geneb

Dual-pane HUDs like the ones in the F/A-18, F-15 are "holographic" HUDs. The two combiner panes are coated differently and reflect two different frequencies of light. Here's a diagram of how that works. Using a real, collimated HUD in a DIY cockpit will cost you a pile and give you a headache. :) A real HUD is "focused" to infinity, so if you've got one in front of your projected display, your eyes will constantly be changing focus between the HUD symbology and the projected image. That being said, you CAN build a working HUD that uses a single combiner pane. You'll need a first surface mirror to bounce the symbology image up through a lens and that'll strike a partially silvered first surface mirror that you can view the symbology in that. Your combiner glass will simply be something similar to what Teleprompters use. If you head over here: http://www.firstsurfacemirrors.com you can get both the first surface acrylic mirror and partially reflective, first surface combiner "glass". Follow Mike's advice on your choice of output lens. g.

I've no intention of building an R/C model. That was simply used as the type of reference that could be used. I'm investigating the practicality of doing the design & build work for a Fw-190 cockpit section at 1:1 scale, which is, I suspect, pretty relevant to the readers of the forum I originally posted it to. I'm also looking into doing a much higher fidelity version of this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3ZrtLnAe_U, but I should post about that on an R/C forum, right? :noexpression: g.

Ahh yes, move the post where nobody that could benefit from the information found could actually FIND it. Here's the reference I chose: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001TECOLO/ref=s9_simh_co_p14_d0_i1?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=typ-top-left-1&pf_rd_r=1SYJ7VMDCFFAXQAJ5A5F&pf_rd_t=3201&pf_rd_p=1780082482&pf_rd_i=typ01 g.

That link isn't valid. :( I have a friend that would lose his mind over being able to fly an A-4 in DCS. :D g.

It's very difficult to design an FW-190 cockpit without a good reference. I figured this would be a good spot to find fans of the type that would know of a good reference....and may be interested in the end result. Silly me. g.

The end result isn't an R/C model - just an example. Regardless, thanks for the line noise. g.

Can someone point me to a good FW-190 reference book that includes line drawings with station outlines? The drawings need to be detailed enough that an R/C model could be designed based on them. Thanks! g.

I think that's the funniest photo-response I've ever seen. :D g.

That reminds me... hegykc, I found my F/A-18 grip a couple of months ago, so if you need reference photos just PM me. g.

Garbage bags make great bleed mask if your spoil board is larger than the material you need to hold down. Just lay the bags flat around your material and turn on the vac. For small parts I'll use a single zone and one Fein Turbo III dust collector. A Shop Vac would work equally as well. g.

I've got a 10 zone vacuum table on my ShopBot. It's perfect for holding sheet goods. You can use a 1/2" sheet of Ultralight MDF as a spoil board - the vacuum will draw right through it. Just paint the edges of it to prevent it from drawing air from the sides. You may have to remove about 1/32" from the front and back of the sheet to get rid of the hardened layers. They'll get in the way of a good draw down. When I cut acrylic or metal parts, I use a double stick tape called "216" (go to http://www.harborsales.net and enter "3DCF" in the search box - it's $34 for a 3" wide roll, 72 yards long). I put that on the metal or acrylic and use a J-roller to stick it to a properly sized bit of Coroplast (think plastic cardboard). The benefit here is that you can cut a little deep and it won't break the vacuum as long as you only cut through the top surface of the Coroplast. g.

The trick is to surface your build platform before you start a job - this guarantees that the surface you start with is 100% flat and square to the cutter. g.

There's a free add-on for Eagle called "pcb-gcode" that does great isolation routing for boards. g.

He may have missed the part about the O flute cutters being really only used for pocketing operations. g.

It's likely the font that Derek Higgs made for simpits.org back in 2000. g.

You're welcome! g.

I was made aware of this today: This will do exactly what you want and the included software is _excellent_. I've got both their VCarve Pro and Aspire packages. First rate stuff all the way. g.

Thanks! The tedious task of building all new wiring harnesses started last Saturday. Lots and lots of white wire. :) g.

Here you go: http://www.geneb.org/f15/throttle/outboard-grip.html The images are...large. :D If it matters to you, the elevation pot is 10K. g.

I mentioned silk screening because that's how it's actually done on production panels. If you're going after a museum-quality reproduction, that's pretty much your only choice. You can do pocketing operations on acrylic (cast, not extruded!) without any coolant at all - you use an upshear "O" flute bit like this: http://www.onsrud.com/product/Item/m/itemDetail.html?q=acrylic&itemId=63-510 and you'll get excellent results. This is the bit series I use when doing the panels on my F-15. THE most important thing to pay attention to when cutting acrylic on a CNC machine is the chip load. The chip load is basically the size of the "chip" that is cut when one flute carves off a chunk of material. (and yes, I'm aware most of you guys know this, but for those that don't.... :D ) Onsrud provides an excellent series of chip load charts for all their cutters here: http://www.onsrud.com/xdoc/FeedSpeeds as well as a brief explanation of what it's all about. When I pocket the back of a panel, I'll use an 1/8" cutter and use multiple .062" passes @ 10,000 RPM. I typically cut at 1in/sec with excellent results. A machine like the Shapeoko2 should be perfectly adequate for doing your own panels - but I would upgrade it to a spindle that gives you excellent RPM control. Unfortunately, a good spindle and VFD could cost nearly as much as the CNC machine itself, but the results are SO worth it. g.

Will do. Right now I'm in the middle of the right side console wiring job. Once the side console wiring harnesses are complete, I'll worry about the instrument panel. :) g.

I haven't opened it up - I was just making an assumption based on other devices of similar function that I've worked with in the past. g.

Production quality goes: 1. Silk Screen (this is how the "real" commercial process works) 2. Laser engraving 3. Mechanical engraving Regardless of anything else, go with what you can afford. It's as simple as that. :)

Perfectly standard from my standpoint. I've got the full pinout for the ADI, so when I reach that point, I'm good to go. g.

Read on my dear Padawan and you shall become...enlightened. :D g.