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Preview: The SimSit
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Home is where your rump rests
Geoffrey’s design idea for the
SimSit is rather simple. Have a one piece item that can easily
handle the throttle and joystick for most modern HOTAS setups
while at the same time keep the intrusion into space at a
minimum. The SimSit is a fairly simple device in its design
really, a bottom board with two boxes attached which allow
for placement of a HOTAS device. What you get is placement
for a HOTAS setup that allows for easy use of both the joystick
and the throttle quadrant with little interference from any
other item on the desktop.
When I say it is a simple device I
literally mean it. It takes all of about 45 seconds to get
ready to go with the SimSit. Literally, you place the device
on the chair, secure your HOTAS with either the enclosed bungee
straps or with the velcro that came with the SimSit, scoot
up and start flying.
Sitting is probably the first place
to talk about the good and bad of the design. Geoff is considering
various different materials for the construction of the SimSit,
from plastic to wood for the final product. A lot of that
will be based upon the overall cost of the materials and labor
to make them as well as weight (the thing has to be shipped)
and durability. The SimSit I have is essentially made out
of ½ inch plywood on its base. This is a generally
good tradeoff in weight vs. strength. It holds my 200lb frame
well enough and I haven’t heard any creaking as of yet.
It stays on my chair 24/7 and so far it has held up very well.
 As
for comfort, it is a mixed bag for me. The seat is of course
made of hard wood and has a hole cut in the seat to save weight
as well as improve comfort for the sitter. While it isn’t
totally uncomfortable, it does feel somewhat strange. I somehow
got the impression that I was sitting on a toilet seat while
flying. Probably the quickest fix for this was placing a seat
cushion on the SimSit. Cushions are easy to find and can range
from simple foam rubber seats to elaborate massage based items.
This corrected any problem I had before. With a cushion in
place the SimSit was as comfortable as any office chair.
I think the major problem some folks
will have is the loss of comfort that they may have had with
their favorite chair. A lot of folks have invested a large
amount of money in computer chairs that fit them like a glove
and the idea of placing a piece of wood followed by a cushion
on it may seem distasteful for them. I do sympathize but in
all honesty I don’t know of a better way that the SimSit
could be made without placing it on top of a seat. It is a
compromise that I don’t see any rectification for short
of a custom build office chair incorporating a SimSit already
in it.
In reality I think most people will
find this problem relatively small. Seat cushions are cheap
and the SimSit with a cushion is not really a whole lot different
in feel than the hard plywood base with a cushion that most
people are sitting on now. If you have a 500 dollar chair
with the vibrating base and the kung fu grip you might gripe
but most of us don’t have that kind of chair.
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