redo parts of my sim.
To be upfront and honest, I know Mike and consider him a friend. I reviewed part of this book early on and wrote back lengthy comments on how I thought he could improve the book. He thanked me and I never heard back from him again until a gift copy of the book arrived via mail. I had tried to buy the book but, Mike refunded my purchase price and told me he was sending me a gratis copy. That being said, I still think the book is worth every cent of its investment to any cockpit builder.
I spent two to three years researching my cockpit before I started building. This book would have cut that time by one half to two thirds. I spent over a year developing the design of my control stick and rudder pedals to match the real aircraft. The book would not have helped me with the looks of the design. It would have saved me much time and money on the operational parts, i.e, the transmitting the mechanical motion into electrical signals the computer could use for FSX.
Mike Powell will help you build a control stick and yoke. Rudder pedals and throttles. He provides actual projects you can use or adapt and tells you where to go if you would rather just purchase commercial controls.
He shows you how to build DIY instruments or convert MSFS on screen gauges to an instrument monitor in your cockpit. He even shows you how to convert real aircraft gauges, how do you say eBay, for use in your cockpit.
Each chapter provides a part of the simulator. He offers advice and projects to build it yourself. He provides numerous urls to helpful sites and gives names and urls of companies that provide the components you will need.
Take it for someone who during the last five years has purchased I/O cards from four different companies, redesigned his controls three different times to get them right and, who has hundreds of dollars of parts he will never use. Buy the book! You will be glad you did.

Philb737

08-09-2009, 05:53 AM

Thanks for the info John:p, my copy is in the mail!:D:D

Padraig

08-09-2009, 07:41 AM

I have his first book, I will surely get his second one too. Your right, every builder should have either one of them or the set now !

Mike.Powell

08-09-2009, 11:24 AM

High praise, John. Thank you.

Your feedback not only caused me to rewrite the section you reviewed, it changed my approach to the projects and the rest of the book. The book is better because of it.

Once again, thanks.

Jordan Farmer

08-21-2009, 03:49 PM

Just bought this book, i think i need it hehe :) I look forward to reading it :D

Pomel

09-05-2009, 01:48 PM

John,
Nice review. I have both of Mikes books and I think they are great! They are very detailed, well written and definatly worth the price! If your going to build a simulator, or just want to know what's involved in building one, get this book!

Mike,
Thanks for the hard work and thought you have put into these books, outstanding job!

Mike.Powell

09-05-2009, 02:41 PM

And thank you for the kind words.

BHawthorne

09-05-2009, 05:05 PM

I've been meaning to pick up both books, but haven't yet. I plan on picking them both up soon as my excess student financial aid is disbursed in late September. I'll be using both manuals to assist in my F-84F simpit project. Tons of instruments to be interfacing soon.