Hey RandyT, How about a steering wheel?!

[GadgetGeek]

Just as a thought, how about offering a steering wheel that could be attached to your new spinner?  It could either attach directly to the shaft or more conveniently, somehow, to the spinner knob.
Thanks for listening.

[Timoe]

It would have to be a fairly small and light wheel due to the thin 1/4" shaft of the spinner.

1/4" is more than sturdy for a spinner with its short stubby knob, but a wheel could be used to bend the shaft.

[RandyT]

It would have to be a fairly small and light wheel due to the thin 1/4" shaft of the spinner.

1/4" is more than sturdy for a spinner with its short stubby knob, but a wheel could be used to bend the shaft.

I'll have to look at that possibility.  The shaft is hardened and there's not much sticking up.  It might be ok, but as you said, probably not for a full sized wheel.

RandyT

[telengard]

Just as a thought, how about offering a steering wheel that could be attached to your new spinner?  It could either attach directly to the shaft or more conveniently, somehow, to the spinner knob.
Thanks for listening.

Is this a request thread?   

I'd like to see someone create a mod for my xenophobe joystick that will allow me to play Tron (light cycles) with it.  A few years ago someone was looking into this to manufacture something and it doesn't seem that it every happened.

Sorry for crashing this thread...

~telengard

[miles2912]

I love the steering wheel idea.  The gotcha is the angle of the spinner.  A horizontal sinner is great but a horizontal wheel is not.  Now if you could rig up a spinner housing that would tilt 70 degrees or so you would have a winner...

Don

[Dizzle]

Maybe it wouldn't have to connect directly to the spinner.
I'm thinking some sort of friction wheel or gear-like set up if you can picture what I'm trying to articulate.

Dunno if that's more trouble than it's worth though....

[GadgetGeek]

Maybe it wouldn't have to connect directly to the spinner.
I'm thinking some sort of friction wheel or gear-like set up if you can picture what I'm trying to articulate.

Dunno if that's more trouble than it's worth though....

I'm been trying to work out something along those lines as well.  That would likely take the stress off the shaft.  Problem I keep running into is how to attach it to the CP so that it is easily removable, but still keeping sufficient pressure on the knob to have a consistent response.  These have been mental only, nothing committed to paper and no prototypes have been assembled.

[Dizzle]

Well, I plan on starting to build another couple of compact upright cabs with a friend of mine, and I plan to include a spinner on 'em.  We may take a stab at some sort of steering wheel -- I'll let you know if we come up with anything feasible.

[Teebor]

If you mounted the steering wheel at an angle and the mount the spinner below in its normall orientation.

By then placing the spinner in the correct orientation (vertically) you could place gearing on the top of the spinner that would mesh with the gears from the sterring wheel.

Then you could restict and weight the steering wheel independantly from the spinner as you saw fit.  This would prevent the steering wheel feeling light.

However you would have to reverse the outputs from the spinner if only using two meshing gears.

[quarterback]

Maybe it wouldn't have to connect directly to the spinner.
I'm thinking some sort of friction wheel or gear-like set up if you can picture what I'm trying to articulate.

Something like this?

[GadgetGeek]

However you would have to reverse the outputs from the spinner if only using two meshing gears.

Not necessarily.  If the gears meshed on the bottom of the spinner (side facing you) it should spin as desired.

[Teebor]

Yes it wouldn't matter actually where it was put on the shaft,  It would depend on where the spinner was in relation to the steering wheel shaft.  It should be behind the shaft furthest from the player to maintain correct operation.

But that would be more difficult to mount whereas if it was in front of the steering wheel shaft nearer the player then it would need the outputs reversed

[Extreme8]

How about using a flexible connector similar to the extensions used on a Dremel type tool?
That would eliminate the problems with wheel placement.
If you could figure out a way to connect it directly to the spinner knob it could be a pretty elegant solution.

[Dizzle]

Maybe it wouldn't have to connect directly to the spinner.
I'm thinking some sort of friction wheel or gear-like set up if you can picture what I'm trying to articulate.

Something like this?

That's the principle I was thinking of, but instead of using a belt, hook 'em up with gears since there are going to be some angle changes involved.

Never thought about the flexible connector type solution.  Sounds pretty doable though... 

[Necro]

Uhm...isnt someone selling something like this right now?  I cant remember the name, but its the same person that sells the lower cost spinners (the 30-40$ ones with USB, white plastic enclosure).