Ghetto Turismo 4: Logitech Driving Force Pro on a modified TV tray
Kontakt the Karpenter

Not having a good place to mount my Logitech Driving Force Pro steering wheel I decided to make something. Calling this "carpentry" would be an insult to real carpenters, but it does get the job done and it was super cheap. It's also easy to remove the wheel and pedals, and no modifications are made to them.

The dimensions of this "cockpit"—wheel to floor, edge of seat to pedals, knee to floor—are sort of close to those in my car, so this feels a lot better than clamping the wheel to a desk or coffee table. (I use my desk chair with this monstrosity, dropping the height as low as it will go—15" from the top of the seat to the floor.)

This ugly thing works because the TV tray is attached to a slab of wood with the pedals on it. The normal pressure of your feet provides enough force to keep the assembly steady. Or at least, steady enough. It isn't a roomy cockpit, but there is actually enough room for your feet and knees to drive comfortably. At least there is for me, at 5' 9".

Ingredients

• 1 Ikea TV tray (plain pine, $8 in the self-serve warehouse)


• 4 small L brackets Or more if you want. Go crazy. (Stanley part 30-3010, 1" Corner Braces worked for me)


• Handful of #8 x 1/2" machine screws for the brackets. Or use some other kind of screw. See if I care.


• Some more random wood screws for holding the pedal assembly together (see below)


• Slab of 1/2" particle board, about 17" x 19". (You may want a deeper piece if you need more distance to the pedals, so do a dry run before you start cutting.)


• Optional 11" x 13" piece of particle board if you want to increase the height of the pedals


• Optional Forstner drill bit (See below. Then again if know what a Forstner bit is, you are lauging your ass off at this whole project.)

Construction

1. Attach the TV tray to the board with L brackets as seen in the picture. Be sure to have the legs with the crossbrace on the front of the assembly.


2. Figure out where you want the pedals, and if you want any extra elevation. For me, an extra 1/2" was good, so I cut an extra piece of particle board for under the pedals. Any more than 1/2" and my knees would be uncomfortably close to the bottom of the tray.


3. Find a couple of screws with heads small enough to fit into the screw holes underneath the pedals. Mount these screws to the base of the assembly. Leave them sticking up about 1/4". If you measured right, you can put the pedals over the screw heads, and they will pop into the holes on the underside of the pedals. Sliding pedals will now not be a problem.


4. Mount the wheel on the TV tray.


5. Optional: You can make the wheel mount more securely by routing out the spots where the clamps hit the underside of the TV tray. Mount the wheel and mark where the clamps hit the wood. Use the woodworking tool of your choice to chew out about 1/8" of wood at these spots. Now the wheel can't wiggle loose as easily.


6. Adjust your seat and drive.