I have a dream to one day post into the "Show Off Your Pit" thread, but that day is still probably far off. But I'm very happy that I've got phase one finished. I figure the ejection seat is going to be the centre piece of my pit, so that's where I've started. I took a lot of inspiration and ideas from everyone who posts here, so thank you everyone for sharing your work.
I started with a seat from a wrecking yard. I believe it was out of a Ford mini-van.
Seat stripped and a notch cut for the ejection handle (which in my case allows the seat to slide forward or back).
I needed to fabricate a new seat cushion, but was able to reuse the seat back.
Starting to take shape.
Brain storming some ideas for window dressing.
The finished seat.
Working in an inadequately lit garage, I didn't notice some pretty major paint runs. And then I had an incident where the seat toppled over. With all the props on the back it needs to be bolted down. Anyway, the fall caused some more blemishes to the back of the seat. But at the end of the day, I decided it shouldn't look pristine. It's got a well worn and used look to it that I think suits it.
That's a very creative use (re-purposing) of an auto seat. Good job and some nice pics of the build progress. I had a friend that offered me an old Austin-Healy Sprite (?) seat but when I looked at it yesterday it was way too far gone. After seeing this, I can see how a newer seat could be made to fit a lot of designs. Thanks Derek
Thank you. My thought was that when the sim pit was built, I'd be spending lots of time sitting in it, so comfort was more important than authenticity. And this seat is surprisingly comfortable.
"It takes forever +/- 2 weeks for the A-10 to get anywhere significant..." Ice
"Ha! If it gets him on the deck its a start!" MigBuster
"What people like and what critics praise are rarely the same thing. 'Critic' is just another one of those unnecessary, overpaid, parasitic jobs that the human race has churned out so that clever slackers won't have to actually get a real job and possibly soil their hands." Sauron
Wizard that's amazing work and definitely worth posting in the Show Your Pit thread, even if its a work in progress! Can't wait to see more, I've said it before and I'll say it again it never ceases to amaze with the creativity of pit building!
And you mention the seat still slides back and forth? That alone is a great idea. My set up is fixed so people too tall or short (kids) can always use the rudder pedals, not that you need to use them that much after take off.
Thanks for the kind words. Pulling on the ejection loop in the middle of the seat allows the whole seat to slide just like the original car seat. The left side ejection handle allows the seat back to tilt forward and aft, although it's a bit limited because of the surrounding seat frame that I built. But it moves sufficiently to allow you to get comfortable. I wanted the seat to move so when my son gives it a go, he can reach the rudder petals. You're right about not needing them in the air, but they're handy for taxiing around the ground. I can see a problem in the future with all this. If I slide the seat to accommodate different size people, that will probably effect how far one must reach for the stick and throttle. I can see that getting uncomfortable for someone who has slid the seat back because they are tall, but now have to reach out in front of them to hold the HOTAS. I'll cross that bridge later. The right ejection handle activates a push/pull switch that will eventually be wired into Ultramarc A-pac board and will actually eject the pilot in game.
On the other hand, you can also attach a bunch of bungee cables under the seat and some rubber end stops. That way pulling the ejection handle will become just that bit more realistic .
Just figure out a way to mount the stick to the seat and that won't be an issue Wizard. If you're crafty enough to build that seat, mounting a stick to it will be super easy!
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