As will become a consistent theme on this blog, this project started with a Facebook marketplace purchase. I found a fantastic deal for $50AUD on a Logitech Driving Force GT Wheel and proceeded to have a fantastic time immersing myself into sim racing over a very short period, notably having the most fun with Dirt Rally 2. Not too long after this I found myself buying another wheel on FB, a trusty Logitech G29 with the shifter for $200AUD. Now this piece of kit was and is fantastic value but all the sudden the requirement of mounting it to my desk became a little bit of a chore, along with the limitation of my 24 inch monitor being too far away to have a decent FOV once I adjusted the setting properly. Coming from the high of just completing my last project my arcade cabinet I was looking for an excuse to build something new and impressive.
The first thing I needed to do was to find myself a seat, and one from a scrapyard would solve all my problems and would even allow me to make it adjustable with very little extra effort. So not having ever been to a scrap yard before I took my partner and after some psyching up in the car we went in and scoured the entire place for the best looking seat that would cost me the least amount of money. I brought my tools knowing you have to remove things yourself however low and behold someone had already taken out the seats of a 2001 Lancer and they looked good enough to me! So I grabbed the less worn down passenger side seat and $50AUD later I was the proud owner of my very own car seat. Gosh I had not before and have not since felt more masculine than going the scrap yard and actually taking something home. I peaked as a stereotypical man in that moment.
The rest of this project was just scrap pine and 2x4s and it kept the timber costs very low. Rather than measuring where I wanted the monitor, pedals and wheel mounted I just held up where they felt about right and went from there. Keeping the slide working for the seat was important to me as I wanted to show others and let them have a comfortable go on it.
So after a weekend of cutting assorted lengths and I had a fantastic rig that allowed me to have a new 27inch monitor much closer to allow me to set a wider field of view in game. This was only the first part of what I wanted to do but for now it was functional. But man it was fun and it was seriously immersive. The many wires required became a little bit of a nightmare but luckily the monitor had a built in USB hub so that allowed me to plug less into the computer and keep it at least a bit tidy. This build allowed me to bolt the wheel to the desk instead of just clamping it as through my excitement of my rally season I had frequently yanked the wheel off my desk both during tight hot laps and violent accidents. This security again just added to my immersion which ultimately was the goal of this entire project.
So the next part came mounting my HOTAS (Hands on Throttle and Stick) which I had bought in preparation for both Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 and Star Wars Squadrons which both looked like fantastic VR experiences. I had always planned to mount these as they only came with suction cups as a removable mounting option and I was finding they really struggled to stay where I wanted them. Mounting them made them feel oh so cool and sturdy and really made me feel like some kind of Top Gun pilot. The mounts themselves weren't ever quite as firm as I'd like, particularly in side to side movements however as a lazy man I simply accepted it and enjoyed the massive toy I had built.
Now next came the really fun stuff! The more I played Dirt Rally the more I found myself using the handbrake and the more that the B button on the wheel wasn't cutting it. USB handbrakes analogue and digital go for minimum about $80-100 plus shipping times. So looking for another excuse to build something I made myself a handbrake! I wanted to push my 3D modelling skills at the time and after many test prints and a decision to mount it straight to the side of the rig I designed a fantastically functional brake. As you can just see in the video I used a USB to game controller board that go for about $15-20 and saved me having to program an Arduino.
Obviously being 3D printed in PLA plastic it was never particularly strong and couldn't be super yanked and did eventually fail probably about 100ish hours in. Luckily since it was 3D printed it was an easy redesign and replacement. This increased my immersion about 10 fold and made it so amazing to gracefully slide around a hairpin with one little pull on the brake. Only significant changes I'd make would be that the switch I used although sounded very clicky didn't provide very much tactile feedback as when it had been activated.
As for my final fun and lightly pointless addition to this rig, I found myself at Jaycar and saw they had key ignition switches and $10 later and 30 minutes in AutoCAD and I have myself a key ignition that adds Oh-So-Much IMERSION AHHH.
Not many games have a binding to start the car, only Euro Truck Simulator and iRacing that I could find but man, when I did get to start the vehicle with an actual key felt amazing. A very silly addition that added far too much for how little effort it took.
Sadly this project had to be disassembled when I moved as my new place did not have room and all the components have been sold and the timber used for something else. But it was so much fun showing people what I had built and letting them share this quite amazing experience. I will simply never forget the summer I spent in my Dad's garage sweating up an old car seat while racing for the world rally championship.
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