R-Pod MkII Racing Simulator: Now VR Enabled

[mattgold]

Power switch?


http://www.sparcousa.com/product/battery-switch

[SpaceHedgehog]

Looking into those sorts of accessories mattgold!

The foot rest pieces are now complete with the rubber cut. I will need to tidy the base up a little to ensure that no bare MDF shows through the matting (i.e. paint it black).

The bolt at the back really stabilises the whole construction and presents a solid structure. No flexing even with a hefty whack with my foot.

[SpaceHedgehog]

With the cabling bought, the shifter pod complete, the seat fitted and the pedal assembly done, my attention will be on the nose/front section next. I'm particularly conscious of any flex in the steering wheel area which will protrude from the nose section so i have bought some shelf supports. I will attach the wheel to a piece of 18mm MDF as wide as the CSW and bolt and screw 2 of these underneath it to prevent any flex:



This will have the added advantage of making the wheel shelf fairly thin to allow for more leg / knee room.

The remaining 2 support will be placed at right angles to these in the nose section to brace the wheel shelf further.

[Generic Eric]

With the cabling bought, the shifter pod complete, the seat fitted and the pedal assembly done, my attention will be on the nose/front section next. I'm particularly conscious of any flex in the steering wheel area which will protrude from the nose section so i have bought some shelf supports. I will attach the wheel to a piece of 18mm MDF as wide as the CSW and bolt and screw 2 of these underneath it to prevent any flex:



This will have the added advantage of making the wheel shelf fairly thin to allow for more leg / knee room.

The remaining 2 support will be placed at right angles to these in the nose section to brace the wheel shelf further.

Oh goodie!

I have been waiting for this. How different is it going to be from what you had in your last pod?

[SpaceHedgehog]

It will be a similar shape Generic, but more angular. I have a couple of designs in mind, one slightly more complex with more of a snub-nose than the other. I will be deciding once I have the MDF in hand and have it resting against the sides - I want to make sure that the shape doesn't restrict the pedals in any way. Nothing worse than cutting a load of wood only to find you've restricted yourself

[Generic Eric]

It will be a similar shape Generic, but more angular. I have a couple of designs in mind, one slightly more complex with more of a snub-nose than the other. I will be deciding once I have the MDF in hand and have it resting against the sides - I want to make sure that the shape doesn't restrict the pedals in any way. Nothing worse than cutting a load of wood only to find you've restricted yourself

I look forward to the front.  How much is your dash going to look like the interior of a car?

[SpaceHedgehog]

It will have a defined shape with the sides of the dashboard overlapping the side pieces of the front section to give more definition. The left/right dash panels will be fitted with various buttons, switches and dials. I'm considering how to illuminate this with a couple of designs in mind but will probably mount LEDs behind the top of the dash (i.e. hidden) and throw dispersed light over them.

I see the whole design of this pod looking 'futuristic military', if that makes some sort of sense.

Edit: from an automotive perspective, Lamborghini is probably the closest in general style:

[SpaceHedgehog]

The next 3 weekends should see the rig being made operational although by no means complete. I will now need to remove the wheel from my current rig to get the fitting correct - a real shame as I have been enjoying Assetto Corsa, iRacing and Game Stock Car Extreme immensely. I will have to do without being able to kick back and settle down for a bit of simming for a while. A little frustrating really. Never mind, it will hopefully push me into focusing on getting this done.

18mm MDF has been cut into the basic panels I need to start shaping the nose section:

[SpaceHedgehog]

This is the most important part of the build so I've spent some time checking and re-checking the measurements - there's always something to overlook but hopefully I've taken everything into account. MDF will be applied to the outside face of the sloping angle and front nose piece so it will be a little fatter than the profile shown. This is to allow me glue / screw everything in solidly and then apply blackboard vinyl over the top in one continuous piece. I will again be making side panels for this with cutouts and inlays - a lot of work but I'm please with how the shifter pod turned out so it should be worth it.

