Dave, Car Guy: I Built a Racing Simulator Rig to go iRacing

Given the amount of time I spend at track days, I figured it might make some sense to start doing some simulated racing to cut down on all the tires and brakes I go through. A friend mentioned that he could get me all spec'd out with a good rig set-up to do some serious training on a simulator and get better in the real world. A friend of his is an IndyCar driver and he clued me in to what he uses to train when he isn't on the real track. I figured I'd give it a shot. I'd used some smaller, less intricate driving equipment for car video games, etc. But as I looked further into the world of virtual racing in iRacing.com, I realized this was a whole different animal.

I did some research into iRacing and became pretty excited about trying new tracks, new cars and competing against skilled drivers from around the world. Keep in mind, this all started about September 2020, so there was also the issue of "sheltering in place" and many of my 2020 track days and races having been cancelled.

You'll have to check out iRacing for yourself, but suffice to say it is the most realistic racing simulation available to the common person and it has some very exciting racing going on. All from the comfort of your "rig" and with no risk of bodily harm (ok, maybe tennis elbow or carpal tunnel syndrome).

Components to build my simulation rig:

Gaming PC: MSI Aegis RS Tower, Intel i9 with NVIDIA graphics and 1TB SSD

TV Monitors: MSI Optic G27C2 27" curved monitors (3)

Structural rig: Heusinkveld Sim Rig GT with triple monitor mount and pedal base

Racing Seat: OMP Champ R

Racing wheel base: Simucube 2 Pro

Racing wheel: Cube Controls Formula CSX2 Carbon/Aluminum

Pedal set: Heusinkveld HE Pedals Ultimate

Shifter set: Hesinkveld HE Sequential Shifter

Yeah, it's probably overbuilt, but the direct-drive wheel base and high quality pedal set is what helps you really feel the car's feedback on track. The monitors are for more full immersion, and the gaming PC is necessary to render all the stuff that's going on in real time while racing 20-30 cars being piloted by people all over the world. Oh, and I plugged it directly into an Ethernet cable because WiFi just won't cut it when you need minimal latency in real time.

I was a bit daunted when the rig arrived, in all it's heavy-duty aluminum glory. The parts list was in the 1000's. Bolts, nuts, rails, corners, washers, etc. all had to be sorted out and arranged. I had to use my best "Rain Main" concentration skills just to get ready to start building. And build I did...

Unpack and connect the gaming computer...

Then it was time to put all that rigid aluminum together, one bolt at a time. This thing is really well engineered, like the metal baby love child of an Apple Mac and an Ikea shelving unit.

That took many hours, but now it's ready to start on the fun equipment. Starting with TV Monitors and the pedal set. I initially used the hardest rubber bushings on the brake pedal but later change do the softer green bushings for easier modulation of brake pressure.

Installing the triple-screen TV monitors isn't easy... there isn't just one axis / angle to set. There are a number of levels and angles you have to manage to get them lined up, properly hunkered up next to the adjacent monitor, etc. This part would have been aided by another set of hands holding things in place while turning wrenches on the nuts and bolts.

Next thing I needed to do was "cord management". Many zip ties and finding the most efficient routes from units to computer took some time as well. But the outcome was worth it.