Please post your Simulator Setup Pictures

[ttran1999]

Hi All,

I would like to build a Simulator setup in my basement and would like to get ideas from you. Please post your setup pictures in this thread.

Thanks,

ttran1999

[walb0034]

I'd love to see these too, I draw all my inspiration from you guys and your home sims.

Personally I can't wait for next week, I'm doing my sim in my 1-car garage (about 15x20 with 10 foot ceilings) and next week I'm having a garage door company come and change my opener from 7 foot rails/opener to a high-lift system tight against the ceiling which will allow me to swing a club in there with no concerns over hitting the tracks/opener on my follow-through.

It's $700 I didn't really budget when I started the program, but a completely necessary step to finishing.

I'll post some before and afters once they are done.

[rdh]

Sounds like a cool setup. Yes, as you get into these projects you usually do hit a thing or two you didn't anticipate (it's hard to plan every detail up front!) but it's worth it in the end. A year ago I was in your shoes and it was very exciting seeing it all come together.

[dvshx]

Hope this helps, although it is in the garage

love that set up. for the side netting what
material did u use? is it mounted on the ceiling?

[psace]

Thanks, DV. It is a pretty basic setup. I used commercial netting from ebay and hung it from a ceiling track which I purchased from a local decorating company. The netting is attached to hooks on rollers so I can slide it out of the way when not in use. The screen is cordura attached to the netting and roller hooks. I still plan to add black cordura border around the screen and a little more esthetics this winter.

The whole setup is very durable and I can and do hit real balls at times. I use the 16:9 setting on my projector for a picture width of about 10 feet.

[walb0034]

Psace what are the dimensions of that setup? How far from the screen do you hit?

[psace]

the screen is about 11 feet wide by 10 feet tall. My projector is about 14 feet away and about 9 feet from the floor. My ceiling is over 11 feet tall so I have plenty of heigth. My sim pad is about 8 feet from the screen.

[disco2424]

the screen is about 11 feet wide by 10 feet tall. My projector is about 14 feet away and about 9 feet from the floor. My ceiling is over 11 feet tall so I have plenty of heigth. My sim pad is about 8 feet from the screen.

Where did you purchase the screen from? Do you recall the price for it.

[psace]

disco, I used cordura but it is only about 5 feet wide so I had to have two pieces together. I has a seam but only cost about $2 a yard so was very inexpensive. I bought it on ebay. If I had to do it again I would buy a one piece screen from Cory at Par2Pro. The seam is not very noticeable but I am a little fussy.

[akyyyy]

what sim is that?

[psace]

The pics are of my dancinc dogg simulator setup.

[Kball]

Psace,

What kind of tracking are you using on the ceiling and where did you purchase it? I have a set-up in my basement, but the ceiling is not high enough to swing my driver and thus I am considering putting a set-up in my garage.

Thanks

SORRY - I just noticed that you answered my question above. Does anyone know where ceiling tracking similar to what Psace is using can be purchased?

[bubba22]

I saw this pic on the simple life http://www.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=h...:1&um=1&itbs=1. That isn't the Optishot. I think it is the pro7. Is that your pic rdh?

[psace]

Kball, you should be able to find this aluminum track at any company that sells curtains. I did find the same thing on ebay when I was searching for one. It is almost like the track they use in hospitals to curtain off hospital beds.

[rdh]

Okay...that's freaky bubba. Yes, that was one of my in-progress pictures - not even a finished one! And yes it's my pro 7. This is bizarre...I have no idea why the picture was grabbed and stuck on that website. They're strange times we live in...

[rdh]

Alright, here are a bunch of pics of my actual setup. Some are from the original setup before I had the black canopy over the cage, and the others (with the canopy) were taken this week. My platform is on hinges into the concrete floor so it flips up out of the way when not in use.

(pics 1 to 5 attached here, then the rest on the next posting)

[rdh]

And the last two...

[bubba22]

I thought that was your setup. Kinda weird that someone stole it. Feel like letting them know that it is not a Optishot. Your pics look fantastic rdh. Very nice setup.

