The end of the Plug and Play MIMA, and MIMA2
MIMA introduction
MIMA Operation
MIMA Users Page
Installing MIMA with The Plug and Play harness
FAQ
Installing MIMA with the pin replacement harness
software
The MIMA Joystick
Shift lever joystick mounts
Fabricating a mount
Other locations for the Joystick
Some future possibilities
The MIMA Display
The FAS system
DIY MIMA L
Cable impedance problem with last MIMA systems.
Learning to drive with MIMA
Hardwired Harness
Theory of Operation

Fabricating a mount

Fabricating a mount
Lets look at the steps that I took to make my first shift lever joystick mount. The small joystick board has extra material in the corners to allow for screw mounting, but we will be encasing it in epoxy, and want the smallest size possible, so I sanded the extra material off to make the board round.
I covered the shift knob with saran wrap to protect the surface from the epoxy.
I temporarily mounted the joystick board on the shift knob to find the most ergonomic position for the assembly. Black tape is better than the wire tie, as it is difficult to get the tie off when the epoxy is hard. Once I found the position that I liked, I placed a small quantity of the mixed epoxy under the joystick board, and against the shift knob, and further tweaked the position. At this point I put the partially finished assembly aside for the epoxy to harden, as it is very difficult to work with the outer epoxy finished layer while the inner epoxy is still soft.The epoxy can be worked for ~45 minutes to an hour, so you have plenty of time to get the angle just right. Give the epoxy 4-5 hours to get pretty stiff, before carefully placing the outer epoxy to finish the shape. Extreme care must be exersized to not get epoxy into the moving parts of the switches and the joystick. The assembly should be allowed to fully harden overnight.
The hard epoxy can be filed, sanded, drilled, tapped, and is a great material to finish, as it can be brought to a full gloss finish with fine sanding. For this mount, I was not too concerned with the finish, as I was going to cover it with leather. The epoxy can now be separated from the shift knob, and the saran wrap removed. I used black electrical tape to attach the assembly to the shift knob, but a dab of hot melt between the epoxy and the shift knob would also work. A great way to keep black tape from getting gooey is to coat the tape job with clear PVC cement after it is taped, this glues the tape together so it behaves as a unit.
Finally I took some black thin glove leather, and made a leather cover to make the shifter look finished.A look at my #2 and #3 shift lever mounts will show improvements in both look and ergonomics.