Boeing 737 Flight Simulator

My concern with building a Boeing 737 flight simulator or home cockpit has always be the cost of building it and the space where it has to go and unless you have a very understanding wife or partner it should be yours to.

In case you haven’t noticed there is a worldwide recession happening today leaving us all a little bit short of the old $. This is the main reason I am building my throttle rather than buying. I have seen some very vice Boeing 737 flight simulators over the past few years and these have inspired me to start my own journey and I am going to build the Boeing 737 throttle quadrant first. Another reason that I am starting with the throttle is because if I can’t build this I probably can’t build any of it so I better had or the dream is over.

My limited engineering skills are no doubt going to be put to the test but after much study I am confident that I can do this.

One big question is” how much will it cost to make”? I would like to think about $300-$400 depending on spec, but this is where this site will come into play, “any mistakes I make you won’t have to”. $300- $400 is for materials only and I will have to assume that you at least have some tools. Another great benefit with building you own 737 throttle is that you can spread the cost over many months or years depending on the amount of free time you have. I will do a cost breakdown as I go and a parts review and I will also look at the different types of throttle specs available.

  The first part of the 737throttle build will be the throttle knobs. Believe it or not this part has taken me over a year, I am near completion now and they are looking pretty good. I was lucky enough to take the throttle knob measurements from a real Boeing 737 so the look will be pretty accurate. I will have some pictures soon so you can all take a look. I think that it is important to get these looking real otherwise it throws the whole look out. My handles are made of resin, the throttle knobs are white and have black paintfilled engraving just like the real thing.

  The next stage is to make the Boein 737 throttle handles/levers that the knobs attach to. There are a few different styles that aer discussed on this website click here. I am going to use the three plate system which is basede on the NG Style.

  During my project i will try to only use hand tools wich most of us have lying around the house this will make it possible for all of us to make a Boeing 737 thottle on the cheap.

  After the throttle has been built i will look at the electrics/motors and interfacing.

Earlier in 2008 I was lucky enough to fly the Virtual Aviation Boeing 737 - 400 Flight Simulator at London Heathrow. I paid for one full hour and let me tell you it was the best thing I have ever done. I was greeted by the pilot shortly after arrival and taken upstairs to a training room where there was a printed mock up of the 737 cockpit including the overhead panel. I was quized by the pilot on the aircraft systems ( really strange thing was that I was really nervous) after a few minuites he was happy that I knew enough to find my way around the Boeing 737 cockpit . I was also asked what I would like to get out of the experience? This question thew me a bit as I hadn't really thought about it , I was to busy thinking about how the aircraft would feel and actually sitting in the captain seat of a Boeing 737.

 I was then taken down a couple of flights of stairs to the basement where the Boeing 737 simulator  was. Let me tell you that my heart was pumping and I had a permanent grin on my face like the Joker.

  I had to wait while the engineer did his check ,but the cockpit door was open and I could see cockpit and the grin got bigger. After a few minuites I was led in straight to the captain seat where I was told to strap in right away. The first thing I did was to put my hand on the Boeing 737 throttle. It was a solid as a rock . Another point to think about for my throttle!

It is a very good idea to think about what you want to do with your time in one of these simulators before you go in. Many of us who fly with Fs2004 or Fsx at home are living out our dreams of being real pilots. Most of us can read SID and STAR charts so your chance to fly are real approach is possible.I chose to do Three circuits around EGLL ( Heathrow).

I started off lined up on runway 09 ready to do a left hand circuit. I set up for take off ( flaps 5, trim 4 units, heading 092 MCP Alt 3000) I throttled up to 40% and announced stable to which I got a reply of "stable" from my first officer.

  Let me tell you the motion and sensation was amazing ( as far as i was concerned I was flying a Boeing 737-400).

  After positive rate of climb I got the gear up set speed 210 and set flaps 1, at 210 I set speed 250 and flaps up. I followed the flight director after 500 feet and did the crosswind leg then downwind leg

Below is an accurate representation of where i sat and the Boeing 737 Cockpit that I flew ................ My favourite the -400

My altitude at this time was 3000 feet , configuration was clean. At 10 nm DME from ILS RWY 09 I set speed 210 and flap 1, then turned for base leg , set speed 180 and set flap 5. At about 30 degrees to localizer and speed 180 I turned for final ( I was about 13 nm out), and decended to 2500 feet and captured the localizer. Approaching 6 mile DME the glide slope became live and I set Speed 160, flap 15 and gear down and did the landing check " now I am Going to land"

I set the speed to 140 ( VREF ) and set flap 5 ( landing flap) the runway was now coming at me ( I was a little steep and slightly left of the center line) at 10 feet I raised the nose and pulled the throttle back ,flared, touchdown. If ever ther was any doubt that I could land a 737 it had been quashed ,I did it.

  As far as flying goes this experience at virtual aviation Heathrow was the best. I t was everthing I expected and more and it was this experience that gave me the vision of making my own 737 sim.

 For all those undertaking the dream of building your own Boeing 737 Flight Simulator  you will probably have to learn new skills, either electronics, computer programming, metalwork,woodwork or even all of the previous just try and take one step at a time there are some great sites out there and some great cockpit builders to help you along the way, so start making friends and talking to people

MY RULE - 60% flying 40% building ,never the other way round

The Boeing 737 Flight Simulator for the home is becoming more realistic by the day you can even have a full motion platform if you wish,

" for about £ 15000 though". There are a few companies out there who make the flight sim parts and I must say that most of them are spectacular.

Home Cockpit Building is becoming ever more popular and with more people becoming involved I think that products will become a bit cheaper in the near future and with the ability to produce cheaper parts it will be possible for all of us to have a Boeing 737 flight simulator in our own home, whether it be a full size replication with a motion platform or just a few panels.

The Boeing 737 flight simulator is without any question the most popular cockpit to build. There are now quite a few companies out there who produce panels, gauges, throttles, plug and play modules to give you the most real look and experience, you can even buy the Boeing 737 shell.

Another route for ultimate realism is to convert real gauges and controls, but this is not for the faint hearted either financially or skill wise.

What I have found is that there are not that many people building a Boeing 737 flight simulator in their houses. Most of us in the UK just don't have the space or the time, but there are many people just flying the sim and that is just as good.

I'm getting to know quite a few fellow cockpit builders now, and I am blown away by their dedication. I was explaining to a friend "the Boeing 737 flight simulator is a very expensive, very time consuming hobby " after showing him what I was trying to do he said

 " wouldn't it be easier if you just became an airline pilot" ..........................I had to think about this.

Of course I'm not really pilot material . But learning all the different skill needed to build a 737 cockpit make me think that I could of been one.

On the next page I would like to take a look at what you can have at home , and what other people are building.