P-51D cockpit build

Well, the third 7 inch LCD screen hasn’t arrived yet but after confirming that it will be the exact size as the first two I decided to make its frame/holder. Since I have “confirmed things” in the past, and they were a different size upon arrival, I have a “plan B”. If the new one comes in a different size I can always use it for one of the floor fuel gauges eliminating more hair being pulled out.

I have decided not to use the real O2 flow indicator and pressure gauge that I had purchased. I had come up with a way to make the flow indicator work but not the pressure gauge. So I decided to go with another small screen to display the functioning gauges using L:Vars and Air Manager Gauges.

Details and pics below. Thanks for looking.

Take care

Ed

I started by making a holder for the LCD using ¼ inch MDF. Since the LCD is 1/8 inch thick I made a frame using 1/8 inch balsa wood. Strength will not be an issue since all of the parts will be screwed together.

I decided to use the plate I had made for the real O2 gauges but I had to make a larger face plate due to the LCD dimensions. I added 1/8 inch square styrene to form new bezels and a thin strip ¼ inch wide to fill the gap to the LCD screen.

I added ¾ inch MDF to the back of the screen holder screwing it in place from the screen side. Next came ¾ inch blocks of wood screwed to the MDF to made sides for the back brace.

One situation has bothered me since I installed the MIP LCD in its frame and that is access to its power buttons. With false O2 gauges I could have reached up under the gauge frame to hit the button but the real gauges stuck out too far blocking them. Using an LCD for the O2 gauges causes the same problem plus it is taller. And, a new issue popped up with the viewing angle of the LCD. From straight ahead the picture is clear but from an angle the screen is not readable.

As a work around I installed a PanaVise mount that I had previously used to hold a MFD controller in my old simpit. By using the articulating mount I can tilt the LCD to see the screen and by placing the LCD a little farther back I will have access to the MIP LCD buttons.

Here you can see the ball part of the mount secured to the back plate. I added the LCD button strip below the frame and connected the screen ribbon cable.

Sorry about the blurry pic but you can see the new gauges in place.

And from the back you can see the support. I had to make a new connector rod for the PanaVise as the original was too short for this project.

And finally the gauges running in Air Manager.

Hello everyone

It’s been a while since I last posted about my build so here is an update. Over the weekend I finalized a lot of the work on the pit. It is not complete yet (will it ever be?) but it is to the point that it can be moved from the shop to my office/hanger where it will reside. I took advantage of the great weather and moved the pit from my shop to the main part of the garage so I could take some pictures.

The pit is 3½ ft. wide by 6 ft. long and 4½ ft. tall and was built in my 10 by 12 ft. shop. That sounds like a lot of room to work until you figure in the 10 foot long counter top on one side and the workbench, tool chest and file cabinets on the other. That allows 5 feet of workable space and with this project I found myself moving 1-2 things to get to the third. The shop was built for small projects like models but this 1:1 scale model pushed the limits!

This pit has to go through an opening in the house 29 inches wide. It will break down into 2 sides, the back, a main base, seat, windshield and dash and be reassembled in my office. You will see some of this in the pics below.

Take care

Ed

The “office”

Next to the seat you can see a small latch. This is used to pull the side tightly closed.

Right side separated from main frame for assembly. Just below the O2 regulator in the white area you can see a rod sticking out of the frame. There is a corresponding hole in the side frame. To install the side I position it on the rod and slide it forward.

When the back section is pushed toward the frame it sits on a small ledge for support. There is a 4 inch bolt that goes through the side into the ledge locking the side in place and a 3 inch screw holding the top to the rear section.

The slot you see in the cowling is for the 46 inch monitor shown below.

Since the right side will be against the wall and not seen I chose not to install aluminum. The green you see is cardstock painted to match the interior which shows around the controls panels. This was also done for the left side so bare metal would not be seen.

At the right you can see an old desktop control box I modified to handle the 120v needs of the pit. I removed the original switches and ran their wires to the lower left where you can see the back of the “environmental” panel. I added a toggle and light to the pit’s electrical panel that will let me turn this system on/off with one switch.

And, “The End.”

Here you can see the rear fan installed to pull air out of the pit. There are also 2 smaller fans installed at the front under the dash (not shown), separately switched on the environmental panel, to push air into the pit. Years ago when this was my racing pit I found that it can get warm and stuffy. The same fans were installed as a solution. I also have a portable A/C unit in my office with a remote for those days when I fly too close to the sun and get too hot!

Beautiful work!

unbelievable. It's so real you're VR ready! Just reach out and touch the controls!!!

