Time to build a new racing simulator cockpit

I dont know what my wife has against this one!

While this trusty, brutally simple simple setup has served me well for years, its time to build one that doesnt look so much like E36 M3. This one was really only intended to be temporary at first, but it has since moved with me to 3 different houses before ending up in the house we actually purchased last fall. The stand is cheap and sturdy. The conversion van seat is from a previously owned vehicle, and weighs about 5 tons. Aside from possibly re-using some of the wood, its all going in the trash.

I plan on getting to work as early as tonight on the new setup, has to be easy to move, I have thought of a few ways to incorporate some casters on the bottom so it will roll around, and also have the casters hidden, an extra bucket seat from my 1998 MPV will be attached to the stand, with functioning slider mechanism. Also thinking it will mostly be built out of 1x2's/2x3s and some MDF board. Stay tuned for updates I guess?

Feel free to share pics of yours if you have built one. I am still trying to figure out exactly what I am going to do with the outside of the finished product so it does not make my wife sick to her stomach seeing it in the house. At least it will have wheels so I can move it out of her line of sight.

Following this thread with interest, as my brother got me a G27 for Christmas!

Watching with extreme interest...

Mine is almost identical to yours with the exception of the seat. I have had to modify it because I built it to fit the logitech gt and now have the G25. I can break mine down to fit it in the closet which is nice for the wife but is a huge hassle for me when I just want to have a quick race. I would love to have a permenant set up in a game room. I am watching with interest as well.

I think this is awesome as is. Problem is, we would need two of them. Ooh, we could add the center console with cup holders!

Lol. Speaking of cupholders, that's a planned feature.

Streeeeeetch goal...

Forget the cup holders, this should impress the Mrs enough to overlook the rest of you seat.

The Gatorade In-Car Drinking System can be explained in three simple steps: • Load. First the system’s fluid reservoir is loaded with three-plus quarts (100 ounces) of cold Gatorade, tightly insulated to maintain a consistent cold temperature throughout a race. • Lock. Once sealed, the system can be locked into place anywhere in the vehicle. • Drink. Connected to a battery-operated pump, fluid is pushed from the reservoir through an insulated delivery tube. Designed to meet a driver’s individual needs, G.I.D.S. is available in two different forms:

EastCoastMojo wrote: I think this is awesome as is. Problem is, we would need two of them. Ooh, we could add the center console with cup holders!

If the reason you need two of them is because your significant other also races on sims I think that's fantastic and probably quite rare. Have fun!

Those things are never as simple to build as you'd think. I've been eyeing these: Racing wheel stands because they aren't a million dollars but are still better than bolting mine to my office desk (and taking up the space). Since I do iRacing access to a tv screen doesn't matter (unless someone can teach me an easy way to hook a PC up to a TV).

ddavidv: How old is your TV? Mine is a Vizio LCD from 2007 or so, and it has a standard monitor input on the back. All you need is a cable that is VGA male on both ends, like this: http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10201&cs_id=1020102&p_id=85&seq=1&format=2

I am adding a video card with hdmi out to my pc. The computer is going to be set up near the tv, and I have a wireless mouse and keyboard. So the tv will be able to handle pc and xbox racing.

So, I got the base completed this weekend. Here are some pics of how I built it. So far I have used 2x3's and 1/2" MDF board for construction. Overall size is 20" wide and 46" long.

Heres some pics of the seat platform. The long cutouts are for clearance of the slider mechanism as you can see.

I was planning on building in some cupholders on top of the platform for the steering wheel. But then as I was looking at the seat I remembered it already had them built in For those curious, this is a captains chair from a 1998 Mazda Mpv, center row, passenger side.

So, since it seems I am completely overbuilding this, and its starting to get a little heavy, I did add some casters as planned. Here is the approximate ground clearance. Bitch is low.

I probably wont get to building the wheel support until next weekend. I started mocking it up, got some measurements taken, then measured once and cut twice, and I cut wrong, wasting a pretty large chunk of MDF board. Oops. So thats where I stopped for the day.

I did almost the same thing design-wise... except I used 1" steel and some old CPU rack plates that were laying around.

Here it is before castors and paint during "beta" testing.

It works really well but I think what I plan to do is use the measurements and make the chair / pedal rack capable of height adjustment to work with a desk so I can leave the monitors I use from work, speakers and so on all in place and just slide the chair over when I want to switch from work mode to race mode.

Needs Moar OTTOMAN

i really like the ottoman build, but it looks awfully cramped.

I am still trying to figure out ways to make mine look more presentable, but may not even bother other than having it assembled cleanly. Wife still says its going to be rolled into the closet when not in use so theres little incentive to try and hide it in plain sight.

I actually like the seat chassis you built, it looks like design and build is spot on. The MPV seat looks really big though (however, probably very comfy). I actually like the tight ottoman build - more like an F1 cockpit or something lol - but if hiding it is no concern, then go for comfort for sure.

Im interested to see your wheel stand. keep us posted.

4cylndrfury wrote: Needs Moar OTTOMAN

OMG! Done and done...

4cylndrfury wrote: The MPV seat looks really big though (however, probably very comfy).

I dont think its quite as big as it looks, its smaller than the seats in my Accent. I wouldnt be surprised if its smaller than GPS's seat. Its also very light, definately lighter than an oem NA miata seat for example. But it is pretty comfortable The photo showing the seat mounted, that is with the track slid back all the way. It will actually slide a good 8 inches forward, which is where it will sit when packed up and not in use.

I didnt mean for the most comfortable position for me to be that far back on the slider tracks, but I guess it means i made the base as small as possible for my needs.

this race cockpit has been on hold for about 2 weeks now, but something else is coming along nicely.

I am hoping to find some time this weekend to finish making the stand to hold the steering wheel and I guess the race cockpit will be mostly complete.

looks pretty good! I haz a jellus!

That ottoman build is awesome! I could actually do something like that in my house.

finished up the build this weekend. I havent really worked with MDF all that much before, but even at 1/2" its very sturdy. I probably have an extra 2x3 here or there throughout the build that isnt really necessary. The platform for the wheel is rock solid and does not wiggle at all, even with the asymmetrical support. I built it this way to make it easy to climb in and out of the seat, and it works great.

The piece of MDF that I cut wrong a few weeks ago.....I decided to just use it. Its the big side piece in the 2nd pic. I intended for it to extend to the end of the cockpit down by the pedals. I figured it would have just ended up making the whole setup even heavier than it already is (its pretty heavy now, at least it can roll around)

The top where the wheel clamps on is tilted a little towards the "driver" so the wheel axis isnt pointing up at your face so much.

Aaaand thats about it. I guess I will post up if I ever make any changes or try to make it look better but so far I am happy with how it turned out.

Oh I still have reciepts too so once I go over those I can itemize the cost of the build to share.

Looks good.

I have to admit though, I really love the ottoman idea. That would be freakin' perfect for my house after I renovate my living room. The one thing I'd change would be to install better seats, but with a re-worked folding mechanism so they could go flat. Fortunately, I have a pair of E30 sport seats in my attic doing nothing...

I like it. You should hit it with a racing livery like gulf or the like...or just paint it to camo into the livingroom somehow. Does it want to roll around on you while your in it?