I'm re-designing my pit to finally incorporate the ejection seat I was able to pick up a few months ago. One of the things I'd like to "fix" in the new pit is the position of the joystick. I prefer the side-stick setup ala F-16 but the problem is if I put the stick perpendicular to the floor, it isn't very ergonomic when pulling back on the stick (pitch up).

To fix this, I was thinking of angling the stick forwards maybe 20-30 degrees so that at full-aft deflection, it is just past the perpendicular position. Obviously, when in neutral, the stick is leaning forward.

I wonder if anyone has tried this setup and has any thoughts on it? One of my main worries is obviously the strain that will be on the gimbals keeping the heavy WH stick in position. I could always remove the stick after flying but it'll be cumbersome to attach/re-attach the stick everyday. Plus that's just an accident waiting to happen with regards to the pins.

Perhaps you could make the mounting platform capable of pivoting forward and locking into the desired angle for sim/game play, and pivot back (and lock) to stick vertical for between gaming sessions.

Or just unscrew the stick handle after flying. That would alleviate the weight issue.

I'm not sure in your post if you meant that would be cumbersome, or if you were referring to undoing the entire assembly.

I took it to mean unscrewing the stick handle, and reinstalling it as needed. Plus, he was concerned about the increased opportunities for connector pin damage.

Didn't see the pin comment. At any rate, a possible solution is to build an inclined board in the cockpit for the assembly to attach to. Then, build a separate square piece of wood that the stick itself attachs to, but is slightly bigger than the stick. That would allow for screws to go from that piece into the inclined board, and you could undo THAT when you're done flying. Would require having a drill kept nearby. However, it's possible that wood screws would loosen over time. Perhaps machine screws with wingnuts on the other end that could easily be undone. If you left yourself access to the underside of the inclined board, that could work.

I did something similar several years back with an Akers-Barnes cockpit.

Of course, you could also design a brace that pushes up against the stick handle and absorbs the weight. Something that would wedge in between the stick handle and the inclined board, and just gets removed when flying.

EDIT: Came up with another idea: Put cabinet hinges on one side of the inclined board, so you can flip it over to the side when not using it. Depends on your available space around the pit though, particularly if you're up against a wall.

I'm not very keen on having moving parts. I prefer stuff to be as bolted-down as possible to minimize/eliminate "play" from the pit. That was the whole idea/concept for the pit, so that things were held down more securely.

The wood I am using for bracing in the pit is not very hard so repeated assembly/dissaembly would mean it'll loosen very much over time, maybe in a few months.

Rogue, can you elaborate more about the cabinet hinge idea? I'm not sure I follow.

Thanks!

Here's a crude drawing of my ideas.

Better yet, arrange the angle of the side hinge such that when the platform is flipped over (between games) it hangs the stick down vertical (for zero stress upon the gimbal/springs).

Hmmm... firstly, with the hinge on the side, when I flip it over, it'll still be angled anyway. The best idea I can think of is a forward or rear-ward flip direction with the angled surface ending up horizontal. However, with my new minimalist pit design, it'll just be eating up too much space. I just might leave it as it is and then see how it fares in a year or two. If anything, well, at least I can buy a WH stick by itself, right? I know, it might not be exactly sane to knowingly stress my WH just to see what happens, but I've no other options design-wise.

I'll probably have to finish my pit and then see if any options presents itself.

I'm thinking the brace idea to hold it up when not using it is probably the simplest thing to do.

Simple, yes, but I cannot imagine what to build it with.

Heck, you could use just about anything. Plywood can be cut, or maybe use a dowel rod. Even a PVC pipe would do the trick. You'd just have to make the length right and add some cushioning on the end to keep from scratching up the stick.

You could even put a hinge on one end of it so it stays attached to the cockpit and swing it into place when needed. If you have a sidewall on your pit you could make something similar to the F-16's armrests that swings into place under the trigger.