KLaFaille

Hey Gus, I would say that this version of the throttle that I have was made in the mid to later 90's. They did away with that monstrosity of brushes in the front of it, have the pots, the switch guard, and NVIS Green A backlighting in this one. Red

Worked on the transducer last night and today some. I repaired the trimmer pot that I had broken so it is working temporarily while the replacement is on order. Poked and prodded and scratched my head a bunch, but I seem to have the transducer working along with it's PCB, the way it should be. Working in that I can supply the required voltage, no flames or smoke escape, what I read as a result makes sense, and pushing the post around make the voltage change like it should. Once I figure out the new throttle dilemma, I'll hopefully have the interfacing portion of this taken care of. Prerequisite pictures attached below. The first few show what around $800 or $900 dollars of transducer looks like, this thing is only 1.5" in length and .75" Diameter mind you. The last shot shows the thing powered up and working on the table, the two lines on the O-scope representing the output voltage of the X and Y axis of the switch and they dance up and down as the switch is deflected. Also discovered this circuit is very susceptible to EMI noise, but in it's current state that isn't too surprising. Transducer Switch (1 of 5).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr Transducer Switch (2 of 5).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr Transducer Switch (3 of 5).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr Transducer Switch (4 of 5).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr Transducer Switch (5 of 5).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr

Ok

Certainly a better idea than taking a persons work that they offered up for free, and selling it as your own for profit, just saying.... Red

As an FYI, The backplate and light plate are too wide and the vertical and horizontal spacing between fastener holes is too great. In relation to the real spec. Somewhere in my build thread are specs and proper dimensions, if you are inclined.

Thanks for the compliments Gus, but all credit for the throttle quad as seen in those pics must go to the manufacturer. ;) Last night I did do some work on the throttle, tearing some of it apart. I discovered that the Burndy plugs were solder cup terminations, so I desoldered both of them and removed the right throttle grip from the quadrant. I have it stripped down at this point to basically the empty grip, and I'm brainstorming how I will mod it to bring it to C specs. One option is that I will get a piece of 1/4 or 3/8 aluminum plate and shape it as required, then cut off the face of the grip and install the switches in the aluminum and mount it to the grip, this will also allow much easier access to te internals. A second, easier option would be to fill in the side of the grip with epoxy or resin then redrill the required holes. I had a dumb ass attack fiddling with the transducer amplifier circuit board and managed to break off the ground pin of one of the four Bourne 100 Ohm12 turn trimmer pots so I'll have to replace that, then work out the transducer itself. Red

Isn't someone being helpful tonight... :music_whistling: Red ;)

Thanks. See, you all need to let people know what's being worked on so the right people with the right parts can get you the right reference data. :smartass: Thanks for posting the mil sheets BTW, that's good info for the guys out there that don't have them already. A LOT of answers to very common questions are right there in those sheets. K

Updates and stuff: Though I'm not posting nearly as much, work is still happening behind the scenes. I have multiple things being worked on that are all at one stage or another at this point. I'm going to have to prioritize what I want to get done and start doing just one thing. Having the attention span of a gnat has it's disadvantages sometimes. :doh: Collecting of stuff hasn't slowed down much though. So here are some of my customary gigantic sized pics of the new shit that's come in, with some more on the way. First up is a real throttle quadrant. Obviously I'll have to change out / mod the right grip but that shouldn't pose too much of a problem. The light plate is NVIS Green A backlit, it has the switch guard doo-dad installed, the switches all work like they should, including the transducer to slew the cursor / weapons. No more ghetto itty-bitty nub mounted in a fake transducer face for me, thank you very much. ;) Interfacing shouldn't be all that tricky, there are super high quality pots already installed in this thing, the switches are straight forward, but I have to play around a bit with the transducer to see if a Microcontroller setup will be required or not. I may hack apart my Warthog throttle for the control boards and have a plug and play USB real throttle. As an aside, don't believe that bullshit Thrustmaster spewed about the switches and buttons feeling "true to life" in terms of feel to the real thing. While the Thrustmaster buttons and switches are a notch above most mushy crap out there, they are not even remotely on the same playing field as true mil-spec switches. Nothing but marketing BS. Panels (1 of 23).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr Panels (2 of 23).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr Panels (3 of 23).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr Panels (4 of 23).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr Panels (5 of 23).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr Second, the proper Cockpit light minus the correct base. The panel will have to be made for this, basically a plate with 4 Dzus, a guarded toggle, and the proper base to mount the light in. The light runs on 28V DC and the red knob on the end is the dimmer & power control for it. It has a built in red filter that is actuated by turning the front head of the light about 180 degrees. Panels (6 of 23).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr Panels (7 of 23).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr Panels (8 of 23).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr Third, here's a real A-10 control stick, minus the linkages and boot. The silver deal on the bottom is the stick shaker which is nothing more than a weight geared to a DC motor that when fed 27.5V DC spins around and wobbles the hell out of the stick. It's used as a tactile means of informing the pilot of an impending stall, for example. The yellow paddle is the emergency disconnect, which disengages the SAS when it is depressed. Oh, and that's my Warthog stick attached to the top of it, set to the proper angle. Panels (9 of 23).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr Panels (10 of 23).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr Panels (11 of 23).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr Panels (12 of 23).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr Panels (13 of 23).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr Panels (14 of 23).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr And finally, just a shot of a couple other toys that came in. A nice Simpson 260-7P analog multimeter, and a spiffy vintage Tektronix 100Mhz dual trace 465 analog O-Scope which is going to come in quite handy when I go about building my DC to 400Hz AC inverters to run the real instruments. Can never have enough multimeters, and old scopes look so damn nice, especially this one with the orange CRT and blue trace. :D Panels (15 of 23).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr On the way: A proper Engine Tach gauge, a second real ADI to experiment on / use for parts so I don't destroy my good ARU-2B/A, and a few other bits and bobs that I can't remember right now. Red

