Ghostpilots Aluminium Delta Throttle build-log

[Ghostpilot]

Now I have reached about as far as I was when I decided to switch to this more compact size and form factor. So plus-minus zero in progress now, so to speak.
One out of six rods with Igus plastic rod ends, done. Five more to go. The little medallion/pendant shaped thing on the right is a lid for the hole where the Z-spring anchor sits from below, so it doesn't fall out or bind when not under load. It will be held in place with a tiny M2 screw I salvaged from a dead laptop prior to this project. Scavenging parts has its uses sometimes.


Here is a closer look at the z-spring anchor point on the under side of the base. It's a little hard to see because the aluminium glares and reflects all ambient light so all edges are a little blurred. In addition to the hole for the swivelling Z-anchor part I also milled out a trench around it and made it into a tear-drop shape. You'll notice that the edges of the lid will fit in that pocket but also seal the z-anchor cavity by covering the outer edges of that "chimney" shaped inner wall. When the lid is screwed down with that tiny M2 screw the Z-anchor part will not fall out.
Yeah yeah, I know all the screws are of different types and look a little rusty. I took what I could find in my screw and nut parts box. Oh, those are sized down to M3 now, to fit better on the now smaller base. So I have no M4 screws at all in this build now.

[Ghostpilot]

Only a small update this time.
I finished the newer low profile torsion spring anchors today. The fit of the spring leg in the mounting hole is tight, but I wonder if it is tight enough so the spring won't slip when under load. At first I thought I could drill and thread the screw hole from below all the way up into the spring leg mounting hole to be able to first screw in a set screw to clamp the spring leg and then screw down the anchor with another screw through the base plate into the same hole in the anchor part. But alas, the low profile one is a little too low profile for a internal set screw to fit in the same threaded hole as the fastening screw that clamps it down to the base. So I might need to drill and tap another hole from the side at 90degree angle to the spring leg hole for a separate sec screw to pinch the spring leg. I'll try without first and I'll see if it's needed or not.

[Ghostpilot]

In the photo below the focal point is on the torsion spring anchor that is attached to the spring leg. Therefore the rest looks a little blurred. Lets say it was intentional...
I incorporated SCmaik's universal spring anchor with L-shaped slit and set screw from behind, into my build. Down on the base plate you can see the other two spring anchors from different sides. The bigger threaded hole is an M3 hole which will be for fastening the spring anchor to the pivot arm, the smaller one is an M2 hole which leads through into the spring leg slit. The pivot arm will have a through hole aligned with that hole so that the M2 set screw can be adjusted even after the spring anchor has been attached to the pivot arm.
I also finished the Z-spring anchor (and a spare) that will sit on the upper platform when it is done. I am very pleased with the build so far.
I put in a only few hours a week at best, so I have come quite far in a rather short time.

[Ghostpilot]

It was some time since I last posted something here. I haven't had much time after work hours to work on my deltathrottle.
Yesterday I managed to make the first setup of the pivot arms. They aren't done yet, but you can see the general outline of what the part will look like.

[Ghostpilot]

I managed to mill the second setup on the main part of the pivot arms. So now they have all shapes and contours on both the left and the right side. Only minor details left to be done, such as a threaded hole for a set screw to hold the arm still on the shaft. But those holes I will do manually later when the arm is correctly mounted to the shaft. I had to file and sand a while on the spring anchors puzzle piece tabs before they could fit in their places. The counter sunk hole for the M3 screw head partly covered the smaller access hole for the even smaller M2 set screw that will pinch the torsion spring legs in place in the slotted groove. However after testing with an tiny hex wrench/Allen-key for a M2 hex socket, it turned out that it could be turned freely without obstruction.


