Foretravel Owners' Forum For owners and Fans of Foretravel Motorcoaches September 09, 2025 ...

Re: Bluefire monitoring for Ipad

Reply #25 – July 14, 2020, 12:37:34 am

Like the plane dash.  I did not like digital displays as the extra split second it took to translate the digits into meaningful things were delayed.  Plus was hard to show rate of change.  Your color change and the bars look to have addressed that issue. The long ago F18 live cockpit I sat in had round gauges with the needles vertical if nominal.  Green lit?  Red needles?

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Re: Bluefire monitoring for Ipad

Reply #26 – July 14, 2020, 10:32:59 am

Bob,

When a white digit starts flashing red, no matter where you are looking, you notice it.  Yes, the bars are excellent. The oil temp is even red to start with cold oil. #40 in the winter could possibly shear the oil pump shaft. Sorry the close up was not clearer.

You may have noticed that I was about 150 rpm over redline. New Lycon engine that dynoed at 205 hp. 163 mph true is a record for the Grumman Traveler. Fixed gear and stock muffler. Can't do that long or the CHT goes over 450 degrees.

P

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Re: Bluefire monitoring for Ipad

Reply #27 – July 14, 2020, 12:17:18 pm

Bluefire does it all, gauges can be oriented needles up or how ever you want I am a gauge person but like to have bar graph/text gauges as well, again all can be done in Bluefire.  I decided to go this way because I had two very nice iPads that were not being utilized, I also downloaded the VMSpec and played with it on my Windows based tablet but decided I didn't want the big screen on the dash.  Again I think both are very nice setups and I do not have a dog in the hunt to sell, make commissions etc just providing information for anyone that wants to see my experience with Bluefire.  And this is a forum for all of us that own these magnificent coaches to learn, get info etc

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Re: Bluefire monitoring for Ipad

Reply #28 – July 14, 2020, 12:24:27 pm

My earlier post got removed by accident.

The round gauges on the Blue Fire display do not appear to be able to rotate. Maybe they do, I didn't see how to do it. It would be interesting to see them all pointing up as normal.  No gauges show rate of change of the readings on Blue Fire as far as I can tell. VMSpc has a moving value gauge that will show any values you want over of a period of time.  For example you could see what coolant temp has done over the past few minutes.

I hope BlueFire users report back on how well it works.

I have helped users install more than 60 VMSpc systems on FTs and a few SOBs now.  Feedback from users helps adapt and create new displays.  I have done beta testing on Silverleaf's next version which will have round gauges and concluded the the screen space used by a round gauge compared to the information you get is high.  The same is true for tire pressure monitoring displays. 

I have always thought that detail numbers are not critical under most conditions.  It makes no difference if your coolant temp is 178° or 184° as long as it is in a range that you decide is normal for your engine.  When it moves outside of that normal range you want to be alerted to it and adjust your driving to adapt ... use a lower gear, lower engine load, increase RPMs.  Taking your eyes off the road to try to read specific numbers on several gauges or where arrows are pointing takes too much time from the critical task of paying attention to the road.  And this applies to the existing FT gauge display, a VMSpc display Or a Blue Fire display. 

Most of my displays include a cluster of critical gauges that have big numbers and big indicator lights.  It is very easy to see with just a glance that all are in the green range and you are good to go.  The reason to have a more comprehensive data display is to help to you be a better driver and operator and to do it in a way that doesn't detract from your safety.

VMSpc displays can be exchanged between users.  The same with Parameter files which contain customizable gauge range limits, labels and abbreviations.

Blue Fire hardware appears to be cheaper from some sources than the Silverleaf VMSpc hardware and cables. All of my kits from the simplest DIY kit to the most advanced performance kits come with ready to use displays, instructions for installation, use, and display modification or development.  The kits all come with an installation supply package.  And they all come with lifetime support from me either by phone, email, text or remote access for direct support. 

You can get an adequate Windows 10 PC for just over $100.  Some have had good luck with these. They have very limited memory, storage and warranty but for the price they are almost a disposable.  Better quality PC tablets are under $200.  And there are several good quality 2 in 1 PC laptop/tablets for about $300. Almost every kit buyer uses the PCs that come with the kits as a dedicated device for VMSpc.

AnyVMSpc screen can be displayed in any iPad or android tablet used as a remote display, just a bit more complicated for many.
No matter which way you choose, the goal of these systems is to gather and display more information to help you be a better driver and operator in a safe way. 

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Re: Bluefire monitoring for Ipad

Reply #29 – July 14, 2020, 12:26:58 pm

I tested the screen thrower program that can send my notebooks screen to my iPad and the notebook can be set to stay on with the lid closed.  $5 program?

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Re: Bluefire monitoring for Ipad

Reply #30 – July 14, 2020, 01:06:48 pm

I'm perfectly happy with my all digital vmsPC layout. Totally my own design. The gauges closest to the driver are my most monitored.

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Re: Bluefire monitoring for Ipad

Reply #31 – July 14, 2020, 04:14:14 pm

Quote from: pressuresolutions – July 13, 2020, 12:38:49 am

Yes it's a ram mount

Thanks!

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Re: Bluefire monitoring for Ipad

Reply #32 – July 15, 2020, 01:29:35 am

Roger, all the gauges are able to be rotated in any way you see fit, as well as setting up warning/danger alarms as well as recording your very own audible alarms.  I like that I can have not only text gauges but dial gauges as well and any mix and match of the above as well.  I did a very detailed testing of each of the two monitoring software packages and decided to go with the Bluefire because of the versatility for my particular needs and wants, and I had two nice iPads that I wanted to use as well.  I did like the VMSpec as well just decided to go with the Bluefire.  Again the analog dial type gauges were my big requirement because of operating off road race cars for years and that's how my brain likes to see things, as well as idiot lights to keep me on my toes when it comes to problems.  I think they are both equally well suited and each has its great points and drawbacks as well.  It's great that we can get on here and see things get info from some amazing knowledgeable people like yourself and be able to make great educated decisions.

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Re: Bluefire monitoring for Ipad

Reply #33 – July 21, 2020, 03:32:23 am

More tweaks to my dash layout

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Re: Bluefire monitoring for Ipad

Reply #34 – July 21, 2020, 11:12:24 am

Does the software have bar graph capability?

I had round gauges but on most tracks, there was no time to spend on gauges as there was way too much traffic. Check the videos for one of my favorite tracks, Saugus Speedway in SoCal. Always an inverted start that invites chaos and one yellow flag after another.

Pierce

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Re: Bluefire monitoring for Ipad

Reply #35 – July 21, 2020, 11:43:54 am

If you're talking about the gauges, yes, most if not all round gauges can be changed to bar gauges.  The software calls them linear gauges.

If your talking about histogram gauges to plot values over time, I don't think it does that without some additional processing.  It does track data logs and it let's you choose which which parameters to log.  I think you could use the data in those logs to plot bar graphs, but I haven't done that.

There's a forum with a growing community of people that have built lots of custom dashboards and posted them for other's to use.  You might find some examples there.

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