My first ever Sim Build.....Couple of Simple Questions

[chris5sports]

I have a 12' x 15' area in my basement with 12" high ceilings. I am planning on a Skytrak Plus sim into a 10'w x 8'h screen and enclosure setup.
1. How far out can the setup reach without being a swing hazard for drivers? I am thinking 5' enclosure could stick out too far if I have a 1' area behind the enclosure to the back wall?
2. What other models of projectors are equivalent to the BenQ models that can keep up with the graphics and are maybe cheaper?
3. I have found several enclosure sets for cheap that do not come with poles to install, are there places to order poles to fit the size enclosures you have or should I just frame it out with wood and attach the enclosure?

Thanks in advance for any help.

[OttawaP]

I'm 9' from my screen with a 3' enclosure and its about as close as I want to get. By the numbers you could be closer but it would start to feel tight.

[jasonreg]

9 to 10 feet seems to be the sweet spot with 8 feet an 'uncomfortable' minimum. Depends of course on your swing, arm length etc. but if you have the room 9-10 feet is the way to go. Much further back and you start to worry about hitting over your enclosure..... My two cents.

[chris5sports]

9 to 10 feet seems to be the sweet spot with 8 feet an 'uncomfortable' minimum. Depends of course on your swing, arm length etc. but if you have the room 9-10 feet is the way to go. Much further back and you start to worry about hitting over your enclosure..... My two cents.

Awesome thanks for the answer. One more Question do I need to allow for a full 1' between my screen and the wall or is 6" good if I have foam padding or painters tarps?

[jasonreg]

Again, accepted desired norm is 12”. If you have the room, most (including myself) get great results without padding. That said many folks don’t have the room and have come up with innovative ideas to help. 12” is ideal. 9” is better than 6”. I would not go less than 6”.

Again YMMV but if you have the room, just plan the 12”.

[KSG_Buckeye]

I also have a ST plus hitting into a 8' by 10' screen. I moved my tee back to 10' and that works well. My enclosure also sticks out about 5', but I lifted the net up to the ceiling(10') so even with the net, driver does not interfere (and I am 6' 5"). One thing to keep in mind at 10' out is that most full swing wedges will go above the screen, so I added cushioning to my screen border and fortified the top net to catch the wedge shots. 10'
Even after trying to relax my screen, the bounce back is fairly strong so 10' works well.
Even though the screen is 4:3 I mostly plat TGC so I play in 16:9, using a BenQ TK700stI which looks great. But you could find cheaper options that are not 4K which may look just as good.

[Outlaw]

3. You can get the conduit pipe (poles) from any big hardware store (HD, Lowe’s, Menards, etc.)