Wwwwwaaaahhhh, his power level is over 9,000 ! ! !

Sweet build. Good job.

WHOA, very very nice!

Looks great congratulations on a job well done.

Holly smokes!!! I vote best pit ever built here.

WOW! Beautiful!

Thanks guys!

Ed

Absolutely awesome!!

Needs a nose art pin up girl painted on the outside...

Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

Fantastic work Sir. Looking absolutely beautiful :thumbup:

Cheers

Hans

Thanks romeokilo and Hansolo!

The construction phase is complete but I'm still trying to decide what to add to the exterior. The front 24 inches of the pit will be next to my PC table and PC on the floor. Any nose art placed where it should be will not be visible. I could move any markings back to be visible but that is still in the thinking stage.

Take care

Ed

Holly smokes!!! I vote best pit ever built here.

Clearly, you didn't see the guy who built KA50 cockpit. That was beyond ridiculous! But this one is awesome as well.

Hello everyone

I wanted to give a quick update on my project, which is NOT complete, and may never be.

The simpit is now in my office but not completely assembled. I underestimated the amount of time to get the parts together and the switches programmed and working. The key word here is working.

I’ve now got all 8 USB boards, the stick, rudder, Saitek panel, 5 screens etc. connected to powered hubs and working. With a total of 6 screens connected to my PC I spend half of my time looking for the cursor! I will have to use a combination of the A2A Configurator, FSUIPC, SPADnext and LINDA to program all of the functions.

This week I set up the gauges using Air Manager by Sim Innovations. They have incorporated the LVars needed to pull the information from the A2A gauges and it works great.

These pics are right after I sized and placed the gauges. The screens appear washed out in the pics, but that is the camera, however I will probably darken the screen when I get to tweaking the details.

Take care

Ed

The workmanship displayed in this thread is incredible..!

I just love it! Many simple but brilliant solutions.

Good job!

I wish I had space for a cockpit of this size... :)

Thanks Goblin! My space is limited too. I had to bring it in the house in sections and my office, which was a spare bedroom, is really cramped now. But, I'm not complaining!

Thanks Goblin! My space is limited too. I had to bring it in the house in sections and my office, which was a spare bedroom, is really cramped now. But, I'm not complaining!

LOL! My pit is in the spare bedroom as well. But it can be stowed away and converted to a bench... ;)

My wife once asked me if the seat in my pit still reclines. I told her just a little then asked her why she wanted to know.

She said she just wants to make sure I'm comfortable. :helpsmilie: It sounds like I may be sleeping in here if I'm not careful! :)

It sounds like I may be sleeping in here if I'm not careful! :)

:megalol:

One can never know for sure... ;)

Here's my pit. It's not bad, and with VR I don't see much of it anyway.

But I sure would like to build a "real" pit with working gauges and triple screens or projectors... :pilotfly:

That's a great pit Goblin! I like the idea of VR but want to enjoy my build for a while.

I've seen some videos of people falling using VR and I have an idea of how to control this. Just setup the VR in the garage with a range limiter and connect yourself to the garage door opener with a harness. If you get out of range the limiter activates the opener and yanks you back into position!

That's nice

Marc..

Thanks Marc!

Hi guys

Since my last update I've been fighting gremlins and control setup issues. Right now I'm down to 3 controls that are not setup correctly; the flaps and 2 ram air controls. The flaps need 6 positions/detentes and will be setup in FSUIPC and the air controls just need the right L:VARS to work.

In the pics below I’m temporarily using a 32” monitor instead of the 46” so I have access under the hood while I trouble shoot the issues. The first pic is using an LED floor light so some details are washed out. You can see my TrackIR camera in the upper left (2 yellow dots on a slant) sitting on the cowl held in place with its magnetic base. The landing gear and lights are finally working and you can see the lights are inverted to reflect a tail dragger.

For the second pic I turned off the floor lamp so the pic is a little blurry but you can now see that the MIP is lighted by the two dash lights mounted under the shroud. These are 120V chandelier bulbs in a housing I made from PVC pipe and the lights are controlled by 2 dimmers, one on each side of the pit.

Thanks for looking

Ed

That is a cockpit to be proud of. Your detailing is quite excellent and it really brings home the feeling of a real warbird. And it has so much character. :thumbup:

You may have actually steered me into a new build once the A10 and Huey are complete. It presents a whole new type of detailing which is quite appealing for some strange reason. This may also be a signal that it's time more therapy. :crazy: Crap! I thought I had this under control.:pilotfly: