Advice from the experts/users: 80/20 Simg Rig design

[12Gauge]

Hi guys,
First post from a long time lurker here. I really enjoy simracing which really got a boost since I discovered Assetto Corsa four or five years ago.
In a few weeks I will move to a new house in which I will have my own room/mancave which means that I have room for a dedicaded sim rig. I have been using a Thrustmaster TS-PC wheel, Fanatec Clubsport V1 pedals, a Thrustmaster TH8 shifter, a homemade button box and a Logitech EXTREME 3D PRO joystick. This was mounted on a wheelstand and I used a office chair on wheels with it.
I also like to play the Farming Simulator games for which I use the joystick and button box.

I want to replace the wheelstand and office chair with a dedicated sim rig. I wanted to design my own 80/20 aluminium rig which I designed the past week: both for playing racing simulators and farming simulators.

I wanted to ask the experts and users of 80/20 sim rigs to take a look at the design. Do you spot any faults, errors or maybe an overkill of material? Please let me know what you think of this design.

(Both the keyboard tray and the mouse/joystick pad are not shown in the drawing, I leaning towards making these out of 18mm MDF-wood.)

 

[mrdavid]

Wow, you're going to have fun bolting that lot together !

Something I came across when assembling mine is a difference in thickness of the corner brackets, the 80x80 were thicker than the 40x40 which affected bolt length. You have to be careful not let the bolts bottom out in the slots, but also have enough thread to hold in place. I ended up having to get several different length bolts and washers to be able to space accordingly.

I see from your design you are using 80x40 for the seat mounts, don't know if this might be too high when the seat is installed.

 

[12Gauge]

Not a lot of replies... I guess not may people see very bad things in the design, so that's a good thing.
I was worried the design got a little bit too complex, but I see no other way when I also incorporate the buttonbox holder and the mount/pad for the shifter, mouse and joystick.

David, thanks for your repliy. I'm going to make sure I have a few different spacers and washers so I won't have a problem with that.

The seat mount is a 80x40 right now indeed, I was worried that the seat would be too low in comparison to the pedals. If the sear turns out to be too high I can always turn the 80x40 45 degrees to it turns into a 40x80 and lowers the seat by forty mms, right?

This design has a part list of about 500 euros. That's my maximum too, a bit cheaper would be great but I really don't see any places where I can really make things cheaper without sacrificing functions or stability.

 

[JohnRule]

Definitely looks solid. Are the frames off to the left and right where you'll mount the keyboard, button boxes, etc...? The only thing I can think of is that it looks like it might be a pain to enter & exit.

 

[sjb266]

Only thing i'd say is your keyboard tray and mouse tray are pretty heavy duty.. you don't really need anything like that much profile for those..

Also you don't really need the 120 for the uprights for the steering deck.. 80mm is fine.. but you might need some plates on the side to stop lateral movement.. the 2 corner brackets themselves won't be enough..

 

[Neil Farren]

Looks a pretty solid design. Only thing I would say is that the keyboard tray does not look to be very manoeuvrable. Maybe take a look at the designs of companies that sell 80/20 rigs online. After all they have already gone through a lengthy design process.

 

[tony wright]

I was lucky enough to pick up a job lot of 40x40 for £155 from E bay and set about designing (used ideas after googling sim rigs) and putting it together myself. It was all done on a budget so didn’t want to waste money or profile on the keyboard and mouse trays. So, these were my budget designs and by doing so left my the smallest piece of profile even to include a beer holder.

Mouse tray - knicked one of the Wife’s small chopping boards and mounted it to a small protruding piece of profile.

Keyboard tray - Once again, I stole a small plastic tea tray from the Wife’s kitchen. Made a small cut out in the protruding edge so it could be mounted upside down to a single length of profile. I then affixed Velcro to both keyboard and tray so it can be taken off easily. Profile is fixed by one end only using a single bolt and it can be swivelled 90 degrees left and right (aides getting in and out of seat).

Drinks Holder - Small tea coaster fitted to profile with beer cooler foam (assists with vibration from wheel).

I’ve tried to up-load photos of each piece, but having problems as I don’t seem to be able to reduce the file size of the pictures using my I pad

 

[tony wright]

E mailed the photos to myself and reduced them to small, but still too large

 

[Jeremy Ford]

The wheel deck is over-complicated unless there's a special reason to use that arrangement of 40/40 rather than just the same profile used on the uprights? Attaching the uprights to the sides of the base profile will give you more stability. Maybe check out my YouTube channel as I've run some 80/20 design videos.

 

[Turvey]

Hi guys,
First post from a long time lurker here. I really enjoy simracing which really got a boost since I discovered Assetto Corsa four or five years ago.
In a few weeks I will move to a new house in which I will have my own room/mancave which means that I have room for a dedicaded sim rig. I have been using a Thrustmaster TS-PC wheel, Fanatec Clubsport V1 pedals, a Thrustmaster TH8 shifter, a homemade button box and a Logitech EXTREME 3D PRO joystick. This was mounted on a wheelstand and I used a office chair on wheels with it.
I also like to play the Farming Simulator games for which I use the joystick and button box.

I want to replace the wheelstand and office chair with a dedicated sim rig. I wanted to design my own 80/20 aluminium rig which I designed the past week: both for playing racing simulators and farming simulators.

I wanted to ask the experts and users of 80/20 sim rigs to take a look at the design. Do you spot any faults, errors or maybe an overkill of material? Please let me know what you think of this design.

(Both the keyboard tray and the mouse/joystick pad are not shown in the drawing, I leaning towards making these out of 18mm MDF-wood.)View attachment 275949 View attachment 275950 View attachment 275951 View attachment 275952 View attachment 275953 View attachment 275954

Love me some farm sim

 

[12Gauge]

@JohnRule : The keyboard tray is on a pivot so I can turn it away when entering en exiting and pull it in again when playing Farming Simulator for example. I might have to draw in a chair, wheel et cetera to see if it is easy enough to get in and out of the seat with this design.

@sjb266 : I agree on the trays, I have removed some material and changed the design slightly so it uses less material but should still be strong enough.
On the 120x40 for the uprights: I don't know. I think this might be more solid. I have seen it in other designs to, without further plates. I think this will be solid enough, otherwise I might add a plate to both uprights if it still has movement.

@tony wright : Thanks for the ideas, smart thinking. I have saved money for this project so I think I like to use a bit more expensive materials to make the rig look great too. Using wooden trays, painted to match the frame, I think I will be able to keep the costs down.

@Jeremy Ford : I have watched your videos. They actually were the reason I started my own design because it looked like so much fun! Thanks for your great videos! My design is based on yours / the Simlabs design.
I simplified the wheeldeck a bit. I tried to make the wheeldeck adjustable so I can get my TS-PC in just the right angle. In your design the 120 horizontal bar was not adjustable in angle, am I right?

@Turvey : 18 days to go for FS19! Unfortunately I have no time for it as everything is packed for moving. A bit more patience...

EDIT: Added the pictures of the adapted design.

 

[Jeremy Ford]

@Jeremy Ford[/USER] : I have watched your videos. They actually were the reason I started my own design because it looked like so much fun! Thanks for your great videos! My design is based on yours / the Simlabs design.
I simplified the wheeldeck a bit. I tried to make the wheeldeck adjustable so I can get my TS-PC in just the right angle. In your design the 120 horizontal bar was not adjustable in angle, am I right?

Okay great, glad my stuff gave you some ideas. You're right the wheel deck on my designs do not have any tilt adjustment. Would you mind emailing your MAD-CAD scene file to me so I can have a look: simracingcorner@gmail.com

I'm currently working on a new video where I'm able to view MAD-CAD exported models in VR at a full 1-to-1 scale. It's really works well, so I wouldn't mind showing off your design as part of video if your interested, and you might find it interesting to see your build at a life-sized scale.

 

[Beef36]

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[Mascot]

If you are making the rig yourself from scratch you may want to consider 120mm or even 160mm for the floor.

Rigs with skinny floor beams may flex if you get high end pedals and you want to press on those like a real race car.

120mm+ aluminium extrusion for the floor will add even more stiffness and peace of mind.

Plus if you decide to add 4x actuators for motion at a later date.

 

[Magiashkii]

You can stick with 40mm x 80mm 8020, it's what I used on my rig for a 4250i dbox system and it's Rock solid with zero flex

 

[Tennracer]

12Guage
The 80/20 profile is a lot stronger than you are giving it credit for. If you Google DIY 80/20 sim rig you will find a large amount of ideas to draw from. I'm not saying your rig design is over complicated but it might not need to be so elaborate.
I have built my rig from this material using 15 lite series ( 1 1/2" ).
I use a Thrustmaster TS-XW base and T3PA Pro pedals with the Ricmotec load cell.
I get no movement from the rig anywhere.
My monitor is mounted above my wheel with no movement or shake while my wheel is giving FFB.
I can add pics if you would like

 

[Tennracer]

12Guage
Also have a look in the forum a few down from this one called "Show your Rig"
There are some very good examples of the 80/20 design that you are looking for.
On the last page (173) there is a video of someone using VR as a way to look at a design in real time at a 1 to 1 scale.

 

[Jeremy Ford]

12Guage
Also have a look in the forum a few down from this one called "Show your Rig"
There are some very good examples of the 80/20 design that you are looking for.
On the last page (173) there is a video of someone using VR as a way to look at a design in real time at a 1 to 1 scale.

That would be me.

 

[north]

*snip*
I can add pics if you would like

Please do.

 

[north]

"I got Hulk strength, uurrrr". lmao

Awesome video Jeremy. Very informative.