Howdy. Just thought I'd share what we did today at the aviation club - we finally got the yoke and pedals installed on the cockpit and next week it's pot-connecting and soldering time :)The overall look is very nice:http://tigert.gimp.org/vatsim/albums/yoke/aaw.sized.jpgThe pedals under the panel. Note also the yoke support bar that is hinged on the floor in front of the pedals. We didnt do dual controls since we dont really need them. The thing has two seats though so you can take a friend "along" if you want.http://tigert.gimp.org/vatsim/albums/yoke/aax.sized.jpgThis is how it looks behind the panel. The pic is taken straight up from the cockpit floor. You can see the yoke support bar and the actual yoke shaft. The "magic box" that is between those two was once the steering wheel of an arcade game. Turbo Outrun, to be exact. It provides a bit of centering force and a geared pot. It was a neat solution for that part so we just made a "tilting" support bar for it and put a small Monroe suspension thing (made for washing machines, smaller than a car one) that resists the elevator movements. The overall feeling is very nice and "stiff", nice dampening effect that should make it easy and more precise to fly..http://tigert.gimp.org/vatsim/albums/yoke/aay.sized.jpgThe sticker adds a finishing touch :)http://tigert.gimp.org/vatsim/albums/yoke/aaz.sized.jpgTuomas

PeterKTuomas...Looks like the real thing....The cessna 150 will make a greattrainer plane....Love small GA planes ..I just dont have the taste for heavy ironbut they look real good ....Petehttp://home.comcast.net/~fs-boneyard:-wedge

>>PeterK>Tuomas...Looks like the real thing....The cessna 150 will make>a great>trainer plane....Good things about doing this project at the club is that we can use all those replaced parts from the two flying cessnas - all those knobs; carb heat, throttle and mixture - are real, just replaced ones where the cable had worn out or, like the throttle, the friction lock had broken a bit. So not good for a real plane, but plenty of use in the sim.. ;)>Love small GA planes ..I just dont have the taste for heavy>iron>but they look real good ....Yea. There are two kinds of planes, ones you fly yourself, and others where you mostly just integrate with the controlling computers. Both have their uses I guess, but I definitely prefer flying for fun so the GA stuff is a natural choice.Tuomas

To Tuomas from pete Ill Second that thought on GA aviation..I made my Cockpitbeacause i get to fly 150s 172s or mooney's once in a whilewhen a friend offers....I cant remember the last jet I was in...I think US air 15yearsago probably a md80/dc9 or some other rear engine job... I get Emails at the web site asking why i dont use all thisintergrated radio stacks and displays...I guess im not intoit that much...I use the mooney M20 for GA flights and I haveCockpit #2 which is a p-51 type fighter plane to playww2 sims or Mig alley... Theres room here for all of us from little GA birds up tothe Big tin jumbos its really what you want to do withthe hobby...It also comes down to $$$$ and I dont have itand I know it....Petehttp://home.comcast.net/~fs-boneyard:-wedge

I agree! That is a great looking piece of work, Tuomas. I got started with MSFS when I renewed my FAA license after a 20 year hiatus from flying. I flew many of the early business trips in MSFS before I flew them for real.The sim I am working on is a GA sim. I will tell you something for a real world aviation perspective. Although the FAA doesn

>The sim I am working on is a GA sim. I will tell you>something for a real world aviation perspective. Although the>FAA doesn

One other tip, if you wish to use the sim as training for real flying. Get and use a checklist. For ten years in the USAF it was drumed into me to always use a checklist. I still do.I older I get, the less I remember. It is harder to forget little things..... like lowering the gear, if you use a checklist. :)Good Flying,John

>One other tip, if you wish to use the sim as training for>real flying. Get and use a checklist. For ten years in the>USAF it was drumed into me to always use a checklist. I still>do.Of course. I use the same lists I use when flying for real. That's the whole point of the stuff. Learning procedures and training spatial memory (finding throttle lever without looking etc)Tuomas