Rough cut profile:

[SpaceHedgehog]

The fist side panel has been flush trimmed and the second completed also:



That was surprisingly quick, for me.

[SpaceHedgehog]

Just hauled everything into the hallway for a test fit. There's still some work to do on the base (trim the part that's jutting out at the bottom) and also the top part of the nose side pieces (these will need to be angled to align with the wheel, once that's in place).

It's starting to look like a rig now and not just a random assembly of parts.

[Superfrog]

I like it when a plan comes together 

[SpaceHedgehog]

Thanks Superfrog, it seems to be finally getting somewhere now 

Made some more progress with the wheel shelf - this will extend from the main nose section to allow clearance for the cooling vents on the wheel. It needs to be rigid so have used some shelving brackets as mentioned in a previous post:

[SpaceHedgehog]

It's time to mount the wheel. There's a bit of adjustment to do, I need to lower it a little and set it at more of an angle. As the seat moves forwards and I can raise the height and also mode the pedals back and forth, the wheel will be fixed.

[Generic Eric]

Are you going to recess any pedals on the front?

[SpaceHedgehog]

Are you going to recess any pedals on the front?

Did you mean panels, Generic?

[Generic Eric]

Are you going to recess any pedals on the front?

Did you mean panels, Generic?

Ya.  I'm on a phone with phat phingers and a small keyboard.

[SpaceHedgehog]

Yes, definitely more recesses and inlays on the side pieces of the nose section. I'm thinking about a small grill for the front-most piece where the tow hook will also go. Other things include an access hood on the front downward facing panel (maybe with a quick release mechanism) to access the power bay (4-way, USB hub etc).

Edit: also looking to have an oval badge made for the front with an r-pod mkII logo on it.

[emphatic]

Very impressive updates, as usual.

[SpaceHedgehog]

Thanks Emphatic - I'm trying not to cut any corners 

I thought I'd write a list of things to do before I can even start on the next panels for the front section. Just realised there's a lot to do:

 

Frame: trim front pieces
Base: Cut slots for furring strips
Carpet: re-cut - current piece too small - include holes for seat runner raisers
Front sides: angle top sections for dashboard integration
Top shelf - cut back and use excess to stabilise base further. Add shelf supports to remove vertical play.
Steering column - cut retaining pieces to remove any lateral play
Side pod - secure bolts
Bolt pedals to floor base

 
Cabling:

Power strip
Shifter extension cable
USB cable
Speaker cable to Shifter Pod and pedals
Monitor cables (DisplayPort and DVI Dual Link)

[SpaceHedgehog]

Progress so far today:

Frame: trim front pieces - DONE

Base: Cut slots for furring strips - DONE

Carpet: re-cut - current piece too small - include holes for seat runner raisers - TO DO

Front sides: angle top sections for dashboard integration - DONE

Top shelf - cut back and use excess to stabilise base further. DONE   Add shelf supports to remove vertical play - TO DO

Steering column - cut retaining pieces to remove any lateral play - TO DO

Side pod - secure bolts - TO DO

Bolt pedals to floor base - TO DO

Looking at the cabling at the moment (Power will be kept separate from everything else):



Velcro used to keep things tidy:

[SpaceHedgehog]

Cables, cables, cables. I need to be absolutely sure I've fitted everything in:

DVI - check
Displayport - check
Speaker cable - check
Speaker cable spare - check
USB - check
USB extension cable/spare - check
Shifter cable - check
Rear Buttkicker cable - check
Power cable - check





I hope that's everything ...

[SpaceHedgehog]

Garden duties have been completed so it's back to work on the rig.

Carpet has been re-cut with holes for the risers so the base board should now be covered from sight:



Bracing applied to the top panel where the wheel stem attaches to:



Slots cut on the side pieces - T-Molding will be applied for a better finish. Ive painted it as well to avoid the potential to see any wood poking through - Ive had to offset the slot slightly to ensure that the T-Molding doesn't interfere with the shaped side panels when I make those:



I've also beveled the bottom edge of the side pieces to align with the rest of the base. Next will be to cover the inside of the side pieces with blackboard vinyl.

