DIY game controllers (dashboards, steering wheels, levelers...etc)

    I think I'm not the only one who's hobby is to build game controllers from scratch and real vehicle parts. So I was thinking maybe there should be a thread on this topic where anyone can show his/her projects. I hope it's not a problem to upload full size pictures instead of thumbnails, this way it's more spectacular.



    My first project was a gearbox leveler, made from an old joystick, some wood and a real gearbox "button" from a bus scrapyard:



    To use it (mostly in OMSI) I used XPadder, later I used Auto Hot Key (this way I can specify it more precisely, which is handy because the joystick is not working that great).



    Later on I hooked up my Ikarus dashboard to an Arduino DUE, so at least it's buttons and switches can be used in OMSI. Also I built a steering wheel for it (from a Logitech DFGT and some cogwheels)




    A year ago I got myself a Knorr D2 brake leveler (mostly used in Hungarian locomotives) and hooked it up with a potentiometer (that was the tricky part) and an Arduino Leonardo.




    Last summer I decided to build the throttle leveler of a Budapester suburban railway train (made by West German manufacturer LEW), but since there are nothing available from them (because they are all in service) I had to improvise and build it from nothing but a stapler and some wood:



    It's actually working pretty well. Its heart is also an Arduino Leonardo.


    This year I started working on underground (metro) stuff. There are some parts from the old russian metro cars we used for 40+ years, but they are very rare, so for my MMZ Ev (Hungarian version of the Metrowagonmash E type, aka 81-702) controller I also had to improvise. After all I modelled the parts in SketchUp and then a friend of mine 3D printed them. Later I got myself a real label:




    A few weeks ago I bought a real metro dashboard part from a flea market (actually it was very cheap, €10 for two pieces). They are from type Ev3 (similar to the russian Ezh3 or 81-502 types).


    No you are not alone :)


    i got most of the parts from a MAN NG272 bus for my omsi cab,

    i wanted a berlin edition, so got an almex A90 ticket printer, and made up my own keypad based on the one in the berlin bus on omsi, by made up, i mean made the individual keys out of perspex on a laser cutter, and the switch support plates, then soldered up the buttons and mounted it all together.


    (i'll post a picture when i can add attachments)


    i never got it fully working in omsi, i need help with the software side of things relating to Komsi to get it all working nicely.


    But i am looking into lotus now, to see if it's better for me to move over to this sim (if there's a MAN NG 202 / 272 bus for lotus, then i will buy it now)


    i also have the driving desk from a (German) BR 111 train, i began converting the inputs... air brake levers changed to potentiometers like you have done, and was making the power lever a universal input type, using laser cut detent cams, so i could change the input to match different trains,

    but again, life got in the way of that, and all my train sim stuff is in storage,

    i only recently got my bus sim stuff out, and want to concentrate on the bus sim side.

    16683-berlin-almex-jpg


    This is the ticket printer panel i made, it's been in storage for 5 years so it is dirty, but all my real bus parts have been well used and show signs of wear, which i like, shows they earnt money for the bus company :D