Train Simulator Controller: Dashboard Prototyping, Part 2

For two and a half years, I have been working on a real train dashboard modeled on the UK Class 800, starting with fundamental electrical components and instruments, and progressing to the physical structure. In 2025, I have repeatedly iterated on a design. My initial attempts to determine realistic dimensions from photos and other materials yielded a cardboard prototype shown in my preceding blog post (that is, Part 1). That prototype revealed several key errors, including lower portions that were too steeply angled and too tall, and an upper section that was too wide. It also was just barely too tall to fit underneath my large monitor even when the monitor is raised as high as possible on its stand. However, this may be acceptable, as the windscreen on a Class 80x is substantially further from the operator (or driver, since this is a UK-themed simulator) than the dashboard itself, and thus the monitor can be behind the dashboard.

The cardboard prototype thus served its primary purpose, allowing me to compare the shape and layout of my recreation to its apparent size and shape in photographs. It served a secondary purpose of allowing me to test the size and shape of the apertures for my various buttons, selectors, and gauges: and correct the dimensions as needed. Of particular interest are the air gauge (for which I had previously designed the mounting aperture) and the emergency stop buttons, which require a notched hole to prevent the housing from turning while the button is twisted to release it. It remains stashed on a shelf for now, ready to provide further insights as needed.

The next step was to incorporate these discoveries into a refined set of 2D CAD drawings, which I continued to do in QCAD. I also carefully adjusted the measurements to allow for the 3.2mm of thickness at certain edges: I determined that I would have the prototype laser-cut out of 3.2mm-thick hardboard, the same material used for the backing of stereotypical clipboards. I added crenellations (regular rectangular cutouts) at the edges of these pieces to allow them to be fitted and glued together. To make sure I hadn’t made any mistakes, I extruded and virtually assembled the components in Autodesk Fusion, then sent them off for fabrication.

The pieces eventually arrived back, wrapped very thoroughly in a great deal of cardboard and tape, helpfully looking exactly like my 2D design. For a quick sanity check, I assembled the components without any glue or fasteners, and everything appeared to fit where it belonged.

The next step of course was gluing these components together, interleaved with making sure the apertures for the instruments, buttons, and other components remained the right size. I first constructed the upper center portion, gluing together four of the pieces and bolting in the three panels that populate this upper section: TPWS, DRA button, and a combined air gauge, AWS sunflower, and couple/uncouple buttons panel. I haven’t yet inserted the AWS sunflower in the following photos, as it is (very) heavy, and I have doubts about the strength of the hardboard to hold it unsupported.

I then also began to glue together the lower center portion of this center console, in which the speedometer and ETCS touchscreen normally live: since I don’t have an appropriate touchscreen yet, I am proceeding with only installing a speedometer. In Part 3, I will show the remainder of the assembly process, and this console of the dashboard ready to test.