LynxDK

Looking very good :)

Ext. Stores Switch Guard Replica is now for sale. http://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?p=2429153#post2429153

JK04: Ext. Stores Jettison Switch Guard Hand turned aluminum switch guards. Made with 12mm holes for push Switches. These are replicas of the Ext. Stores Jettison Switch Guard. The following pictures shows a Switch Guard with a Quality 12mm switch. Outer Dimension: 25mm Inner Dimension: 21mm Height: 18mm You can buy them from my webshop, here: http://lynx.dk/product/ext-stores-jettison-switch-guard-replica/

I dont know what CNC you got, and or how precise it is. If its a reliable machine, and you got homing switches, you can home it and it should know its bearings. If its a china model, the thing will never be precise, not even if you got homing switches. But there are other ways you can do it. Start by cutting a angle, where you add som numbers on each axis of the cut line, so you dont have the angle all the way out on the edge of the cutting area. Remember those cordinates, it would be smart to have the same numbers on each axis, fx X-20 Y-20 And remember to cut a cirkle in the corner of the angle, so that you can place Square object all the way up the corner. Then you paint the thing, and when its dry you engrave a cross at a specific cordinate fx the middle in X-10 Y-10. Then when you place you object, you put on your engraving bit, and position the bit right in the cross, and then you can read in mach 3 or whatever you use what the machine Thinks the cordinates is. Then compensate these cordinates in your CAM software to get this position. And there you have it... It will run precise... Its abit annoying to to that every time, but it Works. Hope that helped.

HSI Prototype.

Hit me a PM and we can talk. The depth i mean is the distance from the MIP Surface, where you Mount the gauge, to the Monitor you have behind. then i will print the gauge walls to the same depth, so you dont have to cut circular holes to all your gauges. The Multigauge Panel isnt quite finished, and i havent calculated the prices yet either, but since there is alot of acrylic layers, like the real panel, that gives the cnc more Work. Same with the paint, its not only 1 panel that need painted, its 7 panels, so that Again takes time. But as i said before, ill do my best to keep the Price as low as possible, but this is Again one of the more complex Panels. When we get to the RWR, ADI, HSI etc. the Price will be lower, since they are more simpel in build... im sorry that i started out with the complex and more expensive Overlay panels. :)

The 765DKK + Paypal and shipping are for the Engine Overlay Panel alone. The UFC is not included, and i cant yet tell you the Price on the UFC, because we havent got that far in the process yet. I can promise you that the Price wont be as high as those you can find on the Commercial sites. But there is many parts to this, the front and bottons that i have posted is only the start. Next is the PCB, that need to Work properly, with Backlighting. And then the Casing and the Arduino. And this early in the Development i wont dare to make an estimate, because that could easily come back to me. But as soon as i know, i will post it. That the best i can do for now. I hope u understand :) Best Regards.

Some Pictures of the MultiGauge Panel Overlay Prototype. Dont mind the UHF Panel Color, that is definately not how the final color will be :), and the Contrast between the panel and the UHF engraving will be better. Both Buttons on the Digital Clock Works, and the Rotary is an Encoder, with a push Function for Caging, so you can choose the knob with a "push to Cage" or "Pull to Cage".

If you can make real gauges, that would definitely be the most Professional and best looking option :) Looking forward to see your Work :)

Looking really good Swither, and thank you for the nice Words :) looks like your going to use a monitor for the gauges, what size are u planning on using?

This panel is made as an Overlay to Helios, so its only the frontpanel, with the screws, 3Dprinted Rings, and Lights, which are capable of housing a LED. Its meant to be mounted ontop of your Computer Monitor running Helios software Gauges. Im afraid if it was a real panel with steppers and needles, the Price would be much difrent. Alltho it would be cool to offer you Guys someday, for now, we do these. Its simply too much Work, and we have enough going on with all the Panels and the UFC atm. Im sorry if i made the impression that it was real needle gauges, but the Pictures show the panel as it is. :) So if you fx. have a monitor running Helios, with a wooden plate in front of it with drilled holes for each gauge, this thing will fit ontop, and make it look a Little more real. i hope you follow me. :)

Im Happy to hear that, That Means that im not the only one who wanted something like this :) But the Price is allways the tricky part, and i hope i wont Loose you Guys when you hear it :) I have really tryed to keep the prices Down as much as i can, but heres the prices for the Engine Gauge Panel. The Price for a complete Panel, with 3D Printed Gauge Rings and Lights is 765DKK. This is without Paypal Fees and Shipping, which is about 169DKK. But when you order you tell me the distance from the surface (The surface the panel is mounted on) to your Screen, and i will Print the rings in that depth, so you dont have to drill circular holes for each gauge. I intend to do this with all Overlay Panels i make. The panel comes unassembled, but you only have to Mount the screws, and screw in the base of the lights, then the Light head clicks right onto it, and the Rings fits nice and tight in the holes, so no need for glue... unless you wanna paint them as i did in one of my Pictures. Of course you can choose not to order the panel with the 3D Printed parts, but only the Black panel with engravings. Then it will be much cheaper. This is one of the more expensive panel of this type, because there is so many parts on it, the simpler Overlay Panels like HSI will be cheap, as its only milled out and painted, without any engravings.

