For any driving/flight sim etc gamers. Lap mount gadget.

[loggyboy]

A friend of mine has developed a wheel/joystick lap mount and is now on Kickstarter.

Kickstarter Link.

Obviously theres no guarantees with kickstarter but that that price its worth punt (IMO, and I was the 2nd person to invest so have put my money where my mouth is!)

 

[Cookie]

423 grand seems like a steep goal

 

[Crybert]

What stops me from making something like this myself?

It looks extremely simple..Would be able to make it unique to my leg shape etc aswell

 

[loggyboy]

What stops me from making something like this myself?
It looks extremely simple..Would be able to make it unique to my leg shape etc aswell

Nothing - go ahead! Its is patented so you wouldn't be able to marker yours, but yes, its not a complex product, but there is nothing on the market like it for those without the time/effort/ability to make their own.

423 grand seems like a steep goal

Yes - I think hes set that at the ultimate level to mass produce and market world wide - I hope that even a small percentage of that should allow production of enough to supply to those who invest.

 

[Crybert]

I could make mine similar and patent mine though. Just playing devils advocate mate!

Would he be better off making as many units as possible and sell them or has he already done this? Any idea what the price mark would be? I do like the idea but most folk go for the whole set up if they're willing to spend the money on a proper wheel etc. Does he have something for the pedals?

 

[loggyboy]

I could make mine similar and patent mine though. Just playing devils advocate mate!
Would he be better off making as many units as possible and sell them or has he already done this? Any idea what the price mark would be? I do like the idea but most folk go for the whole set up if they're willing to spend the money on a proper wheel etc. Does he have something for the pedals?

Well the whole idea of a patent is that you cant just patent your own, as he would have got there first! Ive no idea what he plans for a retail price, as the whole principle of him creating this is there was little to compare it to - but us the gaming stands usually retain at ~£100 I would suspect it would be about that level.
As with all projects the initial outlay is a massive risk, so the kickstarter route shares that risk out to those willing to take a chance. I cant see what you would need for a pedal mount, the whole idea is to keep it to the basics to save space.

 

[HarvB]

Looks like a neat solution, hope it goes well!

 

[Jonnio]

Looked a bit weird at first but does make sense to save space. Has he spammed racing forums (GTPlanet etc) lol?

 

[iain187]

I was reading an article about how you can hack certain wheels to work with the PS4 - I couldn't be arsed but I had considered doing it and making a very similar product

 

[Toypop]

Crying out for something like this. I just have no room on my desk for a wheel or flight stick and sadly flight sims became unusable without such devices a long time ago and driving games are rapidly approaching that point where even casual stuff like Forza and GT are poor with a pad.

 

[mace¬]

Can he pay himself £400,000 in wages if he reaches the target?
Who audits what he spends the money on?

 

[McGherkin]

The problem with anything leg mounted is there's loads of movement in the controls, I know I couldn't do anything like heavy drifting with that. If it were me, I'd have some sort of plate to sit on, with a post that comes up between the legs (that the upper part lifts off of), then that desk, erm thing, which is actually pretty well designed, looks good. That way you have your whole weight over it, effectively immobilising it better.

However, for a compact solution for making things more rigid and stable, it does the job nicely and will probably suit a lot of people. Not sure £400k is going to be achievable in a reasonable period though given the size of the market for this type of product compared to a wheel stand or similar.

 

[loggyboy]

Can he pay himself £400,000 in wages if he reaches the target?
Who audits what he spends the money on?

I can vouch for the guy, I've been good friends since school and can be 100% sure this statement from the page is true.
Now I know what you’re thinking, man that targets high! But that includes all the shipping costs and taxes, the profit from each sale goes towards paying for the tooling. To give you the product at the best prices means more sales which means more shipping costs! I’m not making any money out of that target, that is just my break even point! I’ve covered all the cost to date and these are not included in the target, I’m also not making any profit I’m just grateful to you for getting my business of the ground!

 

[mace¬]

I can vouch for the guy, I've been good friends since school and can be 100% sure this statement from the page is true.
Now I know what you’re thinking, man that targets high! But that includes all the shipping costs and taxes, the profit from each sale goes towards paying for the tooling. To give you the product at the best prices means more sales which means more shipping costs! I’m not making any money out of that target, that is just my break even point! I’ve covered all the cost to date and these are not included in the target, I’m also not making any profit I’m just grateful to you for getting my business of the ground!

No sorry, I didn't mean this bloke in particular, I mean the website in general?