how do i ask? dont wanna impose- Akers Barnes MKI

[GAU-8]

this isnt meant to "force" a project on anyone,..nor make/ put anyone uncomfortable.....   so anyways ill run it by yall.

THE IDEA:
    i have the money, and every other weekend off.  im wanting to build either a direct "AKER BARNES COCKPIT" or something thats a modded relation to it.

THE PROBLEM:

   i dont have a garage (apartment)...nor the tools (power tools..smaller stuff i got).

i dont really wanna ask someone to "borrow thier garage"... unless they are comfortable with it AND/OR making a pit themselves AND/OR want to do a project AND/OR are willing to accept some cash for thier time an effort, replenishable tool items...oh..and maybe beer .

im crappy at "project/metal/woodwork" common sence...and "man tools..that make BIG POWAHH!"..oooer but i wish i wasnt. if your a "measure twice, cut once" kinda guy, lemme know, if your interested. im sure a decent agreement for your time= my money could be worked out

personally, id rather build it myself.... but would love to have someone around who knows what theyre doing. if not that...at least find someone whose about to start the same thing, and maybe join creative ideas.

AGAIN,(but shorter)
i have the money for all the supplies,the space to put it...BUT not build it

or HOW can i do it myself...space wise, tool wise.. can i rent tools?, can i rent space?, can i use an outdoor "U STORE IT"?

if in houston area, or nearby, lemme know (even if its just ideas on where to look)

gau

(i realise there are MANY factors to discuss, but i just wanted to get the basic problem out the door, and see what we come up with)

[TX-Rahman]

GAU:  I have a garage and want one or more of these myself.  A construction king I am not....but I do have a friend with a CNC plasma cutter....Maybe we could chip in and get some thin sheet metal templates cut out??  Trace the templates onto ply, cutout and boom...cockpit!  Lemme know if you're interested.  I don't have a buncha tools but have been looking for an excuse to buy some.          PM me and I'll shoot ya my phone number...  I live in Northwest Houston... The Inwood Forest area...near 290 and Bingle/North Houston Roslyn...          I'll shoot my friend an email and just see what it would cost for the templates...  If not....We have plotters here at work...could print each piece and make our own templates.Regards,TX-Rahman"WHITE 6"

[GAU-8]

thats good news !oh man..bingle and 290...spring branch....sigh, my old stompin ground :)im working nights..usually from 3:00 pm, till 1:30 ~2:00 am.  so if comms,or phone are going to be hard to use talk, guess we got E-mail.i AM  having the next 3 weekends off...this one comming up is my regular scheduled, and same as the last one, luckily im let go of work for the airshow weekend.where i work, i might be able to swing things with the machinist side too.. not sure though.....of course im thinkin if i/we could get something done, proly cost a fortune....then again..maybe not.ill get ya a PM in soon..

[TX-Rahman]

Cool....well...I'll talk to the guy who manages our CAD dept today to see if he can maybe plot me some full sized templates...  Not going anywhere this weekend...supposed to rain...  Maybe we can get something done this weekend....  At least get our templates made and if we get a break in the rain to get some plywood from Home Depot...  What type of vehicle you have?Regards,TX-Rahman"WHITE 6"

[Monguse]

Hey guys... If ya'll want CAD drawings I'm an AutoCAD Guru.Just let me know what you wantS~TX-MonguseWhite 1War Room General

[TX-Rahman]

Guse,              Sup man?  Check the link out and d/l the package...They were thoughtful enough to include the .dxf file http://www.62ndfightingfalcons.asn.au/62ndff/projects/cockpit/cockpit_instructions_metric_and_imperial_v1.6d.zipRegards,TX-Rahman"WHITE 6"

[Monguse]

Cool stuff. Looks like a no brainer.The zip file contains the sheets in mm s I'm re-scaling the drawing for imperial (feet and inches). I'll upload the dxf and dwg files later tonight.S~TX-MonguseWhite 1War Room General

[Monguse]

