TripRodriguez

Yogi, What do you think about designing a cyclic friction device like on a real Huey cyclic? The new VKB Gunfighter has a friction device as well, but I think that one requires some disassembly to adjust.

Update June 30th: All good news today for once! The last couple little problems with the motion turned out to be coding errors in the firmware, which we have now solved (one possible pending bug remains)! The issues with interference between the actuator covers and the platform have been resolved 100% to my satisfaction without tearing the sim completely apart! I did lose a little bit of heave travel, but not very much and I'm very pleased with the range of motion and have eliminated all interference problems 100% for the first time since going to a much larger moving platform! So the motion sim is finally ready! To be ready to finally start flying again I must: - Complete mods to seat, joystick, collective, console, and overhead console to raise them all 3". This should "only take a day or so"™. - Finalize wiring on the collective assembly. This too should be pretty quick. After that to finish the UH-1 simulator: - Build floor panels around the new lowered base so I don't fall in! - Complete building all UH-1 panels and wiring (this will take a few weeks) - Paint and finish all components for appearance - Modify microhelis.de cyclic to add force trim and swap it in place of the modded dual FFB2.

It's so good to have you back Yogi, you are an amazing asset to the community! Also FU Photobucket! I'll have to move all my images over to IMGUR and link them all again.... like I need more work to add to my list!

Hi Mole, can you show me what you bought for bearings and how you installed them? This is the part of this type project I know nothing about. Message received on the youtube links. Trip

I agree that your CPU is a problem. It's nowhere near minimum spec according to Oculus by the way. VR performance isn't great at present, but that CPU cripples your system.

Brilliant work, keep the updates coming. As far as your youtube link I've had the same problem and seen others have the same problem. A mod came by and fixed mine but I never learned how.

Update June 28th: Installed Actuator position sensors Installed new electronics Completed Actuator Covers and installed Adjusted Actuator "home" position Tested basic motion There are (as always it seems) a couple hiccups. On board test of motion is perfect. BFF Software test mode I'm getting some strange behavior from Actuator 5 but this could be a bug in the software's testing mode. I don't expect this is going to be anything problematic but haven't tested actual flight yet. I may have mentioned that when I built my new deck for mounting the actuators I somehow accidentally mounted each pair about 1" closer to the center than before. I still have no idea how that happened. Well though the new position is perfect for the motion sim geometry, it has created some clearance issues to my actuator covers. I should really take it all back apart and move the actuators outboard 1 to 1.5 inches but I don't wanna! The clearance to the ceiling however is perfect with the 3" lift! Unfortunately I'm out of town tomorrow and very busy in general this week so it might be a few days before I get to do anything more. =(

Only FFB sticks need a power cord, and as mentioned there are no new FFB sticks. =(

Update June 27: Completed Actuator Cover mods Installed actuator position sensor assemblies Installed cockpit frame to platform To do before I can fly: Wire up new motion electronics Adjust position sensors Modify seat, consoles, stick, and collective to sit 3" higher (proper height) Finish collective final wiring (mostly just need to extend some of the wires) Additional work to complete: Build floor panels for around the sim Full cue motion tuning Complete UH-1 panels and wiring Mole thanks for the encouragement and following along. You are absolutely right, it was a tough call to delay things further by making this change but it was well worth it.

Hey that is very interesting! Thanks for the answer. If I was still doing the Gazelle pit (switched to Huey) I'd have bought these: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Aerospatiale-Military-Helicopter-Aircraft-Cockpit-Rudder-Pedal-Set-/263049726299?hash=item3d3efc495b:g:gUEAAOSwopRYhpRr Interestingly the lower cross bar seems much closer to the top one on these pedals than the Gazelle in-game model.

First thing I want to know is what you plan to fly? This changes my recommendations considerably. If you want FFB stick with FFB2, or mod one (or two together) FFB2's! The FFB2 is hands down the best FFB stick you can get. G940 had issues, and also reportedly didn't feel as good. VKB Gunfighter Pro is your best bet if you are willing to spend. Thrustmaster Warthog is often harshly criticized but also loved by many despite it's couple issues. Personally I love my Warthog that I put a few hours of work into the gimbal of. Warthog throttle is the best throttle on the market so far IMO, but that doesn't mean it is without flaws. For helicopters the conversation changes significantly, but it's worth mentioning that the Gunfighter has a dry clutch setup in it that makes it more helicopter appropriate than any other non-heli specific stick. FFB2 however is a really good option for some or most DCS helis. The Force Trim works great in the Huey! I will be happy to go into more detail on any of the above if you would like, just ask!

Inch measurements are best in fractions, most Americans don't have memorized the decimals that correspond to 1/16" increments as seen on measuring tape.

Update Jun. 24 Actuator cover mods 90% complete Cockpit Platform installed Next tasks: Finish up actuator covers 100% and touch up paint Install actuator position sensors Build floor panels around base Wire up new electronics Adjust position sensors Modify seat, consoles, stick, collective to sit 3" higher (proper height) Assemble all above components Start training flights at this point Post modification motion sim tuning Resume work on UH-1 panels and wiring to complete the UH-1 build

I mounted mine closer to the stick base to intentionally decrease travel so my stick wouldn't hit my main console or my other... delicate components. =P This simply due to the physical space available in my replica pit.

Bad, normal installation is to fix the ends of the dampers so they are at mid travel with the stick centered.

Thanks Deadman. It's very hard to estimate since it was spread over a couple years, I used some stuff I already had, etc. My guess would be I have about $6,000 USD in the motion sim, not including joysticks etc. For someone looking to build a rig like this, assuming you have the tools but not any of the parts or supplies you should probably plan for about a $8,000 plus investment.

A while back I believe we heard the overheat condition modeling was in progress. Hopefully the RPM split will be made a priority too. Keep the UH-1 love coming! Favorite module hands down.

Quick update: Sorry no pics of the collective conversion yet because I forgot to take them before making the huge mess I have now! I'll get them in a couple days. The new motion electronics came today! This means I should finally be able to get back in the air as soon as I get the sim put back together. I totally dismantled my motion sim to sink it into the network center flooring (which is about 8.75" above the real cement floor) and gain about 7.5 inches (~19cm) of overhead clearance so I can go back to using 100% heave travel AND raise my Huey cockpit about 3" further above the cockpit floor to get the correct full scale dimensions! This is a change I wanted to make but didn't want to add to my workload. I decided to suck it up and do it now because I know I'd never do it when the rig was up and running. This required fully dismantling the motion sim. I had to make a new base for mounting the actuators, and have to modify the actuator covers as well as build new floor panels to go around the new assembly. It's coming back together now, but there is still lots to do!

I look forward to new terrains and campaigns a lot, more than aircraft as I've got more of those than I'm ever likely to learn already!

Good to hear Yogi! Looking forward to your updates.

All looking great!

Most people for DCS are 100% sold on gr8 including me, but there is always the chance you will be one of the few who is really bothered by the low resolution or motion sickness. I'd give up both kidneys before my VR!

Excellent news Bad! What do you think of them so far?

Still no word from Yogi? Did anyone try getting him on his facebook group, Home Copter?

Good news today folks! I should have my replacement electronics in about a week and then after a day or so of work be ready to fly! Also I've pretty much decided to try to lower my motion sim down onto the real floor for additional clearance overhead. Hopefully this won't go horribly wrong and take longer than expected LOL. I expect to show some pics of the collective conversion later tonight, I have some things I need to get done first or the wife will have my head!