One step forward into the backburner

[zenandzen]

Hi all,
I've been thinking (danger Will Robinson!) & the more I do the less sure I am about building my pit.
I thought I had a great start with my fruit crate & car seat , & well "I won't have to add much now" thinking.
Looking around at all the great photos of these pits you guys are building brings me to question a few things.
How did you arrive at deciding what to build?
You want to model a particular aircraft cockpit because you like the look of the real thing, or you may have flown in one, or the challenge of building a difficult set of panels?

Of the many aircraft out there in wild blue stuff ,to narrow it down to one particular console , for me is overwhelming to say the least & I have'nt flown enough of them to find a favourite yet.
I did think I was going to go single seat WWII type of pit ,till I saw the wonderful examples here.
I still might. I just don't know.
Then again,the way I am at the moment something that lets me fly anything I want seems to be right.

So I put it out there for all of you to throw in the reason/s you chose to build your cockpit the way you have.
Reasons NOT to build a certain thing are also valid.
Cheers
Gerry

[Michael Carter]

The Boeing 727 was the only commercial aircraft I ever wanted to fly. I really thought I'd be doing it for real, but things didn't quite work out.

[JBaymore]

I really thought I'd be doing it for real, but things didn't quite work out.

"Life is what happens to you while you are busy making other plans." -John Lennon



My pit is set up as a "generic" four engine commercial transport. It is based on the BAe 146-200..... but is not literal by any means. The decision was based on a number of factors:

I knew I wanted a commercial transport aircraft. The "heavy metal" thing just captivates me, and I really like the challenge of "systems" and flying procedures. Plus it is something that I'll NEVER do. (I COULD get my PPL.)

Been simming since the pre-MSFS days. Early on in fs2004's tenure I became infatuated with the little 146-200. It has the complexity of larger aircraft, it has STOL characteristics so you can put it down in a lot of airports, has the maximum level of 4 engines (so the pit "fits" up to a four engine aircraft) and for me ..... since I mostly have time for short to medium flights.... the 747 is sort of an absurd 4 engine choice.

I decided on "generic" for two main reasons and one minor reason: 1.-to do a literal replication of ANY aircraft gets into the BIG bucks........ or you have to be Gwyn (Westozy). No one is making replica panels or parts for the 146-200 anyway. 2- I sometimes like to fly other stuff..... so I wanted some "flexibility". 3.- Not everyone gets to design their own aircraft. My cockpit layout is MINE! ;)

So... I think that sort of sums it up.

The one piece of advice I can give is don't rush to saw and soldering iron. The planning part is half the fun, and it saves you a LOT of frustration and money in the end.

Good luck with your project. Keep us posted.

best,

.......................john

PS: What's the significance of Zen?

[zenandzen]

Great comments!


Zen????
From an album by Robert Plant ...... Now & Zen except when I tried to use it as a sign in name years ago it was taken so I messed around with variations till something was'nt already in use ... zenandzen

[JBaymore]

Zen????
From an album by Robert Plant ...... Now & Zen

Aha. Thanks. Just wondered if there was a connection to Japan.

best,

..................john

[zenandzen]

John,
146-200? not ringing any bells for me ,could you give a little more detail ?
My fave at the moment in STOL category would have to be the Westland Lysander & I know there are many with STOL ability but for me there's a nostalgia about it.
Cheers
Gerry

[JBaymore]

British Aerospace. Four engine regional jet. The 200 is a "stretch" of the 100. And they have a 300 also. Still in the air in some places... but out of production.


Here you go:

http://www.regional-services.com/pdf/BAe_146_General_data_brochure.pdf

http://www.shockcone.co.uk/bae146/

http://www.baepanelproject.com/

I am using the model by jon Murchison and the panel (for the systems) by Matthias Liebrecht.

best,

..................john

[AndyT]

I fly small piston singles in real life and I wanted to more or less replicate that. I like Cessna's but I also like Mooney, Twotter, Piper and some others so, that made me decide to build a more generic pit. Right now, it looks more like a Cessna but that was my first pit and not subject to a lot of planning.

Right now I'm in the planning stage for my next build which will be much more generic but will also include motion, 3D displays and room for a co-pilot. The new one will be able to emulate anything from a Cessna 150 to a large twin. And it will have glass panels also. (G1000)

Go with what makes you happy. After all, isnt that why we build these time and money sucking beasts in the first place? :D

[magicaldr]

I am also stuck on what to build, I flew all sorts on the PC, heli's and single engine GA's mostly. However every now and then I will leap into a Tornado or heavy metal...

For a long time I lived with a single screen, good joystick, a flight helmet and lots of imagination. More recently I went up to 2 screens, with my instruments below the outside view. Then one weekend with a saw, some MDF, and a poster of a Piper Warrior I have a home cockpit. Its GA, and I love it, but now I find that I want more buttons, and more flexibility. So I am going to design a new generic cockpit.

So like you I am caught, I want a combat heli, that can be a small jet, and also my favorite Piper. I think the main thing for me is hiding the outside world, and the ability to lose myself in my virtual plane. I want it enclosed, and I really want 2 seats but space dictates a single seater. I don't want a keyboard in sight, and I would like a few more complex systems to play with. I have plans for a removable mask over my instrument monitor so I can change aircraft quickly, but everything is still in the planning stage.

Good luck with your build, I would suggest a long dig through other peoples pits noting what you like / dislike as a good place to start :) oh and a large pad of paper...

[Tomlin]

I too had this issue once or twice, but only because I was worried that I would get bored with one type of flight deck. I have always loved the big aircraft, but costs and time and space became a factor that made me go nuts, so I chose the Learjet 45.

I also have another solution-the instructor station will allow me to still fly other aircraft with a joystick if I get tired of the high and fast flight of the L45. It will just be on a 19" CRT though! Hey, I figure if Ive flown over 1100 hours using 1 monitor this long, I must love it enought to do it another 1100 hours when Im bored with the full size sim, because I know I will want to fly small prop craft around places like Saint Marten and all every once and a while.

One you I would encourage you to do that would be very affordable, would be to create the ultimate generic sim by buildinb a basic 'box', place two car seats in it, buy a few GoFlight radio and interface modules, and the a projector. Build your instrument panel out of MDF with cut outs to show 2 large LCD monitors for your gauges (this gives you a lot of flexibility) and then have your projector showing the outside foward view. Should be very possible with 1 very nice high end PC with a dual head video card. Dont forget to buy some sort of generic yoke(s), pedals, and a Throttle. CH product's throttle will at least allow you to change the handles to suit GA or jets. This can all be done for a very reasonable price I feel, and was very close to being done by myself, but I fell in love with private jets!

Best of luck!