y2kiah's A-10C cockpit build

Great stuff

will you make them at CnC ???

if you do can you please post here the gcode ?

i am finishing one CnC and dont know yet how to make 3D objects and gcode.

So if you want please post them here

thank you anyway

stelios

I have an extra real back plate and light panel with out switshes if your intrested just drop me a pm

Here are some pic of the panel.

Back plate and light plate together

A few other odds and ins

wow thats special,..some freaking great looking work..

seems you make big steps forward in last weeks..congrats

cheers

Scud

Wow, Deadman that's an impressive collection. Are you planning to build a pit, or just collecting them for now?

I started collecting A-10A cockpit parts about 6 years ago. I had planed on building an A-10A cockpit. Then the switch occurred to the A-10C model for the new ED product so I am switching over. I will have a few light panels and several incomplete panel for sale at some time.

Another one down... many to go.

This one was tricky, the bottom edge is sloped, but the slope isn't arbitrary. It depends on the structure of the left console. More specifically, it depends on two angles; the angle that the outer row of panels meets the inner row, and the angle that the forward console rises to meet the main instrument panel.

I wanted to be precise in this measurement, so this forced me to start planning out the left console. Now I know I will have a tight fit. On the other hand, making small tweaks to those angles later will be a nightmare, but I don't think that will be necessary. Here is an early peak at the left console.

Another layout issue I'm facing has to do with the throttle/autopilot panels. I plan to drop the Thrustmaster Warthog unit into a recessed opening so the tops of the panels all match up and it looks pretty seamless. I don't want any unsightly gaps at the edges. Of course, since the product has not come out yet, I don't have the actual dimensions, all I can do is estimate based on photos. It looks to be probably very close to the real thing, but I won't know for sure until I have it. This also means I shouldn't start to build the console until I have those measurements. Not a problem, plenty of other stuff to work on.

Cut out my first panel with the CNC machine. Well ok, let's be honest, it was my second attempt. The first attempt ended early and was emmm... not so successful. Lesson learned, problem fixed. It's the SAS panel. Next step is painting, then engraving. I will use the scrap piece to test first.

Note to self, do NOT use heat gun to speed up paint drying on panels. Will cause panels to warp!

Another panel:

I will use the HDSP-F503 Green 7-Segment LED display with a MAX7219, which conveniently will allow me to multiplex all 8 7 segs on this panel using only 3 microcontroller pins. I will use rotary encoders for setting frequency, and maybe try my hand at a CNC'd PCB to mount everything on.

I gave this one some special attention, for your viewing pleasure...

Also, another sneak preview of the pit design. The left side is starting to fill up. I've ordered all the metal sheet, angle, and plate that I'll need for this console. The ribs will be cut from ply or MDF. I'll be able to finish the design and start construction as soon as I get dimensions of the TM HOTAS Warthog throttle unit. Hopefully I won't have to wait for its release to get that info... anyway, enjoy

I gave this one some special attention, for your viewing pleasure...

 

 

Also, another sneak preview of the pit design. The left side is starting to fill up. I've ordered all the metal sheet, angle, and plate that I'll need for this console. The ribs will be cut from ply or MDF. I'll be able to finish the design and start construction as soon as I get dimensions of the TM HOTAS Warthog throttle unit. Hopefully I won't have to wait for its release to get that info... anyway, enjoy

 

Nicely Done!:thumbup: Is that Solidworks?

Can I have the dimensions you used for the height of the console, the angle of the forward panels, and the shape of the ribs?

Hey y2kiah,

How are you determining the size of your panels? Do you have source for the actual dimensions?

Simply amazing!

Nicely Done!:thumbup: Is that Solidworks?

Can I have the dimensions you used for the height of the console, the angle of the forward panels, and the shape of the ribs?

Thanks, it's Sketchup actually. I export parts as DXF right into cambam, and then onto the CNC.

The height of the console is actually an unknown at this point - the height I'm using for the model is just temporary until I figure out how thick my base will be, and how high the ACES II seat will sit, etc. For the time being, the flat inner panels sit 12" off of the ground. The rearmost rib reaches a max height of 21".

