After SimHQ revied the JoyLoc Clampmaster, I started brainstorming.

Buying 2 together is a fair chunk of change, I thought to myself, "Self, could you build your own?"

This is my first concept of what an armature could look like. I am currently working on isometric drawings with dimensions for the individual pieces.

Reference review:
http://www.simhq.com/_technology3/technology_188a.html

Engineering Drawing #1:
http://i.imgur.com/U81WX.jpg

Depends on what type of HOTAS you are using. Different ones have different weights. What HOTAS will you be using?

Also, the idea of JoyLoc was for it to be removable, and not alter or damage the table you are using. I guess this is a more permanent solution for you? If so, why not build a small pit instead? A couple of sheets of MDF can do wonders.

This December I will probably be purchasing a Saitex X52 Pro.

I have a small den that houses my work desk, 2 book shelves, and a futon. The den doubles as a guest room when the in-laws come to visit. I have no place to put your standard simpit.

I did see an interesting "pit" earlier, although I don't remember to whom it belonged. It was basically 2 rectangular boxes that surronded the chair, with a board connecting the two from the back of the chair for additional stability. That gave me an idea for a type of "sled" that my office chair would sit on, then I would build 2 vertical boxes approximately 21" high that would accomodate the HOTAS. I thought about perhaps hinging them to collapse into one another, or making the boxes slevees, and bolting them to the sled with wingnuts for easy disassembly.

I made a cardboard mock-up of the sled last night (complete with cardboard HOTAS!) to test dimensions and feasability. When my wife saw, she just wagged her head.

My second design concept for an armature includes a clamp, but I haven't completely worked through what parts to use for the clamp mechanism, and how to make it strong. I am still working that part out.

Once I get the design on the armatures and the sled, I will propose the concepts to my wife and let her have the final say.

Might've been my very first pit...
http://SimHQ.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/ubb/showflat/Number/3169457/Searchpage/8/Main/324357/Words/-+Ice/Search/true/Ice_s_basic_pit.html#Post3169457

Here's another interesting build, and only takes up a small space:
http://simhq.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/3598848/The_wife_finally_let_me_build_.html#Post3598848

That's the one


I saw that one too. Too dedicated

Here is a picture I took at lunch. It shows what I was talking about with the sled. You can just barely see the leading edge of my desk at the right hand of the image. The cardboard on the ground wold be a board my chair would sit on, then the vertical boxes would sit on it. I could also add cross bracing between the boxes if I need to stiffen the design.

I like the sled idea beacuse it could be easily stored in the closet across the hallway.

http://i.imgur.com/JzssG.jpg

Nice design. Would've been better WITHOUT the sled but then they would move all over the place even with a cross brace. The reason my first attempt worked was because the boxes squashed my PC chair a bit on the sides which helped stabilize it. Maybe you could do without the sled and make a cross brace that would go under the chair from one box to the next, then the brace itself would screw onto the underside of the seat as well? Don't know how willing you are to mess with that chair though, and the arm rests might get in the way.

The reason for the sled is to "hard-wire" the boxes to the chair. I would router out some indentations in the sled to set the chair legs, that way the boxes would always be in the same place, relative to the chair.

For the armature idea, I am willing to go for a permanent solution because the desk is "mine", whereas the chair is "her's", and on long-term loan (read here: she lets me use it because people who visit us have to look in the room and the chair matches, somewhat, my desk and bookshelves). I am unwilling to damage her chair.

Not a joke, you should use the router to give the HOTAS support the same style as the rest of the furniture. BTW you could use the support to hide the joystick and the throttle when they are not in use.