Advice - Do I build a Deep Cage or Just Screen and Curtains

[Stingreye]

I am on the fence.... The sim room I am building is 14 x 20 (10 feet high) feet approximately. I have the cannopy fittings and will be buying the EMT to build it soon. I am just debating in building a 5-8 ft deep "cage" or just use a screen and blackout curtains to catch a stray shot should it occur.

I am leaning towards no cage and hanging curtains from the ceiling and roof for the sides and roof "protection". Anyone have any opinions or concerns with that setup? Should just do the "cage"?

[goatbarn]

Don't waste money on a cage. Make your sim as wide as it allows and just curtain/pad walls and ceilings.

That'd be my opinion at least. Especially if it's a dedicated setup.

[p3eps]

fluxcapacitor Have a look at my build thread... http://golfsimulatorforum.com/forum/...im-build-v2-uk

The curtain on the left side is just a few inches from the wall, and the one on the right is a few feet as it's a walkway. I've never hit the one on the left, as I'm right handed.

My curtains are Par2Pro HQ curtains. I could fire a full driver directly at them and they wouldn't move! They are double layer, and weighted at the bottom. I don't know what they're made out of, but they are very hard feeling and are very rigid.
They did cost over $1500 for the pair of them though... and they're only 2.5m long by 2.85m tall... and that didn't include the hanging track or hooks!!

[fluxcapacitor]

Thanks p3eps - I think you nailed it - total underestimation on my part on the stopping power. Total underestimation of the price as well haha - but helpful nonetheless. Yes I did browse your build (even before commenting) and it was one of the models I liked most to get ideas from. Thanks for including all the detail. Kind of inspired me to do a detailed walk through of mine once I'm finally all done with it!

[p3eps]

fluxcapacitor - No probs! I'm glad it's been useful. I found so much info on here, that I felt I had to give some back. My first build was my own attempt before any real investigation. My second attempt was using information from this forum, and adapting it to ways that I could make it work in my space.

Yeah the price of the curtains was ludicrous. On top of that I had to pay UK shipping, and import tax. Thankfully someone missed a zero out of the price on the invoice - so the import tax bill was minor in comparison to what it should have been!!

Par2Pro did offer me 2 different types of curtain - but they strongly recommended the HQ ones. I can see why, as they're really good, and will last forever. Unfortunately, like most things in life... you get what you pay for! After my first build attempt, I decided that I'd be better just paying for the good stuff to save me having to upgrade again in the future!!

[Ericft]

I am interested in this as well:

I am revisiting my plan for building a cage as well and just putting screen, net and foam mattress topper and duvet on the wall. I am unsure of how to do it as my wall is open on one side and would not take an angle iron. Any suggestions? Is there an option of putting the EMT frame to the wall as I already have the poles and would then need some different connectors? How far away do I need to be with this setup? Anyone have any pics of a similar setup? And then I would use curtain tracks on the sides to prevent errant shots.
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[cspin]

Looks like from your pics that your missing a wall on the left. I had the same issue and it was pretty easy to resolve. I have angle iron along the ceiling and right wall. I first screwed a 2x4 the length of the ceiling and down the right wall, then anchored the angle iron to that. For the left side, I placed a 2x4 on the vertical and screwed it into the butt end of the 2x4 on the ceiling. Then, used a hammer gun to fasten a small piece of 2x4 to the concrete as blocking, then screwed the bottom of the vertical 2x4 to it. Now you have a sturdy vertical 2x4 as your "left wall" that you can anchor angle iron to. You are basically creating a frame out of 2x4's to secure the angle iron to.

[Ericft]

Cspin, any pics of your setup especially the 2x4 setup on the side?

[tlhammond5]

I had a cage around mine and took it down. It was just unnecessary and in the way. Just hang some netting from the ceiling above head to the top of the screen to protect your ceiling from flop shots.

[leoapd]

There are a lot of great ideas on this site. I am in the initial stages of my build, and have researched various ways to go due to my limited space. In my search I found this set-up...http://golfsimulatorforum.com/forum/...im-build-v2-uk. My room dimensions are very similar to his, and will go with a similar set-up, with some variances.

[wbond]

Ericft Yes you can attach the emt frame to the wall. Since you have the poles, you would just need the "Foot pad" from tarps. com that you would put on the back wall and then connect to the "Flat Roof Corner". If you attach the frame to the wall with the screen, net, foam topper and duvet, you could probably get down to 8" or so clearance to wall. If you hit it like the long drive guys, you may need more clearance. As far as not having a wall, you can also use the "foot pad" on both the floor and the ceiling, then you would need the "Closed T1 or T2" to create your horizontal connection. You have lots of options. Using wood fastened to floor may be your cheapest option vs cost and shipping of the tarps connectors.

I am interested in this as well:

I am revisiting my plan for building a cage as well and just putting screen, net and foam mattress topper and duvet on the wall. I am unsure of how to do it as my wall is open on one side and would not take an angle iron. Any suggestions? Is there an option of putting the EMT frame to the wall as I already have the poles and would then need some different connectors? How far away do I need to be with this setup? Anyone have any pics of a similar setup? And then I would use curtain tracks on the sides to prevent errant shots.
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[leoapd]

In my research for options, I ran into this site and the photos of sim rooms in it. Picked up some really good turf an side curtain ideas. Very nice set-ups, and if anyone on here owns one of these, good on ya!.

http://www.houzz.com/golf-simulator

[cspin]

Ericft,
Here are a few pics of the 2x4 setup I described above. Hopefully they are helpful.

cspin

[Ericft]

Thanks that helps a lot.