rec.autos.simulators

Can the Nascar Pro wheel (or others) be successfully
mounted on a desk that has a keyboard drawer/caddy?

My desk is primarily a work area in which I occasionally
play games, as opposed to a *** area in which I
occasionally work, so I'm not interested in making large
alterations to accommodate a wheel.

If I can mount on on my desk, are they pretty easy to
attach/remove, or is it a laborious process?

Also, I'm a bit leery of the durability of these
things...seems like I'm reading a lot of complaints. I'll
probably only use the thing 2 or 3 times a week, an hour
or so at a time. Is the thing gonna ***out in two
months?

Thanks for any advice.

--

Prophet and Interpretive Dancer
Fixer of broken stuff

Ken,

I just got the wheel two days ago (NASCAR Pro wheel).  I have a desk
with a sliding keyboard tray underneath.  The wheel hooked up with no
problem what so ever.  The cam they use to mount the wheel is superb.
My desk has a "lip" on it and the cams fit right over it and tightened
right up.

My desk too is also a combo work/play area =)  Although the last 3 days
have been all play!

I found the installation and caliberation flawless and I was pleasantly
suprised at the feel of both the wheel and pedals.  I had been reading
mixed reviews from people on the list about this wheel/pedal combo.
I can only say I think the pedals are great, but do take a little
getting use to.  I havent had the problems that others seem to have with
the angle of the base.  Also.. when mounting the wheel. DO NOT mount it
to the sliding keyboard tray... mount it to the top of the desk
itself.... gives you plenty of leg room and no problems. (Im 6ft 3in and
250lbs....  so I guess this will qualify for most other individuals ;)
).

Scott B. Husted
http://www.racesimcentral.net/~sbhusted

Ken,

Let me share my tidbit !!   I didnt get the wheel for Christmas.. but my
Birthday is coming up soon.  So I talked my wife into getting it for me
early.  We went to Best Buy on Friday night.  About 20 minutes before
they close.  They had a instant rebate of $30.00, bringing the price
down to $99.00.  They were all out.  I asked the "professional sales
representative" if they had any in the back and he said no. I asked when
they might have some in... he said not for a few days.  The rebate
expired on Sat.  So i asked if I could get a raincheck for the wheel
with the rebate..... and he asked his boss and came back and said no...
we wont give you the rebate on a raincheck.  So I told him to forget it
and went to the ball and paid $129.99 at EBX.  The next day, Sat, we had
to return a phone to Best Buy that me and my wife bought for her parents
for Christmas.  Guess what ?!?!?  They had about 10 NASCAR Pro Wheels
sitting on the shelf!!!!   So I went and asked the "suprevisor" why I
was told that they wouldnt have anymore in for a few days when I was
just in the store the night before... 20 minutes before they closed, and
Im here 2 hours after you open and you have 10 on the shelves ????  He
said he didnt know why I was told that because all the sales
representative had to do was look it up on the computer that they would
have some with the shipment coming in the previous night!!!  So.. I was
a little upset.  I went home, packed up the wheel and took it back to
EBX.  I paid by check so I have to wait for up to 14 days to get a
refund check from the main office.  No big deal I guess.   I go back to
Best Buy.  The guy rings me up and tells me its $129.99 !!!!!   I was
totally ticked off.  I made the sales rep go and find the supervisor
again and he said that today was the last day for the rebate and that it
was indeed $99.99.  I did get the wheel for $99.99  

I can say this.  I will never buy another piece of merchandise at Best
Buy unless I can save SIGNIFICANT money on the good.  I wont do it to
save $5 or $6.  It would have to be $10 or greater or I wont buy it from
them.  I will only buy software from EBX anyway because they have a no
hassle return policy even if the software is unwrapped.  Not many places
will do that.

Then... after we had returned the phone to Best Buy... we went to
Circuit City to purchase a different phone.  (No way was I going to get
anything else from Best Buy).  We found a phone we liked but couldnt
purchase it because the computers were down.  We waited 45 minutes at
Circuit City and finally just left.  

We ended up at Service Merchandise.  Found the phone we liked.  Went to
the clerk and it was out of stock *DOH*!!!!   However the sales clerk
there was a nice guy who said I will order it for you and have it
shipped free of charge within 10 business days.  I said do it and
thanked him.  At least offered to SOLVE the problem.

Customer Service in America is truly dead.  These retail organizations
hire complete idiots for $5.50 an hour and wonder why they cant keep
help. (I dont mean to stereotype everyone... Im sure there are some
intelligent people out there just trying to make a living and some
money).

So thats how I spent my weekend.  Besides that....  Im happy as can be
with the NASCAR Pro Wheel.  Everything loaded without a hitch.  The only
thing I got confused with for about 30 seconds was when i loaded
Thrustmasters ProPanel and went to calibrate the wheel it said
unplugged.  Once you uncheck the box that says rudder... the problem is
solved and you are ready to go!!

Have to say Im in the middle of a Season for both Winston Cup and Busch
Grand National for N2 and am currently running at Darlington.  Im in 1st
at 100% in the race with about 150 laps to go.  Having a blast!!  I did
have trouble at this track using the joystick...  but using the wheel
with the pedals makes a huge difference with car control.

Scott B. Husted
http://www.racesimcentral.net/~sbhusted

thank you,
Jeff

I have a desk w/drawer & a Nascar Pro Wheel.  I have had marginal
success using it -- attaching it to the desk is a real problem.

Normally the Nascar Pro wants you to point the "grip bars" (couldn't
think of a better term) that grab the desk from underneath pointing
straight back toward the back of the desk.

I have turned them 90 degress to the outside and my left one is pointing
to the left and the right one is pointing to the right.  If I remove the
keyboard from the drawer (unplug it) and sit it on the desk, I can
connect the wheel to my desk but it is not a tight grip.

Also, the Nascar Pro wheel does have reported durability problems.

Thanks,
Doug