Vkb gladiator problem

[Xtremist]

Hello! I am Gergő, (i'm hungarian, sorry for the imperfect english in advance) and i have the following problem: i purchased a new gladiator nxt a month ago. I used it for about 50 hours. Basically i was satisfied with the stick, but the roll axis seemed a bit too tough or kind of sticky from the start. If i tried to move the stick slightly to one side, the movement was not fluid, but a little staggered, and there was an initail resistance to overcome. The pitch axis was not affected. I saw the official video of regreasing, so i ordered nyogel 774 grease, and when i disassembled the stick to apply the grease, i noticed the following: the two pivots in the gimbal for the roll axis are very different in resistance. If i remove every other part (spring, spring levers etc.) and i rotate the pivots, the sensor side pivot moves very sticky, there is a very strong and distinct initial resistance. This applies with the original grease, and stronger with the lighter grease, or even without grease. Meanwhile the spring side pivot moves easily and without detention in rotation. So it seems like the problem is with the sensor side pivot or bearing or shaft part. Can you suggest a solution? Because this stickiness is the thing i can't stand in a joystick, and i don't want to part ways with this gladiator, because otherwise it's an excellent product. By the way, the pitch sensor magnet also became loose, but i fixed it. Thanks for the help in advance!

[fallout9]

Hi Gergő, could you please post some pictures with what seems to be the issue? Nothing wrong with your wording, it's just that a picture is worth a thousand words, so about 4000 words in focus would be simply great

[Xtremist]

Thanks for the immediate answer! The stick is not disassembled right now, but i'll find a fitting picture. There is a plastic block (the one with the notches for the cables from the grip) which the gimbal shaft goes through, and the shaft moves "stickily" in this block. In the atteched picture the red arrow points exactly on the block.

[Xtremist]

It is difficult to rotate the shaft inside the block, regardless the type of lubrication. The other shaft moves entirely freely in its own plastic block, even without any grease. I can't cross check the two blocks (i.e. swap them to see if the problem is from the shaft diameter or the hole diameter of the block) because they are different size. So i suspect this is the cause of the "stiction" in the specific axis.

[Xtremist]

I forgot to mention that the surface of the shaft and the hole are flawless for the naked eye. No unevenness, no scratches or foreign material. The shaft is grooved obviously for the grease lubrication, but apart from that, the contacting surfaces are smooth.

[fallout9]

I understand where the issue's location is, but we need to see what exactly the issue is, that's why pictures of other gimbals won't work.

[Xtremist]

I can take it apart and take pictures, but there is no visible problem, everything looks brand new and flawless. Even if i made a video, you would not see the force necessary to move the gimbal. But the problem is still the unnecessary friction between the parts i mentioned.

[Xtremist]

This is the culprit.

[Xtremist]

A little update on the problem. After a night of thinking and planning, i disassembled the stick, and measured the thickness of the shaft, and lo and behold, its 0.05 mm thicker at the outer end of the sliding surface. With 2000 grit very fine sandpaper, i sanded the diameter even, and rounded the edge of the surface a little. After regreasing and reassembling, the difference is fantastic! So, in the end it seems like a little design oversight of the tight clearances or manufacturing imperfection caused the problem. I hope my experience will help other users should they run into similar situation. The other axis is unlikely to develop this condition, because its pivot and the surface area of the shaft is much smaller. Obviously you should buy Nyogel before attempting this procedure, because the amount remaining on the inner surface of the bore in the plastic block is not enough for adequate damping.

[Xtremist]

Picture of the pivot.