New homepage

[Westozy]

Hi all,
I've just been tinkering with my first webpage, a freebie from google.
http://aerosimsolutions.googlepages.com/home
I don't really have commercial ambitions, just mucking around!!!!!!

Gwyn

[Matt Olieman]

You mucked around pretty good :) Love your pics....

[Westozy]

Cheers Matt,

I've also been tinkering with making a demo movie, I hope to link that to my sight within the next few weeks. My first effort not quite right but I learned alot for 'take 2'.

Gwyn

[ekezz]

Great site! Have you added it to the Builders Links?

[James Twomey]

Gwyn,

That is a great site for "Mucking Around!” I have been trying to tinker with a web site myself but just can’t seem to get it to look the way I would like. I have many pictures that I would like to post showing how my flight deck has progressed. Keep up the good “Mucking around”

Oh and in one of your pics, I saw the throttles, did you make those yourself? That too is another PROJECT that I would like to take on in the future.

Regards,
James

[jabomeister]

what's the bandwidth like? Can it take traffic, like when you post an udpate here and at avsim.com, would it choke? I've had this problem with bravenet, where I put the webpage of my first cockpit. For the next project I plan to host with someone else.
I was also thinking about just blogging updates with pictures as they come along, since I wouldn't have much time to tinker with webpages anyway.
Any recommendations?

[Matt Olieman]

I know this is a little off topic. But, just to give you a heads up.

Just some nice things comming here for those who do not want to host a site. :D

You may already be aware, you can create your own home page and blog here (go to your "Profile"), soon we will make it posible to link your home page (your home page at MyCockpit.org) to your photos in the gallery.

The other option in the near future is this, if you want to host your own site, we will offer (at a very low rate) to host your own site from our server. The fee will help pay for the operating costs IFSBI // MyCockpit

[Westozy]

Cheers guys for the +feedback,

Kester- I wouldn't know how to do the link thing.

James - I have made everypart on my sim so far, my expenditure to date is AUD$3860 (US$3020) including the projector and Sim-Boards. There are a few close up pics in the gallery of my throttle levers including the internals.
See -
http://www.mycockpit.org/photopost/showgallery.php?cat=500&ppuser=59
If you want more detail give me an email.

Jabomeister - I am really website illiterate really and don't understand your Q. sorry.
I just clicked on 'Page Creator' at http://labs.google.com/ and followed the prompts, I had to create a gmail account first.

Matt - Maybe we need a fundraiser or more sponsors, or maybe an annual membership fee? I'm sure serious members/builders would be supportive

Regards Gwyn

[Trevor Hale]

Wow,

Gwyn. your site is looking really good. A quick question regarding your "Makita, Trim Motor" if you increase trim slowly is your switch controlling the motor and then a pot off the motor reports to flightsim, or is your switch directly controlling the trim and FS controlls the motor?

Matt: I would be interested in moving my website from my existing provider to IFSBI. I would rather give the money for a good cause, especially money that I am paying anyway. Is it a complicated process to move from one to the other?

Best regards,

Trev

[Matt Olieman]

Gwyn & Trev, thanks for the support. I can't see a membership fee, not in my life time :) I think through offering web hosting and a few ads we can break even (I hope).

I'm excited to see the interaction between my fellow builders and certainly is encouraging and rewarding. :)

[Westozy]

Hi Trevor, how it works...
The trim motor is gone for now, I removed it and fitted my Simboards in the console. There is room underneath the console for reconnection later on. The rocker switches in my yokes are dual pole and wired in parallel, currently one side of the dual pole switch operates trim up/dn thru keypress assignments in the Simboard software, it works perfectly. The plan was to use the other side of the switch to operate the trim motor through relays that I have already assembled and tested, and then delete the keypress assignments. Manually winding my trim wheels through 5 complete rotations moves the trim indicator full scale through a small reduction gearbox, this indicator is attached to a pot inside the quad that is wired to the Simboard. 5 turns of the wheels gave 0 -100% in the software and the pot was assigned to trim function. There appeared to be a glitch because the manual trimming was too erratic for use, the pot travel was smooth but it always gave a burst of opposite trim before going the right way - annoying. I shelved the plan for a while and went back to yoke trimming. I'll get around to asking FDT for advice, I'm sure it is solvable, I think it is a conflict between the trim and pitch pots. I can still make the trim wheels spin with the yoke buttons as a novelty, but the manual trimming is on hold for now, not essential but it will be a good addition when I sort it out. You've made me think! I've just made and fitted a self centering device for pitch movement of the yokes using a couple of screen door closers, it works sweet and I'll be posting pics real soon. I'm wondering if the trim pot will operate now that the yoke columns 'park' in the same place, I'll try it out again!
Hope that helps Trevor.

Matt - I too would switch my page to IFSBI, I probably would have to start again as mine is a free google page but that's ok.

Gwyn

[Trevor Hale]

Gwyn,

That does help. I have been toying with the idea myself, but wasn't sure how you could control a regular motor through flightsim. Your duel pole switch is actually a great idea. Servos are essentially a stepper motor, thus can be controlled through fsuipc. I was looking at some other options, There are several companies that make motorized potentiometers. So you can still have a knob or pulley on the end, for manual movement, and it is fitted with a motor in the back end. Possible a good solution for auto-throttles. Biggest problem, is it is not a stepper motor, so accurately controlling it, would be tricky. I had thought about creating a PCB that essentially will create short bursts of duty cycle on the motor, and being able to control the number of short bursts through out the cycle may be an option.

