VKB HOTAS. Phase One.

[fallout9]

Then yes, it could be removed and use the throttle without it.

[Kreutzberg]

Is the analog ministick replaceable with a button module (like on the MCGU)? I don't find analog sticks that useful, though this has plenty of options for hats even if it's fixed!

[fallout9]

Not fixed, but currently no alternative to replace it with something else and can't promise that it will be.

[Papey]

Hi,
can you confirm where to order the upgrade kit from in Aus (noting your comment re already shipping) - the VKB Aus store doesnt list this item yet.

Also, is there a UCM horizontal mount for the STECS standard/STECS max available for purchase on release of the STECS? I had previously purchased the UCM mousepad variant in anticipation of the TECS.

Thanks - and great work! So excited to finally fly HOTAS

You've replied to everyone else's questions except mine? :*(

[fallout9]

Sorry my man, I missed yours
Aus store will be a bit delayed compared with NA store, but shouldn't take longer than 2-3 weeks.
For the STECS Standard you should order the WH throttle plate if you already have the mount (the complete set is this one, but you only need the WH plate, which will replace your existing mouse plate).

[miningkkm1120]

When I used the vkb mk3 product, it was disappointing that when the clutch was used, it did not come completely to the center and stopped around it. I wonder if this mk4 product will return completely even if the clutch is used.
Thank you.

[fallout9]

When it comes to joystick returning to center there are 4 factors to be considered:

Cams - there are soft cams and hard cams. For a precise return to center hard cams are recommended;
Springs - there are 5 sets of springs and each cam could load 2 springs; this means a lot of combinations. For a precise return to center harder combinations are recommended;
Dry clutch - these could be adjusted to cut off the stick oscillations. For a precise return to center the dry clutch has to be completely released;
Deadzone - by default it comes set up to 0.5. I could be easily increased to 1.5-2 without losing any input around center.

Best option guaranteed for the most precise return to center is hard cams with hard springs and dampers completely released. But this could still be achieved with soft cams and hard springs and no dampers. Or even with soft cams and softer springs and larger deadzone. As you could see, there are lots of options. VKB products are made to be messed with by the user. Whatever works for a person wouldn't fit in someone else's preferences, so you could adjust your device perfectly to your liking.

[miningkkm1120]

thx for replying sir,
Is it impossible to return to the center completely with the soft center cam?

and I didnt understand completely about this
"New generation clutch. No stiction soft start, and extra smooth movement."

Can I know the difference from the mk3 and update details in the clutch part?

[PiotrMKG]

So I have Gunfighter mk2 with 20cm extension and will probably buy mk4 will I have to buy new extension for it since it has rev3 pins? Will the new black box recognize my Gunfighter mk2, i want to have two setups, one for heli and one for jets.

[DeadWalking]

That is a good question.
It might have scrolled by on Discord, but I missed it if it did.
I wonder if the extensions will have full upgrades as well?

[fallout9]

thx for replying sir,
Is it impossible to return to the center completely with the soft center cam?

and I didnt understand completely about this
"New generation clutch. No stiction soft start, and extra smooth movement."

Can I know the difference from the mk3 and update details in the clutch part?

It is perfectly possible to return to center with the soft centering cams, but in combination with the other elements; so you could try some stronger springs or to increase the deadzone a bit. If you like a certain setup with weak springs and heavy dampeners (so no chance for the grip to return to center) you could also assign a button on your grip to cut off the pitch and roll axes, so your plane/ship won't drift.

About the new dampeners - they're stronger than the previous. If GFIII had some nylon pads around a metal barrel, the GFIV presents metal brackets with nylon inserts around the gimbal barrels. This provides more smoothness and fine control over the gimbal.

[Asam]

Good morning.
I see the price of each product but I can't find what each model weighs and measures.
Greetings

[1sascha]

Is it impossible to return to the center completely with the soft center cam?

Short answer: It is absolutely possible for the stick to return to center with a soft cam. I use soft center Space-cams and my stick returns to dead center every time I simply let it go from full deflection.

It all depends on your spring-strength and clutch-settings. If you set your clutches too strong for your springs, the clutches will overpower the springs and make the stick return to center only very "reluctantly". If you set your clutches softer or turn them off, the springs will have an easier time pulling the stick back to center - if you go too far with this, the stick will only have minimal dampening and when you let it snap back to center will wobble there before settling into dead center. See my YT-vid linked at the end of this post.
Before you even start worrying about the cams, what you want for most applications is a good combination of spring- and clutch-strength - one shouldn't overpower the other. When I say "most applications", I'm thinking fixed wing aircraft and such where you want a little (or a lot, depending on personal preference) stiffness in your stick.

Perhaps it is easier to describe the difference in feel and behavior between soft and hard cams from the perspective of pushing the stick out of dead-center or pushing through the dead-center-position. With a hard cam there is a much more pronounced "notch" at the center. On the one hand, this notch gives you an unmistakable tactile feedback that the stick is at dead center, on the other hand you have to push through that "notch" at the center when you go from full forward to full backward on Y or from full left to full right on X. It's also very noticeable when the stick is at center and you want to move it out of the center position.

I would imagine this is useful for folks who run light springs and clutches, like for flying helicopters. For my purposes (fixed wing aircraft, mostly WW2-stuff) and my spring/clutch setup, I can't really use hard cams because it doesn't feel right to me, having to push through that notch every time I push the stick through the center position. That doesn't mean that my stick doesn't return to center - it does so very reliably and I *think* even the soft space cams I use have some sort of very mild "notch" at the center, but I could be wrong and it's hard to tell with the strong springs and clutches I run, anyway.

As fallout pointed out, it's not the cams that are primarily responsible for centering your stick. It's your springs. My setup with a MCGP and a 100mm extension is 50+40 springs on Y, 30+40 springs on X. After I had settled on my spring strengths, I dialed in the clutches so that they would give me as much dampening as possible without overpowering the springs. Meaning if I let go of the grip from full deflection, the springs will reliably pull the stick to dead center every single time (I use VKB Config's axes testing tab while adjusting the clutches to verify this behavior). The springs pull the stick back to center while the clutches will prevent the stick from snapping back to center in an uncontrolled fashion and keep it from wobbling when it reaches the center position.

This was shot before I added the extension, so I was running different springs (40+20Y, 20+30X - which was still pretty stiff for an extension-less GF). I already used the same Space-S (soft) cams as I still do and as you can see, the stick returns to center very reliably when I let go of the grip:

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/lzW_tFsy6a0

This is how a halfway decently dampened GF should behave, IMO. The clutches control the motion of the stick and prevent it from wobbling around at the center. Note: I did clean and re-grease my clutches with Nyogel, so I'm not sure how a "vanilla" GF would behave.


You can also see that the X-axis is less stiffly sprung and less dampened than the Y-axis, because the stick wobbles a little more when I pull it left or right and let it go.

With the same Space-S cams but only stock springs (single #20 on both axes) *and* with both clutches completely disengaged, this is what the same stick looked like (ignore the Gladiator at the beginning of the clip):

https://youtube.com/shorts/bq0s7tW5nMI


S.

[reynard11]

Will there be an adapter available to use NXT grips on the MkIV? If so, is there an ETA for it you could share?

Thank you

[fallout9]

Definitely, but still working on it, as there are quite a few items to get upgraded.