MIP: First order and disappointment... a story of Poldragonet MCP

There is a sad story behind my first MCP plug'n play Collins-like layout panel ordered at Poldragonet  (symulatory.com), real picture below.

Unfortunately, the panel was broken at start e.g. encoders were not soldered properly to PCB, switches lock down when pressed, selected digits had different brightness and as far as I remember VSPEED display didn't work at all. It looked like third quality product...

Shit happens, it's just an an electronics...but the problem started from not being able to get in touch with Poldragonet for support. After several weeks of silence I was asked to send it back and stuck with the same problem, again no response for weeks. I gave up, requested a refund and I successfuly received the money back.

My negative recommendation for Poldragonet is because of their horrible approach toward the customers e.g. massive challanges in getting response by email, unanswered phone calls or voice mails, and the most important: delays in delivery measured in months.

Another story is that the MCP panel I received was built on a very old FSBUS v2.2 electronics, not supported natively by ProSim737.

So, think twice before placing the order...

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GALLERY: Weekend in the Netherlands / FSweekend 2012

2-5 November 2012

Well, that was very funny and long weekend in Amsterdam. Actually, it was as it should be in Amsterdam, so nothing to complain at. But, the main purpose was to attend the biggest flight simulation event in Europe FSweekend and visit Aviodrom at Lelystad Airport.

Apart to commercial part and aviodrome there was an opportunity for cockpit builders to show their babies ;-) I can't imagine transporting my cockpit out there, so full respect to those who did it!

See you next time!

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GENERAL: Seats

I tried to repeat a few times here that my project is not necessarily real copy of Boeing 737NG cockpit. This is a hobby and having fun from constructing or virtual flying is much more important than sticking to measurements in millimeters.

So, my seats were taken from regular passenger car. It was Chevrolet PT Cruiser and I find them excellent even if platform had to be created. Note that the best choice are those from a car with driving wheel on right-side. Otherwise, you will  be having challenges in operating radios because seats are equipped with armrests. They have a few more advantages e.g. leather upholstery, built-in two on-off-on momentary switches originally used for heating, electric height regulation or you can change the distance from MIP as in your car. But, the biggest surprise was the price itself, 55 EUR for two!

 

By the way, two heating push buttons are connected to my FSBUS card and I use them to change outside  camera view. The electric height regulation may be a nice feature, but requires dedicated +12V power supply capable to deliver min. 6A per seat.

DON'T BE AN IDIOT! and be very careful when connecting anything to the sockets if your seats are having side airbag. Airbags can easily explode, so it is suggested to remove them before doing any work. See below a few Russian-speaking chuckle-heads and how dangerous it may be for your health.

Here you have a photo showing the distance from the floor, click on it to zoom. It was taken probably in 747, but seems to be also relevant for Boeing 737.

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GENERAL: Materials \ Painting

...for metal or wood

Majority of the cockpit in Boeing 737 is painted on iron gray, RAL 7011. You can easily order it somewhere on Internet, however "Colours: Dark Gray Mat" from Castorama is also good. It's cheap and perfectly matches the other elements painted on RAL 7011. I suggest to take a can of 2.5 liter.

...for metal\plexi surface

You may also need spray for painting small plexi elements or metal parts e.g. screws. Leroy Merlin or Castorama offers great choice of RAL 7011 paints.

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MIP: Stand and base for all panels

A fantastic web page run by Rudy from Belgium http://www.737ngproject.be containing all you may need to get started.

CorelDraw is now available to download and use for 30 days free of charge, so click here to download drawings in .cdr format.

My project is only partially based on Rudy's idea. Selected dimensions differ as I  use my own MIP layout adjusted to three 4:3 LCD 19", the cost was only 45 EUR for all three. Note that 16:9 seems to be better as they don't t require change to distance between navigation instrument windows.

20th April 2012
...base mounted and painted - not functional.

24th April 2012
...CNC-cut aluminium base for all front panels.

28th April 2012
...screwing and gluing Poldragonet's panels and announciators from simworld.

20th April 2014
.."room space saving" initiative results in reducing full size to 2/3 single sit simulator.

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MIP: Layout and dimensions

Measurements 

You can't continue building your cockpit without having Markus' measurements. Visit his site to get it downloaded, click here.


Layouts by Juan Cordon
(click on the picture to enlarge)

Real interior of 737NG, photo by Agnor B
(click on the picture to enlarge)

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GENERAL: Two seat platform

I believe that the below pictures are worth more than 1000 words. Let me apologize for missing translation, so feel free to contact me via email if you need an explanation. The only two comment are that I suggest 15-18mm MDF board on the top (approximatley 3m2) and you will also need around 27 meters of metal profile 20x20.  

Don't forget to adjust bar positions accordingly to the mounting place of your yoke and seats. My platform has been covered with gray carpet which is well corresponding to RAL 7011 cockpit base.



       

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