Siai Marchetti SF260 Simulator

[Guest Mihelich]

Hey everyone,I thought I would share a few pictures of my favorate sim.The Siai Marchetti SF260.I have always been into the FS2004 sim and when I came across the SIMKIT web site....well let's just say I had to try to make a sim of my favorite plane. My shipments of parts have started to arrive and I will soon post some pictures with gauges going in. I really like the Garmin 530 that fits perfect on my 7" monitor that I installed in the panel. I used Catia software to design the sim and constructed it from 3/4" plywood cut into frames and covered it with .040" galvanized metal flashing (13')which is used for roofing. I then used 1/8" aluminum pop rivets (300 of them) to fasten them to the frames. It really worked great.I also used the Catia to create the flat pattern for the windshield (1/16" Lexan) and it formed over the frames perfect.I will keep sending in pic's as I progress. Tom Mihelich

[Guest Simpit]

Catia, eh?A step up from the CAD I use....That is just about a work of art!Simpit

[Guest MikePowell]

Outstanding, Tom!Mikewww.mikesflightdeck.com

[Guest nauwa]

Extremely nice and professional work !, ####, that GPS on a 7" TFT looks goodJohan

[Guest mmorrell]

Tom,Very nice indeed! Can you provide some more pics of the GPS and details of construction? This is a major component I am looking at getting behibd me this year.

[jmig]

Please add my voice to the chorus. That is one beautiful and well done sim. It is simple and elegant. I like the roofing tin idea. John

[tigert]

>Tom,>Very nice indeed! Can you provide some more pics of the GPS>and details of construction? This is a major component I am>looking at getting behibd me this year.The GPS looks like it is just on a small screen that is mounted on the panel.I wonder if there is a sensibly easy way to make a fullscreen RealityXP Garmin gauge for such a monitor? Because I dont want to have the frontplate with switches visible - I want the switches be real.The simulator is looking very very good!//Tuomas

[Guest CaptnKebec]

Great work!It gives me ideas for my sim, when I move to my new house were I will have a entire room for my sim I'll do a frame like this for more realism!

[Guest mmorrell]

I have the same Monitor - 7" VGA display.... got it on EBay from some place in Hong Kong. I'm looking for details on constructing the rest and what software you're running.

[blave]

This is outstanding work - well done!re: the GNS530 - I am no gauge programmer or artist, but I would think that there is artwork that is part of the gauge, that could be modified in a bitmap program to show only the screen. The problem would be - wher e to put the physical controls? Your panel doesn't appear to have any leeway around the GNS cutout to install knobs/buttons around it, due to the size of the LCD panel.Good luck with your project,Dave Blevins

[Guest Mihelich]

Thanks for all the nice compliments guys.We still have a long way to go till it is finished though.To answer some of the questions so far:What software am I using?Well, just the FS2004 program and the CCU1 card from Simkits.It is just plugged into the USB port on the PC and one driver to load. For the screen in the panel, it is a XENARC 700Y 7" LCD screen.It is a VGA screen and looks really nice in the panel. I just unscrewed the back of the case and made sure the 4 mounting bolt holes I drilled through the case did not go through any part of the pc board in the screen. The GPS is the RealityXP Garmin 530 add on.My Nvidia card supports 2 video outputs so one is for the Infocus PC projector and the other port runs the 700Y. This is the actual size of the real Garmin 530 so I just undocked the GPS and dragged it to the 770Y screen and filled the screen with it. It is really simple and looks and works great. I know Simkits is planning a Garmin 530 release near the end of the first quarter. Big bucks I would imagine.As for the radios, I have the Elite AP-3000 system on order and ithas a Apollo GPS with it (real knobs). So, I may go for the RealityXP weather radar and move the screen down to the console I am constructing. If I need to do any other things in the FS2004 flight sim screens I use this screen instead of the projector.The next steps.....I have purchased the vinyl and foam backing and am now going to try and do the side bolster and a nice glare shield.I will post pic's once I get a little ways along wth them.Tom

[Guest Mihelich]

Here is an updated picture with the bolsters, glare shield (with strip lighting) and the pedals and modified joystick.Now on to the console...Tom

[jmig]

That really is a nice piece of work.John

[Guest MikePowell]

I agree, very nice. The use of the shift boot at the base of the stick is a bit of detail that adds greatly to the polished look.Mikewww.mikesflightdeck.com