Wow Jimbop, that's a pretty awesome built.

I'd think I'll have to experiment with the magnet spring design some time.

Out of curiosity, how much force do you need to exert to move the stick? Light? Strong?

Thanks recoilfx. Regarding force, virtually nothing in the centre but more towards the edge. Not as much as you might think though since the u-joint shaft provides a lot of leverage. I think the force could be customized by using different size or strength magnets.

Jimbob.

Very good work! Congratulations.

I see similar magnetic centering system is Sukhoi.ru a few weeks, the user say that made at 3 years and work fine.
http://www.sukhoi.ru/forum/showthread.php?t=59583

Your method is very easy to implement. I started to build a U-join gimbal (per Julian PDF), but without springs - time to implement your solution. :)

PS- Please, post this in SimHQ - Cockpit Builders forum.

Sokol1

Guys, nice work over here. I like the DIY Sukhoi control grip. Very nice !!

Here something about my way of centering.

I generally like significant forces in controls. therefore solid steel springs are the only option at the moment.

This was my previous setup. I have changed than centerig of ailerons because of friction and to reduce overall size of system

http://hosting11.imagecross.com/imag...21IMG_9794.JPG Click Image to Enlarge Image Hosting

http://hosting11.imagecross.com/imag...96IMG_9797.JPG Click Imag

Current setup look like this, but also this is only just last step before the next one. I have also hydraulic dampers for rudder. This is feature i generally highly recommend. Inside the dampers are again steel springs, which generates some 15kg of force on full pedall. full aileron is some 5kg, full elevator about 8kg I thing. It is nice to feel respond in controls even on very slight movements.
Long maneuver dogfight is sometimes hard work, but I am no girl and it gives some additional nice feeling and better control of aircraft. Yes, sometimes I have to pull with both hands....prefect :cool:

http://img29.imageshack.us/img29/5340/img5259w.th.jpg


http://img163.imageshack.us/img163/724/img5264q.th.jpg

http://img859.imageshack.us/img859/3664/img5394x.th.jpg

If you want some more info, go ahead.
regards,

Wow - looks good, 310_Obluda. That's a nice way of transferring the force from aileron and elevator. Definitely the way to go if you want strong force. The magnetic method centers well but it is definitely not strong.

310_Obluda, could you please explain the hydraulic dampening system you use? I think the spring is within the dampener?

I have the CH Figherstick, which is a good stick but has the usual problem found in most gaming sticks: it's too loose. So I cut a couple of rubber rings, about 25mm thick, off an old bicycle tire tube, rolled the two rings up making two fairly strong 'rubber bands', which I used to reinforce the weak springs hosted in the stick's base.

It works pretty nice but the tube rubberbands dont last forever, they break after a couple of months of heavy usage. No big deal though, it takes 10 minutes to make 2 new springs off the same tube and replace the old ones.(one tube lasts years)

I made a couple of pics to help understand the concept, not really so great artistic value but it may be of help if I didnt explain well enough. Pics Here

Anyone who has bothered reading this far might be interested in this thread which describes a way to increase the number of inputs (sort of) from a BU0386X card:

http://forum.1cpublishing.eu/showthread.php?t=24574

sorry, old thread, but to answer you I use a candle wax, tried with silicon grease but after a couple of hours it squeezed again, now is just perfect. If you used any kind of grease, clean it, then apply a candle wax on the metal tube and you'll never have any problem again. ;-)