As promised here they are.Now, the drawings look fine but some fine work needs to be made prior to creating a routing drawing if this is the plan of attack.  If someone will be routing this I'd advise that all notches which at the moment are 1/2" be increased to 9/16" as noted in the word document. This will give the assembler at least 1/32" room to ensure a snug fit. Of course if you intend never to dissasemble this puppy I'd go 10/16" (5/8") which would give you 1/16" around the notches (later glue) making the assembly a little easier. MDF or medium density board is actually quite good, we use it at the plant all the time as a surface and it's quite durable. Plywood on the other hand has a tendancy to split and it's heavy.Sometime this week I'll post full 3D drawings to ease assembly.In the meantime enjoy the drawings.Full instructions with added Imperial AutoCAD2000 DWG and DXFJust the Imperial AutoCAD2000 DWG and DXFS~TX-MonguseWhite 1War Room General

[TX-Rahman]

Guse,             That just simply rocks  Thanks a ton man!  Do you mind if I share this with the authors?  (I'll give you full credit of course)Regards,TX-Rahman"WHITE 6"P.S.  I think the plans were designed to use 1/2 inch...or at least that's what the document states:Notes for Imperial Version onlyVERY IMPORTANT!To date, no cockpit has been made using the imperial version of the plans in this document.  Please take great care to double check the measurements of the line out points (Figure 3).  Please contact us if you do use the imperial version, and tell us of any incorrect measurements, or if everything is correct.The plans are designed for 1/2 inch thick ply.  If you use a different thickness of plywood you will need to adjust the widths and positions of all the slots and the height of the tabs accordingly.  To assist with this, use the red lines in figure 3.Unlike the metric version, the all the slots and cut-outs are drawn at exactly the same as the thickness of the timber sheets (1/2 inch).  They really should be about 9/16 inch.  As a result, it is important that you cut the slots and cut-outs just slightly on the outside of the lines as you mark them on the wood.  If you don’t the pieces will all be a very tight fit.It is useful to have the slots on parts (A) and (D) (only) to be a few millimetres closer to the centre of the cockpit (horizontally as they appear in figure 3).  This is so that they fit tightly and lock into place.  Note: The plans already have them shown as 1/4 inch closer than might be expected.  You do NOT need to adjust these measurements to make the fit tight.

[GAU-8]

good stuff :)vehicle wise, i have two passenger cars, but i got access to my moms truck if needed. HMMMMM..... to be  HARD assembled... or portable.  damn.since living in apartment, ill go with portable. im sure the whole thing built wont fit thru the door at any angle off attack :Pi have no probs with geting started this weekend.. even if its just.."damn..all we got done was scribbling on napkins for ideas..and that was 10 hours"

[GAU-8]

is MFD particle board?if so..sheets are really cheap, i think under 10.00 for each one (i had a pit before,out of MFD .....that got turned into bicycle ramps.but thats another story)if i remember... plywood can split eventually, but MFD was really prone to chipping/flaking on the edges, from where i had dinged it. unless there is a good way to seal/protect it. (quick break)..ah, it would be longer construction time also tighter tolerances, but what about fitting thin gauge galvanised material around key fitting element edges? or is that too much trouble?....i guess we'll see when we start thinktankin together. oh yeah i left ya a PM rahman

[Monguse]

When I get to the office today I'll inquire about the cost of MDF.  I can tell you that particle board is much heavier than plywoood. If you don't think so, go to Lowes or Home Depot and try it out yourself. Gau, yes, MDF can flake if hit on an edge. I'll post more info later.S~TX-MonguseWhite 1War Room General

[GAU-8]

i dont mind the heavyness of it..but ,i remember lugin those two sheets out by myself to the truck i borrowed..UFF.. ill make sure rahman is around for that.... :Pspeakin of "plants"... boy i hope you dont work where i work...ULP... or the B-17 story i told my boss to get off for the weekend is um... never mindhope your not my boss...now i dont wanna know where you work..  

[TX-Rahman]

There were several people who posted shots of their MDF "portable" cockpits...and expressed their displeasure with the chipping etc...  I will probably go with a higher grade ply even though it will cost a bit more...Portable or not...I'm shooting for portable also.  I want to be able to tear it down for LAN flights....if we ever organize some here in Houston.GAU....don't sweat it...  Guse is in FL Regards,TX-Rahman"WHITE 6"

[Monguse]

Gau,Don't worry, I live in Coral Springs, Florida and work in Miami.S~TX-MonguseWhite 1War Room General