Home-Built CDU

Heya everyone,

Not sure if this is the correct place but I'd just like to share some pictures of my home built CDU, designed for interfacing with Opencockpits USBKeys Card.

http://i822.photobucket.com/albums/z...UBuild0003.jpg

http://i822.photobucket.com/albums/z...UBuild0002.jpg

http://i822.photobucket.com/albums/z...UBuild0001.jpg

The construction is fully-aluminium, with the exception of the wooden struts on the back and of course the switches themselves.

I will be wiring the CDU today, using this wiring diagram:

http://i822.photobucket.com/albums/z.../MatrixCDU.jpg

Any questions pelase ask!

Thanks very much,

Jack:D

Thank you for the picts Boeing747flyer,
I like youre solid keyswitches much better than the "OC-way"
maby you could place a clear acryl "window" leveled with the keys for
closing the gap to the lowered placed screen and painting the
inside of the gap black will reduce irritating reflections.


anayway it looks solid and build for years, without burning to much money
nice project.

Thanks alot Flatlandpilot!

I will explain a bit more about the screen:

Basically, There is no screen, just a 5" hole which has an enclosed box inside it, which slots over a 15" monitor. As you correctly said though, spraying the box with black paint may reduce annoying reflections.

I do agree this is better than the OC way; the switches are so much more in place and do not wobble around at all.

waiting for full step by step till running test..

Good work!

after wiring, what next? cant wait for full tutorial :D

For some years now, various flightsim related companies offer ready-to-use, plug-and-play units for cockpit builders. While quick and convenient, they are also expensive; and they are not what I had in mind: I wanted to build my own. But the CDU is a rather complicated piece of hardware, so this was not an easy task. This page explains the different phases of the building process.

A DIY CDU ? Good news !...we are eager to see your tutorial...go ahead , good lock !