Looks Awesome Deadman :) Looking forward to see the Consoles :)

Thank you :) If you allready have a working UFC, you can choose to buy the front, bottons and maybe the PCB, unless you wanna make one yourself... which is fairly easy, as a prototype PCB can be used with ease. But then you can just transfer it all over, that way you can get it real cheap... Compared to a "P&P" verison. You can of course also buy the Alu Casing to get the right final look :)

Thank you Guys. We will Work as fast as we can, and release Pictures and info as we go :) And just to be clear, so there wont be any misunderstandings. When we say Plug And Play, it Means a UFC, with a USB stick, ready to hook up to a computer. BUT, Its running on Arduino,u Coded to use with DCS BIOS, so you still have to install and run DCS BIOS for it to Work in game. We will however not be offering any support on DCS BIOS, Its freeware, and people should be able to get plenty of help from the forum. If it goes as planned, we also intend to release arduino code, so the unit can be programmed to Work like a joystick with software like V-Joy, so it can be used in other games too. And yes, if we get that to Work, the code to reprogram the arduino will be free. Best Regards.

Here is some quick shots of the UFC screwed in the Aluminum Casing before painting. sry for the dark Pictures. Be advised that its also a Prototype, therefore its not totally fitted in size, and is kinda raw with no finish. I hope you like it :) i will paint it soon, so more Pictures will arive.

Bent acrylic sheets as casing will still take time for me to do, assemble / glue and so on.... 3d printed stuff dosnt. So the answer to this is the same as to the Light knob, im 3d printing it to keep the Price low, because no, that single part isnt expensive, but for those who want it, they can easily switch it out with an original. Im constantly thinking in prices, to keep it low for you Guys. :) As for the font. You are correct that the numbers isnt ms33558, and i can also tell you, that the final product will have original UFC fonts. Im happy to help with details on most Things, but as for the fonts go... i will keep this to myself. Not because i dont wanna share... but because the info on which fonts are used cant be found anywhere, and the solution is many years of research and tons of hours looking through stuff, until you suddenly come across the real font. I can not take credit for all this research, because im new in this business, and therefore its not my info to give away. And i promissed not to. I hope you understand. And to answer your arduino question, we dont want to make the UFC with a Key matrix. We will make it so that multiple keys can be pressed at once, why, simply because it can Work with other games, or applications if people would need that. :) But you will soon see more... :)

Mr Burns, Your last method is good but put double sided tape under all the buttons, that way they wont jump off when cut free :) I got some requests for a complete Plug and Play UFC. And yes, in time we will make a P&P UFC, but it takes time to perfect. So the first thing we will concentrate on, is the front and buttons as a pack. This is for those who dont mind making their own PCB with Switches and LED's. This will be the cheapest way to go. The Next thing we will make is the PCB, with tactile switches and LED's. That one will be available as a DIY set where you get all the parts, and you have to solder them yourself. Then we are aiming for the complete DIY set. it will include UFC front, buttons, PCB, Switches & LED's and the arduino to connect it. And then you can download the code for the Arduino from our Website. The last option will be the Plug And Play Version. That one is all done and ready to hook up to your computer. and this one will ofcourse be the most expensive, because we have to put it all together, and load up the arduino ect. The Aluminum casing will be a extra buy for each set, and that is simply because its handmade from aluminum sheets, and the Price will be higher that a plastic box. As an alternative to this, we will also make 3D printed casings, with or without table stands, to fit the individual needs. Right now we are working on getting the final UFC front done, so its ready for sale... and the Aluminum casing will be ready shortly after or maybe at the same time. and first when we have this done, will we look at the PCB. I hope that cleared Things up abit, but dont stop to ask if you have questions.

Im glad you like it. Obviously there is some Things that needs to be changed, such as the Width of the selector buttons. And maybe there is a Little too much spacing between the buttons and the holes... and also the engravings as mentioned earlyer, but as its a prototype, there is room for improvements. So we will start working on a new prototype now. And a big thanks to Deadman, who helped me with alot of details, his knowledge goes beyond awesome, i really appreciate your help. Thanks :) As for those who are interested in purchasing this, the first package you can purchase, when we have it ready for sale, will be the front and the buttons. and you can PM me if you are interested, and i will put you on a list, and you will be able to buy it when its done. Nothing binding, as the finished product hasnt been shown yet. And neither the Price. But we are trying to keep cost as low as possible. This is also to give me an idea of how much material we need and how many we should cut out when we start them. And if you have questions. dont hesitate to write.

The first set of prototype buttons is done. I will let you know that we had a small accident on the number 4 button. Also the selector buttons are not sloped, why? we havent made it like that yet, but we plan on later on, so if anyone purchase a UFC before that happens, they will get them sended when we start making them. Again one of the selector buttons are not engraved, and our Master caution is not yet painted and finished, in the finished botton you wont be able to see the text that clear. But now your getting it, so please look through the small deviations, as this is a prototype. But we are very close.

No that would be too ugly. Only thing there will be printed is the light dimmer Rotary knob on the side... im printing the Prototype right now. was thinking about Maybe make a 3d printed casing, as an alternative to the Aluminum box. the arduino wouldnt fit into tho, so the wiring needs to go to another box, housing the arduino. But the 3d printed case will not be as Deep, and the UFC can therefore be mounted right in front of a monitor, for those who want that setup.

Also from Acrylic, painted and engraved. If everything goes as planned, i have Pictures of these very soon.

Well as its sitting there on the table i can see it looks like cast aluminum :) You are right that im using the old MS33558 Font, simply because i havent been able to find the original font. Have searched around, and found that this font is used on most panels. Alltho im well aware that its abit wider than the one on the Original UFC. Maybe you can help me with an original font?

And as you can see here, the casing are not going to be placed around the ufc. We have made a Little edge so the casing fits nicely on the back. Not that this is the prototype, the final UFC will have nice rounded edges, both on the panel front, and on the aluminum casing.

This isnt aluminum, its Acrylic, as you can see here its going to be fully backlit, with a light dimmer on the left side of the casing.