The throttle panel slopes about 5 degrees. Mine actually slopes at 4.8 degrees because the TM HOTAS Warthog unit includes the LASTE panel which normally wouldn't be sloped, causing me to extend the sloped region to include that panel. The Fuel panel slopes up from that another 12.5 degrees, so 17.3 deg from level in my case. I was basically shooting for something close to 18 degrees, and this is how it worked out after adjusting for the throttle panel. The outside panels do slope up at exactly 18 degrees. These are just my measurements taken from blurry photos, so they are not super accurate.

The basic rib shape is shown below. They get shorter and slope in more as you move forward. Again, still a WIP.

Hey y2kiah,

 

How are you determining the size of your panels? Do you have source for the actual dimensions?

From official sources, all the panels are 5.75" base plate width, and the light plate I reduce by .05" on all four sides. For length, it is always a multiple of .375" (also the diameter of a DZUS screw. So the quickest way I determine a panel length is to eyeball how many DZUS would fit in the empty spaces.

For some longer panels, this can be difficult, so I try to gather as many pictures from different sources as I can, and use the pixels to measure.

Panel length = Height(px) / Width(px) * 5.75"

Then round that to the nearest multiple of .375 and I usually have it. Sometimes, if the perspective on the source photo was bad, it will end up being short or long by 1 unit, but that becomes apparent when laying out the panel.

This reminds me of something that bugged me for a while. I couldn't get my panel layout to match up with the DCS screen shots. I had the hardest time figuring out the length of the VHF Comm panel. It's so short that you would think it should be easy, but I was getting big discrepancies between source photos. I finally decided that the screen shots from DCS A-10C were the source of the error, I'm 99% sure that ED made those panels 1 unit too long. Because of this small error, it leads to a compounding error on the left console with the way panels align as you move backwards - so by the time you get to the last panel, it doesn't match up with its neighbor the way it does in the DCS screen shots. It's not a problem, just something I struggled through at first.

If you haven't seen it yet, http://www.strandedduckling.com/ is a great source. http://www.aircraftresourcecenter.com/ also has some good photos of the A-10 cockpit.

Good work, y2kiah.

I've started with the CDU panel on the right. The width of each unit is 146mm, just 0.5mm narrower than yours.

Then I spoted the EWMS which is pretty interesting. It's probably the only VFD screen throughout the entire cockpit. If I have no luck finding a similar display, I might turn to 20X2 ASCII VFD components. Is it possible to find a picture with the display active? I'd like to see how it glows.

Hi Alex, I think you have a good idea with the 20x2 VFD. It would be a lot cheaper than getting the dot matrix type LEDs, and will still look very good IMO. Photo-Etch makes the panel - at least it appears they do for simulation. Pics from their site:

and another panel they make appears to use the same type of display, shown lit up here:

Thanks for that info! That will help tremedously in sizing my panels now!!

Thanks!:thumbup:

@pitbldr: There are many documents to be had at www.everyspec.com. The attached document gives you the dimensions you are looking for.

Console Panel Basic Dimensions.PDF

Hi Alex, I think you have a good idea with the 20x2 VFD. It would be a lot cheaper than getting the dot matrix type LEDs, and will still look very good IMO. Photo-Etch makes the panel - at least it appears they do for simulation.

Hey thanks for the link, they've got some really nice stuff there. I guess I'll stick to my plan and utilize a character VFD module. It just takes the release of the sim for me to interface the hardware with the virtual aircraft. :pilotfly:

Thank you! Never referred to that site before. Very helpful! :thumbup:

Thanks!:thumbup:

@pitbldr: There are many documents to be had at www.everyspec.com. The attached document gives you the dimensions you are looking for.

My pleasure:)

Good work, y2kiah.

 

I've started with the CDU panel on the right. The width of each unit is 146mm, just 0.5mm narrower than yours.

 

Then I spoted the EWMS which is pretty interesting. It's probably the only VFD screen throughout the entire cockpit. If I have no luck finding a similar display, I might turn to 20X2 ASCII VFD components. Is it possible to find a picture with the display active? I'd like to see how it glows.

 

Had a bit of a look on Digikey, and assuming it is a dot matrix they appear to be very expensive. (Under "Display Modules - LED Character and Numeric")

EDIT: Around US$25 from Arrow for an 8 char, but I've no idea how you get two offset rows like that...

Three more panels down on the left side