Nick1150 Home Cockpit 737NG project in Athens

[nax228]

Well I'm sorry to. shouldnt be to harsh on you.
Sismo is a world away from opencockpits both in quality and price.

[Nick1150]

Just another update.....

I just ordered the CPflight pedestal radio set. I will have those home in 3-4 days. The opencockpits solution required many USB connections giving me many conflicts in the one PC setup I already have.

The opencockpits radio set was sold two days ago in a friend from Athens, who also builds a 737NG project.

Finally these days I am ordering a new i7 @ 3.05Ghz / 8GBs RAM PC and start from the beginning my setup...

Stay tuned

[Nick1150]

That is what I call EXCELENT SERVICE !!!

On thursday 11/11/10 in the morning I ordered online the new CP_flight pedestal modules. One day after that, that is Friday around noon, my wife called at my office with the good news. The radios have arrived ( ? ) ( !!!!!! ) unbelievable. Less than 24 hours to receive ? That's a great service CP_flight...

My PC now runs WIN 7 and I can already see the difference

I have few problems, but I will solve them today or tommorow...

No pics were taken during this weekend, but I will soon post new ones with the CP_flight modules AND a special pedestal panel created by my buddy Spiros Katarelos from Kefalonia (Thanks Spiro ), which plays the role of the overhead lights panel together with my Leo Bodnard card... more on this and detailed photos soon

To be continued

[Nick1150]

So here I am

My SINGLE PC dual seat trainer is now running Windows 7.... much much more smoother than expected, all programs were installed from the beggining, and everything is operating as it should, except one minor detail with one driver, but I am certain in the next following days that this will be settled

As promised I am posting pics of the new CP_flight radio modules. If you scroll several posts above you will notice that there is almost no difference on the outside, but beleive me there is a great difference in the inside !!! All CP_flight modules run better and quicker than the Opencockpits ones, and also my SINGLE PC setup (and I) feel less worried with one USB, instead of 7 USBs with the Opencockpits solution. Not to mention that the TA/RA switch is working as the real thing... just PnP.

I have to give SPECIAL THANKS to three guys here in MC.org who really proved to me that the cockpit building society is a small family, whose members help each other, and thus the experience grows...

I would like to thank my friend and well known Greek member and builder of A320 home cockpit, Spiros Katarelos for his excelent work and indescribable dedication in creating a panel I have visioned for my cockpit, which actually is the Boeing 737 overhead lights panel in a smaller pedestal kind of version (see pictures below). Spiros not only he did listen to me, not only he imagined this panel for me, he also designed the electric part, ordered the panels TWICE (the first was not as he wanted to be), made all connections, send it to Athens for me, paid everything, and now I am hunting him to pay but he refuses to get money from me !!! Hope you will Spiro, or I will send you by courrier ten cases of beer on your door step

The second person I would like to thank is Ian Sisson, who gave me unbeleivable help programming this panel and giving offsets to the switches from the 737 OHD macro file of FSUIPC. Hey Ian, thanks for the help and waiting for you during your next visit to kalithea

The last person I would like to thank is Nax228. He is making a great job giving a solution to the sixpacks and warning lights of cockpitsonoc dual seat trainer through the PMDG way. As all know Mathias is producing excelent products, but not of the same quality communication service. So Nax is very close to solve few matters that have been problems for ages as far as our Cockpitsonic DSTs. Hey Nax, a great thanks man

So pics....


My "new" pedestal


I am looking for a fire handles solution just to finish the pedestal project


This is the panel that Spiros made for me... A LeoBodnard card is below this panel giving the inputs but Spiros arranged the switches in a way that when a switch is on the led lights up... It works great, beleive me In the middle you can see the Engine Start switches, to which I have assigned the autostart Engine1 & autostart Engine2 offset from FSUIPC, works great too !!!


Just switched on the Landing Lights...


And now the Wing Lights are switched on too...


I will make a video this weekend so stay tuned...

Next to follow is one Hitachi Ultimate Short Throw Projector, one Engravity CDU, the TQ and of course 2 737 seats...

Hope you liked this minor but VERY important to me upgrade

I am a happy man

[ian@737ng.co.uk]

Gia Sou Nick..........
excellent progress captain. i just watched your video and it brought back many happy memories
thanks for the kind words, helping each other out is what it's all about. i have many greek friends
and now i just added another one........
the only thing i don't understand is how come you didn't threaten me with 10 crates of beer
good luck and keep up the good work.....
regards

ian

[Nick1150]

Thanks Ian for your kind words

the only thing i don't understand is how come you didn't threaten me with 10 crates of beer

I've threaten you but you didn't notice... In our last communication, I told you we will BQ in my place when you come to Greece. Just a secret Greeks NEVER BQ without alcohol !!!

[Simon FSC]

Lovely cockpit
And must admit that the keyboard is brilliant It's always hard to mimetize keyboard and mouse and you've found the perfect solution

Must be hard having to wait so long for the TQ.. i would go crazy myself

[capetonian]

Looking very very nice Nick. Good chatting to you the other evening too.

Cheers from Almere

[spiro]

Hi Niko
Thanks for the nice words the panel looks great on the pedestal!!!!! but i can not take all the credit for it
as you painted it and connected it!!!!!!!!looks beautiful i love the new panels too!!!!!

and as for the beer i have a better solution maybe you and Ian can come to Kefalonia and we can drink them together over the BBQ!!!!!! i know you guys are Boeing fans but you will the airbus too

we will be waiting for the video Nick keep it up!!!!!
regards

[Nick1150]

Oooo yes SERIOUS stuff...


I haven't posted for a while....

The reason is that I realised that my cockpit has come to a dead-end situation... meaning that a Single PC configuration + FS9 together with PMDG can go up to a point. I was in that point for a while now.... BUT If that makes you happy, you are a happy simmer. If you want more, you start to realise that the setup needs be upgraded to be able to follow the dream...

Unfortunately, in a personal discussion I had with my self ( ), we concluded that WE belong to the second category

So I spent a lot of time researching, and came to the point that it is a waste of time trying to do everything with one PC... a network setup is a MUST if you want to get to the next level. Concequently, with a 4 PCs network as given, I wanted to spend as little as possible my time in programming (which is not my strong point after all) and spend more in flying instead. I needed a worry free solution... ehhhh as worry free as possible I mean. In order to achieve that I also realised that a 737 cockpit software suite is needed....

So to make the long story short, My setup few days now is a 1 server + 3 clients setup (3 x Old Sony Vaios laptops) + a full Glass cockpit + MCP + CDU, Project Magenta software for CPT and FO and as a bonus a used Engravity CDU was purchased and is expected to arrive today in my place !!!!!

The reason I choosed laptops instead of desktops, is that on the one hand I had already two of them in my drawer for 3-4 years now, and on the other hand, the small size of them, together with the fact that the screen, the keyboard and the mouse makes changes a snap, compairing with a desktop solution with which 3 mouses and 3 keyboards are too much in my mind, and also seting up windows and stuff is difficult with the screens behind the MIP. Finally eventhough my setup has 2 x 1500 UPS for safety, laptops do not lag my power setup, because of their batteries.

As you can understand it was a busy week for me, but hopefully this weekend it will be flyable and post few pics with my new setup,

So stay tuned