Either way, I was intrigued, and you too have me thinking.

Continuing my search for the sim that builds itself.....

Thanks,

Trev

[Westozy]

Trevor,
I was just using a seperate 12v circuit to drive the drill motor, it was totally independent from FS. The only connection to FS was the trim pot itself.
I can email my schematic if you wish, it's already drawn. (There you go Matt!)

Gwyn

[Matt Olieman]

Gwyn, how about posting the schematic here. Put it in as an attachment to your post. Love to see this :)

[Trevor Hale]

Not bad Gwyn,

Looks good.

I see, now exactly what you were talking about, thats how I pictured you had it set up, but wasn't 100% sure. What are you doing now for your auto throttles? :rolleyes:

I really like this community, it always amazes me how someone somewhere has already surpassed some of the hurdles we all will all face eventially.

Thanks Gwyn.

Trev

[Matt Olieman]

I really like this community, it always amazes me how someone somewhere has already surpassed some of the hurdles we all will all face eventially.
Trev

Trev, you make an excellent point. Let's keep this community going and encourage others to share their experiences :)

Even as a seasoned builder, I keep learning new things.... I love it :)

[Bob Reed]

Hi guys! As I have posted here in the past.. This is what IFSBI is all about! I have been building for a number of years now, but there is no end to what I have been learning, and things have realy gotten good the last few weeks! Lets all keep posting and I know it takes time that we could be building but in the end I think it is well worth it! Great work folks!! :)

[Trevor Hale]

Time during the day, I seem to have. I build in the evenings and check here during the day. It's nice having something else to think about during the day other then work, work, work.

Reminds me, I need to take some picture of the New throttle Quadrant... :)


Trev

[Westozy]

Trevor,
I never considered adding auto throttles really because I have a great passion for hand flying. The reason I built my sim in the first place was to replace real flying which is sooooo expensive as we all know. Captain John, who is a real B737 pilot from one of our biggest Aussie domestic carriers, has visited my sim twice now. He says my controls are tuned and weighted correctly, although he points out that the PMDG's airfile is not quite right, apparantly the real thing doesn't sink that much in turns, compared to FS. My sim really feels like an aircraft and auto functions are not a big priority for me, I only use AP for the cruise generally, I enjoy following the Flight Director on descent, and manually adjusting speed etc. it's a fun challenge.

Captain John invited me to see his Boeing 2 weeks ago at YPPH and I had 20 minutes in the "big chair" taking pics and measurements of the glareshield, the next thing I have to build.(it's 310mm from MIP to the front of the MCP by the way!) Captain John would like to visit my sim regularly he says and I'm stoked. He is my new instructor!

You're spot on about the knowledge sharing to ease our pains. The amount of good ideas here is great and always growing, I think 'mycockpit.org. will become the main hub soon enough and attract the support of the major vendors.

Attached picture - Me and Bill Smith sitting in the 737, Bill is the author of "Get Real" an FS novel, http://www.toomuchfs.com/GetReal.htm Bill is a columnist at FS.Com and also a regular visitor to my sim, despite his preference to flying the French effort! lol. (This was how Captain John found me by the way)

Regards All
Gwyn

[Trevor Hale]

LOL,

Gwyn, you must have been like a kid in a candy store in there.... And I imagine once you were all finished you may have even realized you forgot one or two measurements.

I understand your want to hand fly. I love to hand fly, but until I can train my wife, to just bring me beer when it is empty, I will still need to leave the flight deck to go get one. Either that, or install a cooler in the center pedistal..

Regards,

Trev

[Westozy]

Hi Trevor,
Your probably right, that cockpit visit was over in a flash. The good thing is Captain John has given me his mobile number so I can call on him for reference if needed, we have become quite good mates. The missus can't understand his desire for an evening in my sim after he has flown the real 737 for 7 hours in a day, but there it is, he loves simming too. He says he often uses FS to practice safety procedures and approaches to strips he hasn't flown into before. He also instructs other pilots in the real simulators in Melbourne and commented that the real sims have a lot of limits that FS doesn't have. He wants to own his own sim but I think he is just going to buy a complete plug'n'play set-up as offered by the likes of FDS and Engravity etc. He says he would like to bring some of his colleagues along for a fly and said, "One of our rich captain's will come and take your sim away so be prepared", not for sale yet though!

Bill Smith wrote a story on our visit to the 737 for 'Computer Pilot' which is very good but unfortunately, after seeking permission from Captain John's airline, they declined, and asked that John's surname remain undisclosed also, 911 has messed up a lot for the aviation fan. Obviously, security has increased immensely here in OZ too, I'm glad I didn't have to explain the reason for taking my tape measure through check-in security!

Gwyn

[Trevor Hale]

LOL,

Yeah, thay may have asked a few more questions.

I am glad it was fun, I wish I had that oppertunity... Wait! I do, I can go sit in the Falcon 900 anytime :) Unless it is flying.

I will tell you one thing, it makes simming much more interesting when all we need for inspiration is a couple minutes in the real thing.

Best regards, and have a great time with the Capt.

Trev