rec.autos.simulators

The reason I'm asking in here, is that I can't help but notice a lot of
smart people in here. I've tried asking in other forms, but have not
received any sort of an answer.

I've been working on building an electronic musical isntrument for quite
some time, and I want to make the controller for it such that you can use
your finger to simply touch it and slide it left and right for notes.

However, I need something to make it and that's what I can't find:

Something that has a bit of resistance, but still conducts electricity.
Like, maybe 10-20K of resistance across one or two feet. I know there is
such thing as "resistive wire", but I've never gotten my hands on it, and I
don't know much about it. But, I just need anything that would do the
resistance I need in the right distance.

I remember in gradeschool doing a litte trick out of a book with a pencil.
You'd shave off all the wood, leaving just the graphite center. Attach a
light to it, with one contact at the end of the graphite and if you touched
the other contact onto the graphite the light would turn on. Depending on
where you slid the other contact, you could make the light go dimmer or get
brighter. I need something like that...

So if anyone has any strange suggestions that I should try, I can get out
the multimeter :)

Back to the regularly scheduled GTR2002 gushing :)

Mike
http://www.racesimcentral.net/

Resistance wire seems to be what you want.  I have a
catalogue from*** Smith Electronics here in Australia
and they sell wire of 6.08 and 13.4 ohms per metre... so I
figure that if you do a bit of hunting then you should be
able to find something where you live.
Then again, its not exactly 10-20k across one or two feet.  ;)

Maybe instead just get yourself a Theremin.

Beers and cheers
(uncle) Goy

http://www.theuspits.com

"A man is only as old as the woman he feels........"
--Groucho Marx--

Mike,

I've been having a modicum of success (i.e. sometimes it doesn't work) by
using the ESD safe plastic from bags in which tubes of ICs are shipped for
repairing "pitch bend" pads on synthesizers. It works better with the matt
black kind than with the vaguely translucent silvery stuff. Electronics
stores or people who use a lot of components chuck throw them outby the
dozens, so ask them to keep some for you. Can't hurt to try, can it?

Resistive wire might be an option too if you can get it in like a megohm per
meter. Your return address doesn't betray your location, so I don't know how
usefull this is to you but places like Conrad stock it (www.conrad.de).

Jan.
=---

I'm considering, since the resistance is a bit too low, I was thinking of a
solution. Take some strong string and coil the resistive wire around it.
Sort of like a guitar string, only the inside of it would be non-conducting
and the outside would be the resisting wire. By modifying the diameter of
the inside wire/string, I could maybe get it to the proper resistance/length
that I'd need.

Maybe..

I'll check into the resistive wire. I just don't think I'll be able to find
a few meters of it :)

Mike
http://www.racesimcentral.net/

But yeah, what I want to build would be really similar to what you are
working with actually. I want to make a "Ribbon Controller" basically..

I also saw a website using old VHS tape! But the resistance was way too much
for what I need.. I tried audio tape and stuff too, but none of it really
worked good.

Mike
http://mikebeauchamp.com

Mike
http://mikebeauchamp.com

Craig

Here's one solution using ordinary video tape and mylar:

http://www.geocities.com/tpe123/folkurban/synthstick/synthstick.html

It might be worth a try, certainly doesnt cost much :)

Mike
http://mikebeauchamp.com