737 NG full sim... how much ?

[Nick1150]

I am reading so many threads here, and I still cannot understand how much $$$ should someone spend for a 737 full sim. All say 10's of thousand $$$$$, but still this is not clear enough, could be 10,000 and 100,000.

I understand that the final cost is affected by the amount of personal work each one invests in his project, but still that is not clear enough, someone could make his own I/O cards from scratch and someone else could only install all equipment.

I also understand that there are possibly hundreds of ways to build a full sim, depending on the equipment, techniques, etc, but still if we say that someone builds a full 737 full sim the outcome is more or less the same at the end of the day.

Finally I can understand (please correct me if I am wrong) that there is no way to buy a full sim as a ready product, that is buy the whole package as a product from one company, so that make the cost almost impossible to calculate.

With all above in mind, can one have a quote and calculate more or less the cost of building a 737 full sim from scratch ?

Thanks

Nick

[davemckee]

Nick: You could at one time buy a complete 737 sim from Cockpitsonic USA for $35k american. As I have found out each cockpit is different from the builders point of view. As for me I elected to cut cost so I built some items, mixed other items from various suppliers, instead of usin actual cockpit seats or replicas, I chose to use auto seats which come pretty close to the real thing. So far I have invested around $6k but when all is said and done as I ad on slowly, I expect to spend around $15k. If you shop around you can get good buys. Dave

[kermit]

The bottomline is what can you spend and do you want to compromise.
What can you do yourself or does everything needs to be plug and play.
How far do you want it to be as real as its gets.
If you have the room and money ,you can order a full cockpit from a aircraft graveyard.
Hire somebody who knows how to interface the cockpit and put it on a 6 DOF platform.
You talking about a 6 figure sum of money or you can start to buy small items and complete a cockpit over the years like most of use .
If you want to build a cockpit , you have to be realistic of what you can achieve.
greetz
Note
Aviationmegastore Alsmeerderbrug has a complete B737 for sale but without the Project Magenta license and throttle unit for 70.000 euro only
Completed there is a pricetag of around 80 000 euro incl P&P and VAT

[Westozy]

My 737NG sim has cost just under AUD$10,000 including the PC & projector. I have made most of the parts myself which has kept the costs down. It is not finished and I think that building it and working on it is most of the hobby, four years and counting!!!

Regards, Gwyn

[ian@737ng.co.uk]

Gia sas Nick........
it's impossible to put a figure on it. the guys above have put it pretty much in perspective. i always work by the formula that four forces act on a cockpit......
Budget (How much money you want to throw at it, be careful), Your Skill Level (What can you make and build yourself), What you Want to Achieve (your expectations of what will satisfy you) and Space Available (how much room have you got).
all the above variables will decide your final cost.
so, i guess the first thing to decide is how much do you want to spend.......
then look at how you are going to spend it.......and on what.....
i can't tell you how much i spent, just in case my wife is watching
put a cap on your budget and work from there. it's really easy to spend 30,000 euro's
in a couple of hours
good luck and hope you find what you are looking for .....
regards from wales ... ian

[Nick1150]

Thanks for the info

Can we have an average cost for every step ?

For example:

1. MIP / MIP stand
2. Overhead
3. Pedestial
4. Yokes
5. Rudder
6. Throtle
7. MIP equipment (MCP, screens, etc...)
8. Overhead equipment (knobs, etc...)
9. Pedestial equipment (CDU, screen, etc...)
10. Seats
11. Floor
12. Shell
13. Pcs
14. Projectors, screens, etc...
15. ?

[fordgt40]

Nick

Any answers to these questions will not really tell you anything as Ian`s reply explains the forces at work here. For example do you want a price for "out of the box", a kit, part assembled, rolls royce or mini, new/secondhand, original or copy!

The information you seek is all easily available via a few clicks on the internet

When I was in your position, I prepared a spreadsheet based on prices from suppliers eg Cockpitsonic, Sismo, Flyengravity and FDS. I then researched the options for self or part build, eg Opencockpits and finally reviewed the quality/functionality/price eg PM versus Sim-Avionics.

I suggest that you do your own research to understand the options, complexities and demands on your own skills/abilities. You will then be able to make the decisions as to what can be achieved within your constraints.

Subsequently, by all means ask here to clarify any items you do not then fully understand.

Regards

David

[Nick1150]

Thanks I see your point

I now see what I am asking is wrong... There are so many ways to do a full sim, but as you said the outcome will not be the same... You are right

I am in the way of doing my research... I am posting new threads to find anwers to my questions.

Thank you all

[kermit]

Hi Nick,
it is not a case of putting threads any where,
Do you have a budget?

How long are you planning to build?

If you know your budget your already on your way
greetz

[Tomlin]

Nick, everyone has pretty much advised what I would myself advise. Maybe you should say to yourself what your max money put toward the project will be (in theory) and work from there. That will help you get an idea of your cost. Several of us choose not to worry about it too much, because 1) Building takes quite some time and dedication-your desires and demands WILL change over time. 2) The prices will change over them time it takes to build. 3) If you add it all up now (which is impossible anyhow) you will likely be discouraged. 4) If you dont know the answer, you can honestly tell your spouse you 'dont know 5) You can NEVER account for all the extra wood, metal, screws, wire, tools, etc. that you MUST purchase along and along for the build. That stuff alone sometimes adds up to what it costs for a major component like a CDU or PC or MIP, etc.