DEG

Some edglit panels in real aircraft use white paint, then oversprayed with black paint, then a laser burns off the black paint to expose the white paint; on top of a clear panel. The panel has embedded lights (LED or incandescent), often with a diffuser layer to 'spread' the light throughout the panel. Don't suppose anyone has a laser engraver to try it out DIY?

Late reply; did you get your issue resolved? 2nd what ToastFrenzy said - use the 3rd party software (eg Simshaker) with the Buttkicker if possible, which uses the interface with DCS to set vibration levels, etc per DCS outputs; save the audio for, well, speakers (in the 20-20k Hz audible range) for your ears. Much better experience in my opinion.

+1 on the VKB T Rudders. You can keep your heel on the pad, and actuate the pedals with ankle motion, no knee movement. Might be what you're looking for

Shout out to Miles for awesomeness. I took a break from DCS for a year or so; finally got my system back up and running, including PointCtrl. I still marvel at it. For me, it is a similar leap in immersion that going from monitors to VR was. Sitting in and operating different cockpits, the way they are supposed to operate. And to double-up on it, Miles - you continue to share this awesomeness with all of us - we're in your debt!

+1 on the buttkicker. mine is strapped directly to the bottom of my seat. the guns do some serious butt kicking. i've got the stall buffet setting much lower, works really well. I suspect the vib seats will also work (thinking of adding one to my rig too)

I might be over-thinking this. From the internal pic on the Kosmosima, there's a PCB-type connector, which I'm guessing is a JST-type or something similar (or easily spliced into), so no need for the grip-connector type.

how old/new is your GF? I received one (GF II, with an MCG Pro) in early Jan, and the soft center cams are very soft. I'm using 50# springs with the extension (stock springs without the extension), and it is hard to tell when you hit center unless you let the stick go there on it's own. Are you seeing the 'clunk' issue on both pitch and roll axes? Wondering if there is a 'bad' cam batch or something? What springs are you using?

Alternate solution? Not quite what you're asking about (eg use Fanatec pedals for rudders), but... I was thinking the same thing, with my CSL Elite pedals, which are even more symmetric (gas / clutch, same spring mechanism), but they arent very 'rudder pedal like' with their 0-100 (instead of 0 +/-50 if that makes any sense), and their independent motion. I ended up getting a set of VKB pedals ($220 on Amazon now), and gluing a nut to the underside of the Fanatec mounting plate, so the rudder pedals screw on with a single (hand-tightened) hex bolt. Takes <30sec to swap them in and out. Bonus is the Fanatec pedals now serve as wheel brakes. On another note, the Fanatec brake handle makes a decent collective for helicopters: https://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?p=3742039

Here's a pic of what I'm looking for (feel free to copy!). Only need the left connector - the black cap connector on the grip-side of the extension (with wires attached if possible). Can use a black box extension cable already available from the website to wire into the other end to connect to the black box

Alter - check your PM.

I got my GF II and MCG Pro, and the base bypass makes sense now. Alter - what you note about using the extension should work, you can cut the extension down (eg remove the 'base' end, and that will leave the extension to attach to whatever you need to attach it to (a collective lever in my case). And still have a clean end to attach the grip to. I'm getting to know the VKBCfg software; the BlackBox sees the grip and the base as 2 separate devices, so the software work to make this function should be pretty straight forward. UIV - if we order the connector only, does that include the circular 'cap' on the extension, that the grip attaches to? I think that's what I (and Alterstate, I think) would be looking for. Let me know if you want a pic if it's not clear what I mean The VKB guys have been really helpful on the forum - thanks in advance guys!

Really like your setup! Couple questions/comments on the HUD. Is the distance from the eye (through the combiner) to the HUD symbology display the same as the distance from the eye to the screen? If not, you will likely have issues trying to focus between them. Real HUDs are collimated (eg focused at infinity) so the symbology is in focus when you are focused outside at distance. A couple possible solutions to get the display and symbology distances the same: - software solution - merge the HUD symbology onto the center projector display - not sure how to do this easily, I'm a systems integrator guy, not a software guy... :) - get a second projector and project both the front display and the symbology on top of it (that's easy but more expensive Neither of those are true 'HUDs' using a combiner, but they'll 'work' from a human factors perspective. If you want to do a true HUD combiner, you can use a lens setup to mess around to try and match the distances. You may be able to use a fresnel lens (something like this https://www.amazon.com/8x10-Fresnel-Lens-Magnifying-Sheet/dp/B001TLJXJ8 ); I'm not sure if they truly collimate or if they just change the focus distance a lot, but putting it on top of your HUD symbology generator (not sure what you're using?) will change the focus distance, and with enough playing around (maybe some different lenses), you can probably get something comfortable / tolerable, especially if your screens are a large enough distance away. Let us know how the HUD works - looks really awesome!

I'm intrigued by the new Kosmosima (left hand). It looks like it would do well as a horizontal-oriented grip on my collective lever, as it doesn't appear to have a prominent wrist-rest at the bottom. I've got a set VKB T-Rudder pedals already in my sim, and a Gunfighter MCG Pro on it's way from the Dec 24th batch that came available for a short period. The Black (orange) box with the pedals has an input for a stick, and I'll have a 2nd black box with the Gunfighter when it arrives, so the thought would be to connect the collective grip into that box if it's compatible. Here's a pic of my current setup using a Fanatec Brake handle, with a cheapo ($17) Av8r handle I wired in to see how well it would work. It was a success, so now I'm considering a higher-end grip. https://forums.eagle.ru/showpost.php?p=3742039&postcount=4 Of course all this would be obsoleted if I heard VKB was coming out with a helicopter collective (eg Huey, maybe with a couple extra switches, etc)... :) Thanks for your input!

Any info on connector types and/or pinout?

I'm interested in using a VKB grip on a separate helicopter collective, does anyone know if it's possible to connect the stick direct to the black (orange) box, or are there processing / electronics in the base that need to be in the loop?