HiI'm looking to start building a 737NG cockpit now that I've got the new PMDG 737NGX. I had looked at doing a build before but was overwhelmed by the amount of information out there, I just didn't know where to start. Ideally I'd like to start building something reasonably small but that I could get a lot of use out of. I was thinking along the lines of the MCP. I like the idea of wiring everything up and buying LEDs, switches etc but I want it to look half decent, I want to get proper switches and LEDS. I'm a complete noob when it comes to circuit boards and stuff but am willing to learn. Where to start? Any help would be greatly appreciatedGarry

Just buy Jetmax from FDS.

stuff looks good but expensive plus i would like to build things myself. takes the fun out of it if its pre-made. I'm looking to start real simple. Maybe try and simulate something like the autopilot being switched on. I press the button, somehow a signal gets sent to the pc and flight sim sends a signal the other way telling a LED to light up to say the autopilot is engaged. Once i get this concept I should be good to go.Sending the button press to the PC, what is the best way to do this? I did find a joystick emulator by some guy called Leo Badnar which looks relatively straight forward for inputting info into the PC but how does it work the other way round? Can the emulator be used to light up an LED?Garry

http://thenewawe.org/forum/index.php?topic=291.0 Here's a diary from a guy who started on his.

http://thenewawe.org...php?topic=291.0Here's a diary from a guy who started on his.

Thanks, brilliant diary, quite detailed and has given me a rough idea where to startCheers,Garry

Hey Garry,I hope you know what you are getting into, as soon as you have an MCP your FS hobby can quickly develop into a serious addiction. A very expensive one too. Most important too research your purchases for at least a year and figure out your possibilities.Check out the cockpit.org site. Check out the book by Mike Powell and google his website. Check out all the vendors: Open Cockpits.com, Simworld.pl, Revolution Simproducts. Prosim737, FDS, HISPAPANELS is a good one for DIY, GLB flight products in the UK. Check out Ian Sissons 737 sim website, he has tons of links and ideas. All good places to start: )kind regards,dion

Fyi no matter how you slice it, it's not going to be cheap.

Dion,Thanks for the links, I have checked them out and there is some pretty good stuff there. I know this can get expensive but i'm not putting it all together in one go, want to add bits here and there over time. I had previously looked at opencockpits and particularly at their I/O boards, they seem to be widely used so should be well supported so i'll probably go for them.Most of the MCP panels i've seen out there are the older style ones. The one i'm looking for is the one on simworld.pl. Only thing being is they don't appear to sell the A/P disconnect switch so will need to hunt around for that.Garry

Just to chime in, being a user of leo bodnars cards, I would HIGHLY reccomend them, they are extremely easy to use.But i dont think they have lighting capabilities.

 I was wondering if anyone has a Jetmax 737? The reason is that I just got one and I was wondering if anyone knows how to program the landing gear?.

HiI'm looking to start building a 737NG cockpit now that I've got the new PMDG 737NGX. I had looked at doing a build before but was overwhelmed by the amount of information out there, I just didn't know where to start. Ideally I'd like to start building something reasonably small but that I could get a lot of use out of. I was thinking along the lines of the MCP. I like the idea of wiring everything up and buying LEDs, switches etc but I want it to look half decent, I want to get proper switches and LEDS. I'm a complete noob when it comes to circuit boards and stuff but am willing to learn. Where to start? Any help would be greatly appreciatedGarry

 

Might be worth looking at the iFly 737NG Cockpit Builders Edition. It was designed for the sort of project you have in mind. Plus there's a Cockpit Builder section on the Ifly forum, with a lot of discussion about the wiring/switches/LED's etc, with several forum members at various stages of the sort of cockpit build you're thinking about. Getting it right at the beginning can save a lot of expensive mistakes later.

Good Luck!

Eugene

Thank you I will check in to that. I am currently run PMDG NGX for my setup.

 I was wondering if anyone has a Jetmax 737? The reason is that I just got one and I was wondering if anyone knows how to program the landing gear?.

 

I also own a JetMax, but as I'm not very techy I had it built and configured for me by FDS. I just took a look at FSUIPC whilst cycling the gear lever to see if any offsets or anything at all was triggered by the movement, but nothing obvious happened. If you can tell me where to look maybe I can provide some help, my JetMax uses the iFly 737NG.

 

Just for info, it's always better to start a new thread for such enquiries, as your likely to get more JetMax owners viewing a thread called (say) "JetMax Landing Gear Configuration question" than "737NG where to start?"

 

Just a thought

Eugene

Thank you I will check in to that. I am currently run PMDG NGX for my setup.

 

A current AVSIM thread is running about iFly/PMDG in cockpit building.

 

http://forum.avsim.net/topic/439828-pmdg-cockpit-builders-edition/

 

This site looks interesting if you want to stick with PMDG.

 

http://www.flightsim4fun.com/

 

Eugene