DIY wheel stand – work in progress

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My wheel will hopefully be delivered tomorrow, and I need to build a wheel stand! I've been looking around ze interwebz and I'm impressed by many of your solutions, but I've got special needs: I need to keep my better half happy. That means no seat, only the wheel stand itself – and it needs to be foldable so it can be easily hidden.

But still I want some flexibility – the ability to adjust the angle of the wheel, the height of the stand, etc.

I have been drawn to the stand found over at BuildAWheelStand, and I've spent some (actually, my first) hours in SketchUp to sketch a model. The thought is to make it flexible, but stable.

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In order to get the height adjustment right I'd probably have to move the crossbar, but that's no problem. It's probably a bit high anyway.

But my main concern is the mount of the wheel – will a bolt and wing nut on each side be stable enough?

Any other ideas, tips and comments are welcome.
 
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Where did you dind that wheel model (and is there DFGT pedals too somewhere)? Can I get it too? :) The stand looks like it would do it's job 👍
 
Nice design dude! Check out my thread where Im making a similar design but hopefully fully adjustable - https://www.gtplanet.net/forum/showthread.php?t=164895

Instead of the stablising arms Im going for another set of bolts that can move along a circular slot where the arms connect to the base, in theory at least. The peddle plate will be adjustable back and forth with angle adjustment too so that if I have the arms fully extended and in a lower position, I can bolt a bucket seat to it when I have sourced one.

Happy designing!
 
The build is quite done now, but I haven't done the pedal base yet. Will head out shortly to get the bits and pieces needed, will post pics later.
 
I have built a prototype of the pedal plate now, but I still don't know how I'm going to fixate it height wise. If you have got an idea, please let me know! Fyi, there are hinges connecting the plate and the two bars (right side in pic).

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This is how the model looks now, will post pics of the actual build shortly.

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it looks good, i'm looking to make one in a couple of days.
is it stable enough?
 
poolhaas
it looks good, i'm looking to make one in a couple of days.
is it stable enough?
Click to expand...

Yeah, I've found it to be very stable. Just got to tighten the bolts that are holding the wheel base itself very hard. And my main problem right now is the lack of friction – wood on wood is quite slippery. Not a big problem, and it will get better as soon as I have painted it and added rubber underneath to keep the whole rig in place.

Let me know if you need any advice on the build.

I have more or less concluded the build process now, only some minor things missing. Like the holders for the pedal plate, but that will come. Right now my stand is being painted. Trust me, regular paint is the way to go unless you are very used to using spray paint. I am not, and I am having a hard time making it look good...
 
thx for the reply

i'm gonna try (yes try) build something out of wood, probably like this here, i'm just concerned about using the steering wheel, but i haven't used it while driving just during install so it's probably gonna get smoother

if i'm in trouble i'll let you know :)
 
Hey do you think you can post some more pictures of the completee project. And the dimensions of the materials that you used?
 
Well, there's only the adjustment part of the pedal stand missing.

I've basically followed my intentions, but added a few mods. Under the wheel there is a power splitter and a USB-hub. The cell phone holder and bluetooth headset will be accompanied by a sixaxis holder/charger once it gets here from eBay. And I'm waiting for the USB-cable to run from the hub to the PS3.

Here's how it looks right now:

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The dimensions are (roughly) as follows (as inspired by Build A Wheel Stand):

Base:
2 x 48x48x1000 mm
2 x 48x48x500 mm
2 x 23x98x1000 mm

Feet:
2 x 48x23x1000 mm
2 x 48x23x500 mm

Wheel plate:
2 x 48x48x300 mm
3 x 23x98x408 mm

And there are a lot of screws, 8 lock bolts, 4 nuts and 4 wing nuts, 8 big washers, 6 smaller washers, a carpet screwed to the bottom, and I've used way too much spray paint.

The next steps are to fix the pedal plate properly with height adjustments and fixation, and to add a seat. But that will take some time - and convincing of the lady of the house.
 
I figured out the pedal base bit. I added velcro underneath to prevent it from sliding away from me. Then I added two pieces of wood with hinges at the end, and put velcro under those pieces as well. Thereby having the ability to adjust the angle of the pedal base as well.

Oh, and I added a cup holder for my beer. Very important, you know.

I haven't sanded down and painted the last parts yet, but that will be done soon. When I paint the last parts, and add the DS3-charger that's headed this way (I hope), this part will be done. Only the seat remaining. (Please check this thread if you care to give me your thoughts on bucket seats and comfort.)

The latest pictures of my creation:

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(The flash really shows off the worst parts of my paint job...)

