Building a 737

[IVA739]

Hi. I am taking flying lessons and have been doing simulators for years. I finally decided it was time to build a cockpit to use. I would like to build a 737 cockpit very realistically but try to keep the cost reasonable. I have no idea where to start and any help you could offer would be much appreciated.

[Trevor Hale]

Welcome to MyCockpit.

the first thing you should do is a search here in the forum for "Where to begin" You will find about 20+ threads all giving a similar opinion. I hope you enjoy your stay here, and hope to see pictures of your project as you progress.

Trev

[IVA739]

Roger that. I will check that out. Generally speaking how much am I looking at if I do it reasonably.

[Trevor Hale]

All of us want to do it cheap. and you would be surprised at how much you can change the feel of your setup, by just adding "Paint" and Plywood.

So I would suggest you have a look at some of the projects here, if you want 100% realistic your looking at 10's of thousands. If your happy with some "Immersion for you to get away form the monitor and keyboard" you would be amazed what 500 bucks will do for you.

It's all about what you want.

Trev

[IVA739]

Ya I hear ya. I'm definitely not willing to spend 10's of thousands. I am not tied to doing a 737 either. I would like to try and do fairly real for around 1000 bucks. Any specific threads I should look at with that in mind?

[TasKiNG]

I had the same dilema, i.e I wanted a realistic sim for less than £1000. In the end I decided to build a Learjet 45 as I wanted a Jet with a simple layout and no overhead panel to worry about. For more info check out my website and Links page.

http://www.learjet45chimera.co.uk

[NigelD]

Hi there,
Likewise - I think few of us have 1000s to spare for a hobby, and even those that do want good value for their money. I'm working on an A3xx cockpit. The largest single expense is a new PC at almost £700. The current estimate to completion is probably under £2000. I'm doing almost all the work myself, building my own panels etc.

Having said that, I've also spent more than 9 months doing nothing but research, googling, reading, scouring this and other forums, and asking questions. Research, research and research - cannot emphasize is enough.

If there is a single plane you love to fly, build that. The 737 certainly is hugely popular, so you can find a lot of information and parts. If you want something more generic, then really the world is your oyster. You can build a cockpit to suit yourself!

Just my opinion of course, and open to correction...

[IVA739]

I am looking at Hispapanels and saw that they are very reasonably priced and I could do all the panels for just over 2000 euros. I may be willing to spend that. Anyone have any experience with those parts and assembly, connections, etc?

[Jackpilot]

IVA

You are learning flight, so you know what's basic for an airplane.
Just build THE IVA jet and add whatever systems you do not have on your trainer and you dream of....it is your life and your airplane!
You are the designer, engineer, test pilot, mechanic, and project Chief Financial Officer.. let your imagination loose.
I did my first sim out of cardboard, based on a 757, with a home made throttle quad, and I went all over the world with it . First time I pushed forward those two levers instead of the page up key and the engines roared to life I was King of the Runway!
And I think I had much more fun with it than the close replica of a 737 I am building now.
Any basic interface card with 20+buttons will allow you to have a real switch for this and a real lever for that...and this is where the thrill begins...and all this is available within your budget.
As Nigel said wisely: "Just my opinion of course, and open to correction..."

[IVA739]

Just to make sure I get this correctly each switch or lever takes one spot on the interface card correct?