Pedals

[LarsDK]

Hello,

I am in need of some pedals, two actually.

They will not be used for racing games, but for controlling movement of the character in FPS games on the PC.

What I'm looking for are two separate pedals/anything of resemblance that can be used with my feet. All they have to do it emulate one keystroke each (and hold that key down as long as the pedal is activated)

Lemme explain what I am *not* looking for.
I currently own a pair of pedals made by gamingmouse.com. These would actually be very cool if it weren't for their ultra-high sensitivity. I think they are activate by measuring the current of your body touching the pedal or something. 
They are simply rock hard, and as soon as you touch them with anything - very lightly - they immediately activate.
As you can imagine, this is not the best thing for an action that you use a lot, such as moving your character forward.
You constantly have to hover your foot/toe above the pedal when you aren't pressing it down.
Toes and feet succumb to fatigue very quickly.

So I need some pedals that I can rest my foot on slightly, without the pedal/button getting activated.
They shouldn't be hard- Most racing wheel pedals are actually too hard to press, I feel.
I have a racing wheel from Trust here, and I think the pedals are a little it too stiff.

Also, it would be nice to have them emulate keystrokes and not joystick axis (like the racing wheel pedals will do). If you use axis/joystick style, then your character in-game will move slowly as you start to press the pedal, and then increase speed the more you press down on the pedal.
I want my character to sprint fulls peed right away. The same effect you get by simply pressing a key on your keyboard.

Ideally, these pedals would be something similar we used at my old work place.
These had a slightly lower profile than a pack of cigarettes, and slightly longer.
They made a distinct click when you pressed down. And you could rest your foot on them a little bit, without them activating.

I have an IPAC, so it need not be USB or anything that goes right into the PC.

I know this isn't exactly arcade related. But I know you guys are very creative in here, and have helped me in the past with some pretty creative solutions.

I seem to recall some racing arcade games in the 1980s I used to play.
Maybe something from that could work.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks. 

[lkench]

I'd look at a thrift store or surplus store for a used dictaphone - they usually have a foot pedal that starts and stops the playback.  This should be easily hooked up to an IPAC or keyboard hack.

-lkench

[specfire]

I would try a Guitar Wah pedal.  There are about a million different models to choose from and finding one used should be very easy.  Interfacing with a keyboard encoder( bypassing internal electronics) should be very easy also.

some links from my google efforts reveal this:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wah-wah_pedal
http://www.zzounds.com/cat--Guitar-Wah-Pedals--2637

[LarsDK]

I would try a Guitar Wah pedal.  There are about a million different models to choose from and finding one used should be very easy.  Interfacing with a keyboard encoder( bypassing internal electronics) should be very easy also.

some links from my google efforts reveal this:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wah-wah_pedal
http://www.zzounds.com/cat--Guitar-Wah-Pedals--2637

You think a novice like me could fit that thing in an IPAC?

[LarsDK]

Think these could be hooked up with IPAC easily?

http://www.action-electronics.com/switches.htm#Foot

*edit*

Ah crap, never mind.
"  ALL INTERNATIONAL SHIPMENTS HAVE BEEN SUSPENDED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE- SORRY FOR THE INCONVENIENCE

WE ARE SHIPPING TO USA DESTINATIONS ONLY"

If I only could find those in the EU.

[Oddfeld]

Think these could be hooked up with IPAC easily?

http://www.action-electronics.com/switches.htm#Foot

<snip>

If I only could find those in the EU.

Well Maplin in the UK sell stuff like that:

http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=10004&criteria=foot%20switch&doy=10m11

[LarsDK]

Think these could be hooked up with IPAC easily?

http://www.action-electronics.com/switches.htm#Foot

<snip>

If I only could find those in the EU.

Well Maplin in the UK sell stuff like that:

http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=10004&criteria=foot%20switch&doy=10m11

Wow, and they are very cheap, too. Excellent.

They have two models; one is "On/Off" and the other is "Moment".
Can anyone tell me which one I need when it's for holding down = key always activated | not held down = key not activated ?

Thanks again, Maplin.

[Silver]

They have two models; one is "On/Off" and the other is "Moment".
Can anyone tell me which one I need when it's for holding down = key always activated | not held down = key not activated ?

You would need the Momentary switch. On/off would mean 1press down=on, another press down=off. Moment means its on while you press down.

[Texasmame]

May wanna check these out, too.  Again, on/off style microswitch pedals.  Got two for $25, shipped.

http://www.conntrol.com/

Many there but the ones I got were part #862-1000-00