Installing the Overhead Panel Rail Frames

This afternoon I got to work on constructing the "rails" that will hold the overhead control panels.  The main overhead that is located over the center pedestal is set up with the bays at 7 1/4" O.C. so as to possibly accomodate any Goflight avionics units that I might want to put up there.

There is also an asymetrical overhead panel to be located just above my field of view to the left of the main overhead.  This unit will house all the external light switches.  You can see the panel facing for this unit in the first shot.




In photo #1 above, I am measuring out the strips that will form the rail structure.  It is MDF board that will be constructed using white glue and metal angle brackets , and will be screwed toghther.





In photo #2 the strips that will form the mounting rails for the panels are cut out.





In photo #3, you can see the angle brackets that form the corner connections for the main overhead section.





In photo #4, you can see one of the two central rails that support panels.  These are 1" thick .... made of two pieces of 1/2" MDF screwed and glued together.   The angle brackets to mount them are screwed on to each end before they are placed in the frame.




In photo #5 above, you can see one end of the center rails mounted to the overhead frame.





In photo #6 you can see the overhead frame completed and awaiting mounting in the framing hole left for it in the cockpit shell.






Photo #7 shows the start of constructing the small asymetrical panel mount.  Construction is similar to the other set of rails.





In #8 you can see the finished framing.  The gap is going to get filled with plastic wood....... I didn't want to re cut the piece, and it will not show anyway when things are done.  





Photo #9 shows the small panel mount sitting in place over the pilot's windscreen winlow.





Photo #10 above shows the effect of placing the cockpit "roof" back in place around the panel mount.





In photo #11 above the main overhead rails have been mounted to the 2" x 3" framing that was designed to support it.  The complex angles add a sense of complexity and space to the cockpit.






In the last shot above I am taping paper templates of some of the overhead panels onto the frame just to test out possible locations.

SO......... more as it happens.

best,

....................john

so, still, what logo are you putting on the outside of the flight deck?

have fun, looking forward to the finish!

Work continues........ sort of.

Tonight I ordered a usb Phidgets LED64 module from PhidgetsUSA.com.  The are a bargain for the realism they will provide.  The unit will drive 64 discrete LEDs.... enough for all the annunciator lights, and marker lights, and stall warnings, and so on that I might want in the pit.

What values trigger the lights to go either on or off and which values to monitor in FSUIPC are set up in a free software utility they have called FS2Phidget.

Can't wait to get this wired up to the annuncitor light units from Flight Deck Solutions.

best,

.....................john

Spent a little time and did up a couple of the "dummy" guage faces for some of the overhead that will be "eye candy" and not really work.... at least to start with.  Here is the facing for one of the guages on the cockpit pressurization panel:




It will get printed on transparency film and then backlit with an LED.

best,

..............john

You should defintely be able to add a transistor buffer stage to each LED output...use that to drive as many LEDs as you need on that channel. I'm a little rusty on my circuit design...but I'm sure that guys at Phidgets can sort that out in a second.

For your guage faces...

Are you designing them at a higher resolution and a bigger size? They look good as they are...but if they are designed to the limit of your printer you will have much less chance of jaggies in the finished work. What I mean is...if your printer can print at 2400 DPI, then design at 2400 DPI, not the 72 DPI which is common for web-style work. Obviously that would mean enlarging the original by 33.3333... times to get the same physical output size.

Just wondering.

OOPS!  Gotta go back an downsize some of the shots....... went over the 500 K limit.  Have to do that in the AM.

best,

............john

On to "Part 16"


best,

..............john