I also started to make the shafts out of some aluminium scrap I had saved for this purpose. I was lazy so I chose to make all setups of the shafts in the CNC mill rather than turning them on the manual lathe and then moving over to the mill for the hexagonalshape on the shafts. As you can see only one end of the shafts are done right now. When milling the other side of them I will clamp them down in the vise on the hexagonal part as it has plenty of sides that are parallel. Then I will find the centre of the cube shape and mill the other end of the shaft. Hopefully that will be enough to make the shaft straight enough so the ends are concentric to one another. I wouldn't want the pivot arms to wobble.
If I ever make another set of pivot arms like this I will redraw it a little so that there is a flat surface on the "spine" side also of the arm, to clamp against when milling the second setup. It was hard to clamp the down for the second mill setup when one side is flat and the opposing side is an angled point with a radius. One of these three arms got a few extra "features" (as I call the mistakes I make) due to the fact that it was clamped a little crooked. It was not entirely flat against the vise jaw when I started to mill it, so some lines and contours are out of place by a few degrees. Not as much that it hampers the motion or fit of the pivot arm, it just destroys the look and symmetry of the three arms when viewed together. Yep... I am that shallow when it comes to things I make.

[Ghostpilot]

Quick test mount to ensure things are fitting together and looks the way it should.

[aniron]

That looks great!

My own prototype build is in a stasis of sorts since I discovered that I couldn't fit the rod end spacers on the screws I was using,
thus binding the entire mechanic once the upper plate was attached.

I got some threaded M3 rod to replace it but haven't had the opportunity to cut it up yet due to a conspiracy of family matters.
I printed a rough draft of a handle mockup, but testing proved it to be unwieldy.

I incorporated a trackball, a ministick, two buttons, and two 5-way hats in the design. Ah well, back to the drawing board.
I'm drawn between an upright leftie joystick-type setup and a more horisontal throttle style with some sort of crossbar over the back of the hand.

[Ghostpilot]

My own prototype build is in a stasis of sorts since I discovered that I couldn't fit the rod end spacers on the screws I was using,
thus binding the entire mechanic once the upper plate was attached.
I got some threaded M3 rod to replace it but haven't had the opportunity to cut it up yet...

If it's just a matter of cutting up some length of M3 screw I'm more than happy to help you.
Send a PM to me with details about what needs to be done and we'll see if we can't sort it out for you.

[aniron]

My own prototype build is in a stasis of sorts since I discovered that I couldn't fit the rod end spacers on the screws I was using,
thus binding the entire mechanic once the upper plate was attached.
I got some threaded M3 rod to replace it but haven't had the opportunity to cut it up yet...

If it's just a matter of cutting up some length of M3 screw I'm more than happy to help you.
Send a PM to me with details about what needs to be done and we'll see if we can't sort it out for you.

Oh, that is not necessary. I have the tools and the materials, I have simply been busy with other things. Thanks anyway.

[Ghostpilot]

I finished the second and last mill-setup on the axles, after work today. So here's the first properly mounted lower pivot arm.
As with all firsts, this procedure too had its mishaps. It turned out that I had miscalculated the distance between the bearings when seated in the bearing blocks by a full 1mm. However, I managed to save the day by adding a counter sunk hole to the hex-shaped through hole in the pivot arms for the axle to mate into 1mm. Then it mounted perfectly. It's rare see a project that requires so little last minute fixes as this one have had up till now. Let's hope the progress continue along this straight and narrow path when I now turn my attention to the pivot arm assemblies elbow joints and the upper platform and upper z-spring anchor. I still haven't done a thing about the electronics. I guess test fitting the magnets in the axle ends doesn't count as working on the electronics, huh?


Next in line to be milled is the last part to the lower pivot arms. It's the small cylinder that will go into that upper (for now empty) hole on the lower pivot arm. It will be tapered on both ends so the rod ends (there has to be a more technical term for that kind of part) will have room to rotate around its centre sphere more freely. Think I saw that a traxxas rod end have what looks like a small bead sitting on one side of the pivot sphere, acting as a distance to whatever surface it is mounted on to let the rod end move more unobstructed. My IGUS rod ends doesn't have that, so I will solve it like that instead.