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Okay, so I've decided it's time to add a racing seat, and I had to come up with a sketch of my ideas. While at it I also sketched the already built pedal base.

Glad I did the sketch before starting to build, as I found an issue I hadn't thought of. The two red planks (bottom of the wheel stand) get in the way of the front crossbar of the seat base, so I'll have to rethink that one. And looking at it before posting I realize I did another mistake: the wing nuts that connect the wheel stand and the seat stand cannot be placed where they are in the sketch. They will have to be rotated 90 degrees in order to go in the two crossbars. But anyway, here's my sketch as it looks now:

racerrattogstol1.png

(Colours added to show how the parts of the cockpit come apart for storage)

PS: Link to the seat-model by «.ıllı.AL.ıllı.» in 3D Warehouse (Google SketchUp) in case anybody wants it.
 
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Does the horizontal bar which moves between the arms not impede your foot movement, both when driving and when you're getting into position?
 
Rylan
Does the horizontal bar which moves between the arms not impede your foot movement, both when driving and when you're getting into position?
Click to expand...

Not the way I'm using it right now, but it will probably be right where I want the pedals to be when I add the seat. That's why I haven't attached it properly yet. Right now it's attached with a screw on each side, both in the bottom holes connecting the two arms (sloppy explanation, hopefully you understand what I'm trying to say). I'm considering either moving it or removing it. Don't think it will affect the stability of the rig.

ETA of the seat is probably 14-16 days, we'll see what I'll do then.
 
Okay, now we are coming close to the end of this build. I caved in and got a seat. Actually, I got two seats – for free. I asked in a local tuning forum, and this one guy needed to get a part of an engine to a garage. If I delivered the part I would get the seats for free. Nice!

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So as you can see I built just the frame under the seat (haven't sanded or painted it yet, need to do that to both the seat base and the pedal base). When testing it I found the piece that connected the wheel stand and the seat to be unnecessary – and possibly just an hindrance.

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I was really happy with my setup. But then, saturday there was a football match I really needed to watch. So I hooked up my 24" PC monitor to the PS3, placing it on the floor so I could watch the game and play some B-spec. Turns out I get a bigger screen by placing the monitor on my wheel stand. (The TV is a 32" 720p/1080i, the monitor 24" 1080p – but waaay closer to me.)

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And wrapping things up, I post two pictures showing the different screens:

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It's still placed in front of the TV because of the sound system. I don't want to go from a cheapish 5.1-system to an even cheaper, really crappy 2.1-system just yet. But I figure in time I will build a proper pod, better looking and with solid sides, and then add a 5.1-system to that. And I'm currently waiting for an el cheapo amp and bass shaker I ordered off of eBay, along with some parts to make a proper e-brake and a placeable shifter. Time will show what will become of this build.
 
I like the idea of a seat with ordinary legs.
I've got a Wheel stand pro and was wondering if it will adjust enough with a seat set up like yours.
I think it will.

Well done mate.
 
I think this will be the last update of this build. I've moved the rig to a corner of the living room, getting it out of the way. I've also added a 2.1 speaker set (it's really a 5.1 set, but with no decoder, therefore only 2.1 sound...), a monitor stand – and break lights! The lights are just for fun, but I like them.

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Not painted the last additions yet, but I think I'll just leave it like it is – and start a new build. But not right now, I'm currently having too much fun racing.

The complete setup is as follows:
  • PS3 Slim 250 GB (or is it 320?)
  • DFGT
  • Creative 2.1 sound
  • Flamingo bluetooth headset with charger
  • DS3 charger
  • iPhone charger
  • 24" Acer monitor (1080p)
  • Break lights
  • No name racing seat(s)
  • Cup holder
  • USB keyboard
  • Adjustable wheel angle
  • Adjustable wheel height (not really right now, but it can be if I find it necessary)
  • Adjustable pedal stand
  • Adjustable seat

On a side note I'm building an arcade controller right now. With that and my MacBook I'll be able to play some good old arcade classics while doing B spec racing:

photomars0940124pm.jpg
 
No, it isn't. I figured that out when the rig was completed, and since I painted it, I might as well use it. But it's only loosely attached, not having any real effect.

Oh, and there will probably be some more updates, as I have ordered brighter LEDs for the breaking light. And I think I'll do the new breaking lights with USB-power, as opposed to the 2xAA batteries that are currently powering the lights. One less piece of junk on the rig.
 
I pickup my first FFB wheel tomorrow, ironing board at the ready. I will probably be going down this route soon, love the viper stripe paintjob btw 👍
 
Cheers. To quote robulus, another user in this forum: "If it's worth doing, it's worth putting racing stripes on it."
 

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