[SpaceHedgehog]

I've spent the last couple of hours doing the final fixing of the pedal assembly, dead pedal, carpet and rubber matting. I've also started to prepare the inside of the side pieces. Blackboard vinyl has been applied to one of them:





I want to get the two sides finished and glued/ screwed in place before the evening is over.

[markc74]

The attention to detail on this thing is awesome. Please never choose to use your powers for evil.

[rCadeGaming]

You're a machine!   

[SpaceHedgehog]

Thanks Mark. I don't think I ave enough energy left for world domination this weekend. Maybe next time!

Thanks rCadeGaming. This machine's out of gas for the weekend. I managed to get everything done except gluing the sides back on.

A bit more progress. T-Molding applied:



Wood strips applied:



That's it for the weekend. Thanks for watching.

[SpaceHedgehog]

Before I attach the sides permanently, I need to be sure I've covered all the bases. To provide some additional base support, I've attached an extra baton underneath the peal assembly - I'll be able to screw and glue higher up which will only add to the stability:



I've also decided to paint the internal batons as well just in case any wood is visible. Masked out:



Flat black paint applied:



Not looking pretty at this point but once everything is assembled, all the visible parts should look good.

[Generic Eric]

Did you take the day off to continue working on this?  I was hoping you would.

[SpaceHedgehog]

Just trying to make some progress after work Generic 

[emphatic]

You're like the best machine ever.

[SpaceHedgehog]

Haha! My wife encourages me with these projects but now she's encouraging me to keep going and finish as soon as I can 

The sides have been glued and screwed on. Everything still lines up - always best to check as you're going along:



The dashboard will taper upwards and extend forwards slightly when fitted to give the profile a thinner look - I also want to make sure I have enough room for buttons and dials / screen devices etc.



Shot of the bracing for the wheel stem and shelf - there's still a bit to do here. The stability is much improved with the cross braces:

[Generic Eric]

Audible gasp

That looks great!

Where does the computer go? 

[SpaceHedgehog]

I'd have loved to have built it into the shifter pod but it will remain separate from the rig. I will be making a couple of accessories for this. The first will be a rack / display cabinet for the quick release rims and the amp (for the Buttkickers). The other will be a side unit for a mouse / keyboard (although I'm currently contemplating building in a mini keyboard and trackpad and integrating it into the right hand side of the dash instead).

[RyoriNoTetsujin]

I love coming back to BYOAC after a while away, because things like this are always waiting for me.

This is going to be one beautiful piece of work when it's finished. 

[SpaceHedgehog]

I love coming back to BYOAC after a while away, because things like this are always waiting for me.

This is going to be one beautiful piece of work when it's finished. 

Comments like these really do mean a great deal RyoriNoTetsujin. Much appreciated 

[SpaceHedgehog]

Just finished designing (and ordered) a badge to sit on the front of the pod. The r-pod Mk II graphic is in chrome (hopefully I've done this correctly!) rather than white. The size is 7cm x 4cm and is domed, covered in acrylic / plastic material:

[mattgold]

Now that I see this coming along I am amending my previous suggestion.  THIS should be your power button:



Perhaps even incorporate the entire panel with audio controls:




From a 2000-2009 Honda S2000.

[SpaceHedgehog]

That does look very nice mattgold! I'm  starting to think about the configuration of the buttons on the dash. Given the cost of assembling all the parts and controller board separately, I'll likely go with a Derek Speare designs unit and de-case it. I think it's probably as / more cost effective to do it this way:



A nicer engine start button would look better though.

The plan would likely be to buy real carbon fiber sheet as the backing to this.

[BadMouth]

Just finished designing (and ordered) a badge to sit on the front of the pod.

where does one order such a thing?