Let me rephrase that statement. They were drawn from the cockpit arrangement drawing from the C Model flight manual, which has been floating around. To everyone else, due to priorities and other factors between the parties involved, this project has been placed on hold indefinitely. I had forgotten about the thread and will update the original post accordingly. My apologies. I really appreciate your input though, it does help gauge the general level of interest out there should this become viable again.

mmmm.. Purdy. :thumbup:

Hi Ice, As that was a prototype / working model, I never put buttons or a faceplate on it. The board was too small in size to fit the face / button combo that I had made. However, it will look something like this when I have completed it, with some more modifications to allow for connectors and such. The buttons and faceplate are made, I have to work out a PCB and get the box made, which should pose little problems. I'm thinking I'll try my hand at etching my own PCB, provided I can find a board of my size requirements. The wiring is very, very simple with switches like these. All the ground pins will be chained together to a single pin, and the active pin on the switches will each go to a pin on a header. The female side will all be wired into the BU0836X. UFC EXPLODED - 1 - 2APR11 by KLaFaille, on Flickr UFC FINAL - 1- 2APR11 by KLaFaille, on Flickr

http://forums.eagle.ru/showpost.php?p=1157159&postcount=62 A prototype board I made that interfaces with a BU0836X. Red

This is an authentic TACAN panel as used in the A-10C and other aircraft. Mechanical function is fine, knobs all work and turn smoothly and the frequency selector mechanics are all intact. It needs to be cleaned, a couple light holders replaced, and the plexi cover is cracked and needs replacement, fairly easy fixes. $135 shipped. Paypal gift (add 4% if not using gift option), or USPS Money Order. Questions? PM me. TACAN (1 of 1).jpg by KLaFaille, on Flickr

Been doing a lot of researching and work on the digital side of things lately, modeling consoles, panels and various bits. Lots of tedious prep work, but it will ensure that things go smoothly when the physical construction really starts to begin. I've attached a very rough and early stage of the PORT INBD console. All the major dimensions are 98% accurate to the actual aircraft, I have to work on the internal structure some more as can be seen. A real Emergency Flight Control panel came in (thanks again, you know who you are ;)). The panel is complete with all the necessary indicators, the hat switch, and even the proper molded piece on the FLT CONT switch. I have to do some poking and prodding to get the backlighting and indicators to work, haven't had the time yet. The indicators are hard enough to find on their own, the hat nearly impossible, so to get a complete panel is pretty exciting. I also got in around 10 feet of DZUS rail for mounting my panels, not enough for everything by far, but I had to verify certain aspects before going through with the entire quantity required. I will go about modifying it as needed to work in the side consoles that I am designing. I threw some of what I have on the rails just to see it all together. :D Ignore the bottom three panels, those have no place in the pit, I bought them because they were dirt cheap and I can use the rotaries, pots, internals, and DZUS fasteners elsewhere. The TACAN panel is for sale, BTW. PM me if interested. LEFT INBD CONSOLE - 21APR11 by KLaFaille, on Flickr IMG_7180 by KLaFaille, on Flickr

I'm diggin' the patches and the covers. Good job guys.:thumbup: Red

The way these systems are constructed and work, it doesn't matter if you are 6 feet or 6 inches from the HUD, the projected image will remain the same size.

Start searching google for MILSTD and MILSPECs. Most of the important shit is online.

All side console or DZUS mounted panels are 5.75" wide per the MILSTD on aircraft panels. That is for the mounting plate, the face plate must be .062" smaller than the mounting plate on either side. So the faceplate is 5.75 - 2(.062) width. I don't have the height of the panel in my head, but DZUS hole spacing is is .375" and if i recall correctly, .170" from the center of the top DZUS to the lightplate, but thats off the top of my head. So you can get a rough guestimate from that. Panel width between the rails can be no more than 5" in width, and no more than 6" in depth. Faceplates are generally .250" in thickness.

Nice pics bud. Thanks for sharing. :thumbup: My TACAN has a a separate board under the light plate, with traces going to each holder and it is soldered to the internal connection that provides power. It's an older model I believe than yours.

Very impressive.

Yeah theres a rudimentary circuit board under the faceplate for the lights and those two light holders are totally gone.. I may just shit can the board or solder LEDs to it. Avilator, for what the iff panels go for, you can find them for 50-60 pretty commonly and with a bit of patience, it would be easier to get a real one. Buying the parts to make one from scratch would likely cost more than a complete real unit. My .02

Thanks WarriorX for correcting me. I knew there was an extra button on the Warthog, I just happened to think it was the paddle for some reason. :)

Not really. Only major difference is the WH has the paddle switch.

Hi guys, Thanks for your comments. Regarding the LCD screen, I do have a specific 4" TFT picked out, but no driver card for it yet. Likely this panel would be sold with the customer providing the screen, however Depending on the qty of screens I can get into the country, I might be able to offer a screen as an accessory. If this project goes through I will look more closely into that option. I believe the plan would be to offer the UFC as a complete unit ready for an interface card, but at this early stage I can't say for sure. Thank you for your input on what you'd be willing to spend, guys. I will pass along that info. Help spread the word if you can, the more people who are interested the lower the price can be. :) Keith