[ZMax]

Great setup you got there RDH.

That Vivitek looks tiny. Mine will be here on Tuesday. Which works out pretty good as it gave me time to work on my setup. I spent yesterday building the cage and hanging the screen.

You mentioned that your projector is about 18ft back and your image is about 9.5ft wide. Is that correct? Are you using max zoom? Vivitek's projector calculator is pathetic as it always assume the ratio is 16:9. I can only go back as far as 19ft with 1ft left for the projector.

Your pictures make a good case for a 4:3 setup.

[rdh]

If I'd had a wider garage (wouldn't a triple car garage be nice???) I would have loved to go with a wide cage/impact screen to get a widescreen image at the same height I have now. But, for my setup 4:3 is definitely best - with widescreen the image height is just too low and the overall image looks too small.

I haven't measured the distance to the projector exactly, but it's in the 18ft-19ft range and with full zoom it basically fills the entire width of my 9.5' screen (with a few spare inches on each side for the border). The vivitek isn't small - it's a pretty normal sized projector (similar to my old one). It's just the perspective and distance from the camera that make it look small in that picture.

[walb0034]

rdh what is your cage made of and how is the screen attached to the cage? This is one area where I haven't been able to find a lot of information, and it's the next step in my build.

[rdh]

I actually bought that part of things used on kijiji. It was a package purchased from customdesigngolf originally. They sell corner brackets (heavy duty steel ones) to form the cage shape, then you buy EMT electrical conduit pipe (1/2" I believe) from Home Depot or Lowes in 10 foot lengths that fit into the corner brackets. CustomDesignGolf then sells a 10' x 10' x 10' industrial strength net that fits into the cage. My screen is also from customdesigngolf (but purchased through Cory) and attaches to the bars of the cage using bungee-type connectors. I have a modified setup so I got customdesigngolf to make me a couple custom connectors to facilitate my cage structure. Mine is actually 10' x 10' x 3', but then I have an additional top portion that comes out the front with no bars down to the floor. I attached that to the ceiling with chain for support.

[ZMax]

If you're cheap like me. You can get the hardware(corner fittings) from Ebay for about $40. They're basically batting cage/golf cage fittings. The one I'm using accepts 3/4" conduits and makes a square cage. You slide the conduits into the fittings one after the other(might need a second person to help) and after a few minutes, you have a cage. Total cost for me was $70 for the cage + 40 for a used net. Tie wrap the net around it and then hang your screen. My screen is tie wrapped to the conduit at the top and attaches to the bottom conduit with two bungee cords.

[rdh]

That's not being cheap - it's being smart.

[ZMax]

That's not being cheap - it's being smart.

Well, this project is going to cost me about $2000, including the projector. Which is a lot less then what I was expecting. Obviously the inexpensive DD was a big help.

I'm actually looking for a used P3proswing to add to my setup. I would love to get the 37 courses also but I can't swing the $1000 price tag. A Christmas sale would be nice.

[bubba22]

ZMax you are doing it smart. Used p3pro, grass top custom design and wait for a sale from p3pro for the courses. I suspect they will have a sale over the holidays. Enjoy the dd as it does have its good points.

[ZMax]

ZMax you are doing it smart. Used p3pro, grass top custom design and wait for a sale from p3pro for the courses. I suspect they will have a sale over the holidays. Enjoy the dd as it does have its good points.

That's the plan Bubba22. It's hard to slip $1000 by the wife for a bunch of digital golf courses.

The DD is so much fun....my projector will be here tomorrow.

[ZMax]

Finally got the projector. Here are some pics. The screen is 7.5'x9.5'. Image is 1920x1080p. Projector is 15' back. I need to put up some curtains. Optishot looks awesome on the big screen. The Vivitek puts out a nice image and is definitely bright enough for me.

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[ZMax]

More pics:

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[rdh]

Very nice ZMax! I'm glad you're happy with the projector.